PARENT BULLETIN
June 22, 2017
 
final bulletin of year
DAN'S BLOG 

Today is the deadline to go online to our school website here and choose the various school programs, events, and tasks you would like to volunteer for during the upcoming 2017-18 school year. Thanks for taking care of this!
If you want to get a head start on your 2017-18 volunteer hours this summer, please consider the following two ways. First, you may "adopt-a-garden." This is a school program where we count on volunteers on their own time, to weed, prune, and rake a small, designated area on our grounds approximately once a month all year long. Contact fellow school parent Megan Kirk to help figure out your adopted area. We have some sad, neglected areas on our grounds this summer that need some help! A second idea for volunteering is to contact vice-principal Mike Fuerte if you will be able to give one or two days in August to help him unbox and distribute to the classrooms all the books and supplies ordered over the summer and/or to help us move our north wing classrooms' boxed supplies and student desks to the main building. We need adults and grade 7+ students to help with this physical labor. ...but currently we are short of enough helpers to get the jobs done! YIKES!
Thanks for considering contacting Mike or Megan now and volunteering your backs. ...but please stretch first! We don't want any workers compensation claims.☺
Then when you are ready to begin recording your hours as you begin volunteering for the new school year, you may do this at the "submit hours" link at http://web2.stlouiseschool.org/volunteer.  If you have questions about volunteering for next year, please contact the Parents' Club's Volunteer Coordinator, Marinell Zevenbergen.
This afternoon Lola and Mindy are heading to the post office to mail the Report Cards to all K-8 students, provided their parents fulfilled the following commitments:
  • 2017 Auction procurement for returning families (minimum $200 donation by May 31; $250 after May 31).
  • 2017 Auction Grade Project/Art Fee of $20 per-family for returning families.
  • 40 Volunteer Hours logged in for this 2016-17 school year (or $18.00 per hour fee paid in lieu of volunteering).
  • Minimum $125 profit/rebate of Charger Card completed.
  • At least initial pledge to the 2017 Annual School Gift Campaign (ASGC) sent in to school. (Thanks for continuing to make payments if paying in monthly or quarterly payments.)
  • Tuition (and any Kids' Club fees) for 2016-17 paid in full.
If you do not receive your child's report card by Tuesday of next week, either you have not fulfilled one or more of the above commitments ...or something went wrong at the post office. Please contact me directly if you have any questions with the above bullet points. Please contact Lola or Mindy in the school office (425-746-4220) if you know you've fulfilled your commitments but the report card fails to show up by Tuesday.

Next Friday the 30th is the last day the school office will be open for a month. The school shuts down during the month of July, and reopens daily beginning August 3. Now, I say the "school" shuts down, but I really mean the exterior doors lock, because there will still be a lot going on here. The hammers and drilling continue every day in July on the 2nd floor of our main building as construction takes place to build our four classrooms - 6th grade rooms, reading room, math room. It's exciting to know that by the end of summer we'll have four newly constructed classrooms!

When we unlock the exterior doors on August 3rd and the office staff returns to work daily, that is also the day we'll hold the Kindergarten and PreK "playdate" on the BigToy from 3-4PM. So if your child will be in either of those grade levels, please come to meet the other families. Also on that day from 4-6PM in the original school's St. Louise Room, the Used Uniforms, Charger Gear, and Charger Cards Sales will take place. All school families should plan to attend if in town.


Thanks for reading...this week and all year long! My next Parent Bulletin will be published in mid-August.

Mr. FITZ

p.s.
 
Have safe travels, and I hope your children - in between their consistent reading and math that will keep them from that dreaded "summer slump" - will be able to do old-fashioned and physically active "kid things," such as bike riding, swimming, hiking, tent camping, water balloon and squirt gun fights, and backyard badminton games. In other words, I hope the screen time is kept to a minimum, while the physical time is nonstop. Read this great article which helps give you strategies to make keeping your children physically active with limited screen-time your parenting goal for the next two months.
School Calendar
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NEXT WEEK
 
Tuesday, June 27
  • Report Cards should be arriving in the mail by no later than this evening
Friday, June 30
  • School Office closes at 3:30PM; closed during month of July; reopens daily beginning August 3

SAVE THE DATE
 
Tuesday, July 4
  • Happy Independence Day! Of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence, how many were Catholic? The answer may surprise you!
Monday, July 10

Thursday, August 3
  • PreK and Kindergarten Playdate on BigToy, 3-4PM
  • Used Uniform and Charger Gear Sales in St. Louise Room (central wing of original school), 4-6PM
  • Charger Cards on sale during uniform sale
  • School Office reopens - daily hours 7:30AM-3:30PM
Calling All Gently Used Uniform Pieces
          Our Used Uniform inventory could use some more skirts, pants, sweaters, etc. in good, clean condition to sell at the summer sale. If your kids have outgrown their uniform pieces, please send them freshly laundered to the school office (7:30-3:30) before it closes on the 30th. Our Used Uniform coordinator, Marisa Riffe, would love to add them to the August 3rd sale.
Announcing an Optional Way to Purchase School Supplies this Summer
          We have posted online our 2017-18 School Supplies list. On the first day of school - Passport Day/September 5 - all students are to come to school with these supplies. Families may take the traditional route to purchase supplies:
  • Take the list to your local store when the August sales hit the papers - Fred Meyer, Target, Walmart, Staples, etc.
  • Use pre-purchased CHARGER CARDS to pay for the supplies.

          However, a new way is being unveiled this summer that you may want to try out! You may now purchase school supplies by ordering online and having them shipped to your door!  Our St. Louise Parents' Club is teaming up with ClassBundle.com - an online site where a school lists their unique supplies, and parents order and pay online. The box of your child's specific grade-level supplies are shipped to your home. Our Parents' Club earns 5% commission for each ClassBundl order, and they'll be using this revenue to pay for enrichment grants, bringing future school assemblies to your kids.

          You may get started at the St. Louise page at  www.classbundl.com/965 anytime this summer to order (but don't wait too late in August to order, as we're not sure how long the delivery time will be during crunch time).
We Have Extraordinary Volunteers at St. Louise         
          At our end-of-year liturgy, school parent Amy Wilken was awarded with one of the three Volunteer Extraordinaire Awards, handed out annually by the school. (Amy is pictured at right with her family, after receiving the award.) Also receiving Volunteer Extraordinaire Awards this year were Lisa Storniolo and Kevin & Katy Blair.
          St. Louise School is blessed to have literally hundreds of engaged parents, and it's always difficult to narrow down to three a year those who receive this special recognition. The recipients are chosen from nominations received from parents and school staff. We know Amy, Lisa, Kevin, and Katy accept this honor as representatives of the outstanding volunteers they have worked alongside in their various school jobs, committees, events, and CYO teams.

St. Louise School Receives Great News
          Mr. Fitzpatrick received the following letter in the mail the last week of school...
 
 
Dear. Mr. Fitzpatrick,

Western Catholic Educational Association has granted St. Louise School accreditation through June 30, 2023. In recognition of the quality of Catholic education at your school and your dedication to the students, WCEA is pleased to present your with a certificate of accreditation. May God bless continue to bless your school community.

Sincerely,
Nancy J. Coonis
Executive Director
 

      
          As you recall, we began working on this last accreditation and self-study process as early as the 2015-16 school year, and finished up in this past 2016-17 year. Being accredited implies that a school subscribes to a process of voluntary self-regulation that is a constructive experience designated to improve the quality of the school. An accredited school is not required by the state for elementary schools, but it is required by the Archdiocese for Catholic schools - all 71 high schools and elementary schools. When our accrediting body - the Western Catholic Educational Association - accredits us every six years, they are certifying that we annually meet the prescribed quantitative and qualitative standards and have undergone a self-study with validation by a visiting team of educators. Accreditation is just one way of assuring our school stakeholders (i.e. parents, parishioners, and other supporters/donors) that St. Louise not only meets the minimum standards, but has a valid school improvement plan, and is engaged in an ongoing self-study and on-site peer-evaluation process.
In 1994, Dan Fitzpatrick volunteered our school when the Archdiocese began their association with the WCEA and asked which schools would be willing to be the first to engage in the accreditation process. That year, St. Louise became one of the first three Catholic elementary schools in the entire Seattle Archdiocese to undertake a self-study process and become accredited. At that time, no other Catholic elementary schools in Western Washington undertook this accreditation process. Years later, this self-study/accreditation process became mandatory for all schools. Our school has now been accredited four times over the past 23 years, assuring our school's stakeholders that our school has constantly been achieving effectively and helping develop plans for ongoing improvement. No other school has more accreditations than St. Louise!
          Yes, we should all be proud to be Chargers!

30-Love
       Do you have any used tennis balls at home or have a connection to a tennis club who could donate old balls?
          We use old tennis balls as cushions on the feet of the legs of our art room stools. Mrs. Walker would appreciate any tennis ball donations be delivered to the school office so we can "install" them on the art room stools this summer. Thanks!
Plan for Reading & Math This Summer
          Teachers worry about the perils of "summer slump." Students spend 10 weeks away from school over the summer and then come back in September seeming behind where they left off in June. "Summer slump" can occur in both reading and math. Therefore, this June through August, we have suggestions and/or requirements to combat this slump, as you'll see below.
          We are making summer READING a strong recommendation for your children moving into grades K-5 this fall, and a REQUIREMENT for your children moving into grades 6-8. In this way, we hope to assure your kids will not just exercise their bodies with their swimming, biking, and sports camps over the summer, but they'll exercise their brains too. Did you know that a study conducted at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, based on surveys and test results for 1,600 elementary school students, concluded that children who read more books over the summer scored higher on reading comprehension tests in the fall than those who did not read over the summer?
          If your child will be entering grades K-5, please go HERE to see the recommended list of summer reading, as prepared by our teachers and Mrs. McIntosh.
          For those students entering grades 6-8 in the fall, your summer reading of novels is explained HERE by next year's language arts teachers - Mrs. Patterson and Mr. Gallant. The teachers have both a list of your required novels as well as written assignments to be completed after you finish reading the books. These assignments are due on the first day of grade 6-8 language arts class in September.
          "Summer slump" isn't confined to reading. Ten weeks of vacation from doing any math will also cause a child to return to school forgetting a fair amount of what he/she spent the past school year learning. Thus, we really encourage parents to set up a summer plan for MATH work.
          Some suggestions include having your child complete the math packets the teacher might send home in June or complete the unfinished math workbook pages your child brings home on the last day of school.  Some parents purchase a math workbook at an educational store such as this one, or online such as here or here, and have their child complete one workbook page every day or every-other-day. Others have their child complete the free online math lessons on the Khan Academy website.
           Whatever works for your family for summer math practice, the important thing is to make it consistent, continual practice. Having your child do 20 pages in a math workbook the last week in August (e.g. "cramming") isn't the same as having your child do 10 minutes of math daily, for 5 days a week, for 10 weeks of summer. We suggest you make daily (or every-other-day) math be the "carrot" for your child's summer of fun. As one example, you tell your child on Monday morning that he/she can join the family at the beach Wednesday afternoon provided 30 minutes of math work on Khan Academy or one math workbook page is completed before then.
          We're sure you can come up with a family plan that you'll stick to that keeps your child from "summer slump." Thanks for working as partners with the St. Louise teachers so to help your children have a more successful start in September!
St. Louise Honors Alumna Who Donates Kidney to Fellow School Alumnus as Our ' Distinguished Graduate'
          Members of the St. Louise School community often comment on the lifelong bonds that form there between students and families. The values of taking care of others and doing good are deeply ingrained in the boys who wear the St. Louise red sweaters and the girls who wear the St. Louise plaid skirts through the teachings and actions of this tight knit, caring community. At the end of 2016, we learned of a heartwarming story of two St. Louise alumni, which beautifully illustrates the lasting bonds and compassionate principles of St. Louise School families.
          Starting in the 1970's, the Heily and Budig families had their children enrolled at St. Louise while living in the surrounding Bellevue neighborhoods. The Heily family had five girls attending, while the Budigs had four children enrolled. Jim Budig was in the 8 th grade graduating class of 1981, but it was when he was in 2 nd grade at St. Louise that he learned he had inherited the kidney disease that his mom lived with - Polycystic Kidney Disease, or PKD. What that meant to this young sports enthusiast was not just a ban from playing all contact sports, including his beloved football, but an uncertain future.
         Meanwhile, in Jim's graduating class was Erin Heily, and a year ahead of her, in the St. Louise Class of 1980 was Erin's sister, Theresa . Theresa and Jim didn't interact much during their years at St. Louise, but little did they know that their St. Louise School community link would bring them together unexpectedly later in life.
          When Theresa was in 6 th grade, her family experienced a devastating loss, and the St. Louise community's response cement ed in her what she already knew: in this interconnected community, we help each other. While playing outside at recess one day, she and her fellow students noticed smoke, and could see that a nearby building was on fire. Theresa later learned that her family home had burned down that day. Four decades later, Theresa says she still can't forget the outpouring of support from the St. Louise community in response to their loss. Everyone rallied around them as their family recovered and built a new home. Being raised in the St. Louise community, Theresa said they were all raised in a "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" kind of way. The loving support of her St. Louise community left a lasting mark.
         Fast forward to the year 2013. Jim, long since graduated from St. Louise, started to experience kidney failure after years of living with PKD. Of all the friends Jim created in his childhood, he says he stayed in closest touch with those friends he made at St. Louise School. As he waited on the cadaver donor list for a kidney, which can mean a wait of three to four years for a donor. In November of 2015, Jim took a chance and put a post on Facebook. His lighthearted post read, "If you have a kidney lying around, I could use it ☺ ."
          Jim later learned that many people contacted the University of Washington Medical Center in response to his Facebook post to find if they could be a match and donate one of their kidneys. And while the donation process is anonymous, nearly every one of the individuals who let Jim know they had tried to be a kidney donor was a St. Louise School classmate. This included four of the Heily girls.
          Jim's St. Louise classmate, Erin Heily, tried to help, but learned that she was unfortunately not a match. However, on the morning of his 50 th birthday, October 28, 2016, Jim got a Facebook message from Erin's older sister, Theresa , which rea d "Hey Jim, gi ve me a call re: your kidney."
          Although Jim and Theresa didn't know each other well, they still had that special St. Louise School link. Later that day, the two connected over the phone, and Theresa gave Jim the news that not only was she deemed a donor match, but she was happy and willing to donate one of her kidneys to him. Theresa mentioned to Jim that one of her children lives with only one kidney, so life with one kidney was familiar territory to her.
          Jim, now living in Los Angeles, and Theresa in Portland, both flew in to Seattle on the Saturday before the surgery, December 10, and got to know each other better. They got together with many of their old St. Louise classmates that night, who gathered in Seattle from the corners of the U.S. to show support and wish them well.
          After the successful transplant surgery at the UW Medical Center on December 13, 2016, Jim says his recovery has been nothing short of miraculous. The doctors had initially told Jim to expect up to three months of recovery in the Seattle area. But the transplant had gone so well, the kidney started working immediately. Both Jim and Theresa spent only four nights at the hospital. A mere nine days following surgery, Jim was released to fly home to Los Angeles, which meant Christmas at home with his wife and son. His doctor told him it was the fastest recovery he'd seen in the history of his medical career.
          Since returning to their normal lives after surgery, Jim and Theresa continue to keep in touch and have become good friends. They typically talk to and text each other every week. They've had lots of conversations about "gratitude." Theresa feels overwhelmed by Jim's understandable gratitude for how she literally changed his life with her kidney donation.
Theresa simply thinks it all worked out for reasons they don't fully unde rstand. It was just something she was willing to do, as it went back to the heart of her childhood lessons learned at St. Louise. In Theresa's words:  "It is important to lead by example; everyone can do something, and when they can, they should. If not you, then who?"
          On June 8, 2017, St. Louise School, together with the National Catholic Educational Association, awarded Theresa with the honor of St. Louise School ' s 2017 Distinguished Graduate for her selfless and life-saving act of donating a kidney to Jim.



 

At the June 8th End-of-School-Year Liturgy, when we honored Theresa Heily Trelstad as Distinguished Graduate, are (front center) Jim Budig and Theresa Heily Trelstad, surrounded by their family members.

  
AUCTION NEWS 
 
 
Art Project Fee
If you forgot to make your $20 per-family art project fee by the May 31st due date, please go now to make this payment online: stlouiseschool.org/auction . Click on the "art project fee-pay here" link. Thank you for completing this requirement!
 
Keep Procuring!
Even if you've already donated to the auction, we encourage you to please continue to procure over the summer! We are still especially in need of:
  • premium wines;
  • small electronics;
  • local getaways;
  • sports tickets;
  • theater tickets;
  • concert tickets.
You may complete your procurement using either the Online Procurement Form or turning in a hardcopy Procurement Form to the office. If you have procurement questions, please email Sue Richards at auction@stlouiseschool.org. To see our complete wish list and gift registries, please visit our wish list. Thank you so much for your continued support.
 
Please note that we are unable to accept art, clothing, shoes, software, used items, or most professional services - included but not limited to haircuts, photographers, chiropractic care, or financial services. Items with a value of less than $25 are also not able to be accepted. For more information, check out our webpage.

Thanks for your participation in making Auction 2017 a success!
 
Our St. Louise School House truly rocks!  
 
Way to Go!
          Congratulations to these 7th and 8th graders who ended the 3rd trimester this June with at least a 90% grade in every subject, and at least a "3" in every specialist class - thus earning placement on the St. Louise 3rd trimester HONOR ROLL:
 
Lydia Aiello, Max Bange, Katrina Baradi, Jack Blair, Anne Marie Blank, Daniel Bomberger, Katie Bruce, Rogan Bruce, Lily Buysse, Julio Canimo, Lauren Carels, Macee Cruz, Rachel Cunneely, Mason Flaat, Joaquin Galindo-Navarro, Christopher Golden, Katherine Gooding, Ella Gratzer, William Grisaffi, Clara Halling, Dyllan Hoffman, Elsa Kammereck, Hayden Kosiara, Olivia Manning, Katie Miller, Giulia Morgan, Natalie Nowak, Heide Orleth, Lexi Phan, Ellie Pierce, Grace Rausch, Ellie Read, Alex Rotar, Sarah Sandino, Taneesha Sinha, Paul Snyder, Sara Storniolo, Paige Sudore, Mary Ta, Trevor Tang, Erin Tylutki, Alice Vimal, Owen Weber, Kaitlyn Westby, Kate Wilken, Bella Wiswall, Gaby Zambrano.
Updating Your Child's Immunizations
          Parents of all incoming Kindergarteners need to make sure your child's immunizations are up to date.  If your child receives any immunizations over the summer, please forward the dates to school nurse Jane Reynolds who will update your child's immunization form we have on file.
          For parents of all incoming 6th graders, a reminder that the state is requiring a booster Tdap.  Please forward Jane the date your child received this booster by no later than the end of August, or else your child will not be able to attend school. The state also requires all incoming 6th, 7th, and 8th graders to have two doses of chickenpox vaccine. Most students have only received one dose, and thus will need a booster.  Please send Jane the dates of your child's chickenpox booster by no later than the end of August.
         As you may know, our state requires a licensed health care provider to sign the Certificate of Exemption for a parent or guardian to exempt their child from school immunization requirements.  The signature verifies that the provider gave the parents information about the benefits and risks of immunizations.  The parent can also turn in a signed letter from a health care provider stating the same information. Kids who aren't fully immunized will be sent home from school if a disease outbreak occurs. This law took effect July 22, 2011, so it only applies to exemptions requested after this date. If you have any questions, please contact Jane.
Volunteer Your Smile
          Looking for a way to volunteer that easily slides into your schedule, will not take a lot of time, and where you will feel more connected with the parish? Then the Ministry of Greeter is for you! School parents are welcome to sign up their entire family to greet as a unit. One of St. Louise Parish's goal is to have every person who comes through the church doors to feel connected with our parish family. By welcoming each person in a positive, friendly, and spiritual manner, we help create a warm spiritually healthy parish environment that shows "We are happy that you have come!" Our goal is for everyone who enters St. Louise Parish to feel welcomed and loved. School parents who are greeters earn school volunteer hours. The qualifications are simple: You must be a registered member of St. Louise Parish; you are to attend  a one hour orientation; you must b e dependable and responsible; and most importantly you must have a welcoming smile that greets each person before and after Mass. The c ommitment you make is to arrive 20 minutes before Mass and remain 10 minutes after Mass, scheduled at your convenience for at least one Mass per month. To sign up to be a greeter, please email your name and telephone number to greeters@stlouise.org  and fellow parishioners Helen or Lorraine will be in touch.
 
Soccer & Cross Country Registration Has Begun
           St. Louise's CYO fall sports registration has opened - for playing soccer and cross country. Go HERE to register. Both sports are open to all students who will be in grades K-8 this coming fall. The soccer season starts at the end of August - please note this is before school begins - and cross country begins at the start of September.  If you have soccer questions, please contact coordinators Maria Kelly-Dogget or Christie Allemand at  soccer@stlouise.org .
 


Order Charger Cards This Summer Via Your Cell Phone
See the video that shows you how to use MyScripWallet.com - the mobile website to purchase, use and track Charger Card scrip on your phone.

See the Online Registration Directions page for step by step info to register online and get started!

 
 

Charger Card Team Looking for New Volunteers
Consider joining the team for the fall. Please email us  if you'd like to help! We need volunteers to help in these areas:
> Help sell cards at the Charger Card office on the Used Uniform Sale day - Thursday, August 3;
> Help with weekly card inventory and fulfillment on Friday mornings starting in September;
> Help sell cards on Sundays between Masses.

 
For more information on Charger Cards and online ordering, please visit www.stlouiseschool.org/chargercards or email chargercards@stlouiseschool.org.