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2018 - 2019
School Year
Important Dates
| Oct 12 |
Fall Fest |
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Nov
2
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Teacher In-Service - Student Free Day
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| Nov 19 - 23 |
Thanksgiving
Break |
| Dec 24 - Jan 4 |
Christmas Break |
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Jan 21
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Martin Luther King Jr. Day - School Holiday
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Feb 15
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Faculty Retreat - Student Free Day
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Feb 18
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President's Day - School Holiday |
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Mar 9
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Auction Dinner and Dance
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Mar 22
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Religious Education Congress - Student Free Day
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April 18 - 26
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Easter Break
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May 27
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Memorial Day - School Holiday
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| May 31 |
8th Grade Graduation
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June 14
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Last Day of School
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| Sofia |
1A
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Gabriel
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KA
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| Sasha |
1B
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| Tillman |
KB
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| Zoee |
KB
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Dear St. Francis of Assisi School Parents and Guardians,
It was a great day to be at St. Francis of Assisi School! Last Thursday's 20th Anniversary celebration was the proudest moment of my time here. The celebration was the culmination of months of planning and was made possible through the efforts of many who contributed their time, talent, and resources to create a very special day to honor our school. Like any major activity that requires significant planning and coordination, there were challenges to overcome, including things we had to leave in God's hands. Despite a tight budget, challenging logistics, and thunderstorms in the forecast, the Planning Committee remained focused on the goal to create a meaningful and joyful celebration.
I could not have been more proud looking at the sea of faces stretching to the back of the massive tent set up on the field. The tented area was transformed into a sacred space with an altar beautifully decorated with flowers and Saint boards. On the stage, Bishop Vann was flanked by our parish pastors, deacons, seminarian and altar servers. The choir and musicians sounded beautiful and inspired the students and parents to raise their voices in song. In the audience were the founding Pastor, Fr. Seamus and Principal, Debbie Vallas, dozens of former teachers and staff, alumni and their parents, as well as Dr. Barisano, the Superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Orange. Student ambassadors greeted and interviewed guests as they arrived. Guests, families and students enjoyed a picnic lunch, that included hot dogs grilled by the Knights of Columbus from our tri-parishes, served by current and former parents. The formality of the Mass in the morning and the relaxed lunch gave way to a noisy and slobbery finish as the day ended with students, parents and family pets gathering on the field to receive a blessing.
Plans for the day started ten months ago when I first met with the Anniversary Planning Committee. A lot of people worked hard to make this a beautiful and memorable day. The day was about giving thanks to the Lord and honoring St. Francis of Assisi so I would like to thank Bishop Vann, Fr. Fred, Fr. Sy, Fr. Seamus, Fr. Mike, Fr. Wayne, Deacons, Nick, Denis, and Mark, and Seminarian Cheeyon for celebrating our Feast Day and Anniversary with a beautiful Mass and Blessing of the Animals. Kudos to our Planning Committee, tri-parish Knights, spiritual room moms, parents and staff, who worked together to host over 900 for Mass, lunch and Blessing of the Animals.
In addition to the beautiful Mass and the fun at the Blessing of the Animals, what I truly enjoyed about the day was the feeling of community created by the event. People have been working for months and then the pace picked up as we got closer to the event. The day before, volunteers were preparing decorations and chairs, hanging Saint boards, and setting up equipment for lunch. By sunrise on Thursday, chairs were being dried, tables and pop-ups were put in place, musicians were setting up and the altar was prepared, adorned with flowers. Staff members parked at Santa Clara Church to create more space for our guests to park. The smiles and joy expressed by those who gathered on our field to celebrate our school, our patron, and our pets, told the story and reminded me that this was a labor of love.
I cannot talk about the success of our celebration without acknowledging the Anniversary Planning Committee Chairs who worked tirelessly to plan and run the activities leading up to and on the day of the event. Each played a role to make our 20th Anniversary celebration a very special day filled with great memories. The chairs and the members of the committee were the driving force behind a great day. I wish to express my gratitude and appreciation to the committee and to everyone who contributed to the success of our 20th Anniversary celebration.
I am very proud of our school's accomplishments over the past 20 years and I recognize that we could not have delivered on our mission without the support of our faculty and staff, Pastors and parishes, parents and benefactors. Thank you to everyone who has supported our school and believed in our purpose. Everything that is good about St. Francis of Assisi School was represented in the community that gathered to celebrate our special day. Thank you for being a part of our school!
Tom Waszak
President
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SFA Fall Fest THIS Friday!
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Revised Pick Up Procedures
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Open the following link for an explanation of the revised pick up procedures that will take effect on Thursday, October 11. Walk down procedures are not impacted by these changes.
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Extended Care Aide - Ute Parcell
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This week we are excited to highlight Mrs. Parcell from Extended Care. She is a beautiful asset to the school and we are lucky to have her.
Our FIAT this month is Respect, why do you think respect is important at SFA?
Respect is fundamental in my family and it is very important to me. I emphasize it here at school for nice interaction between all of us. It makes every day here enjoyable!
How do you see the Spirit of St. Francis in daycare?
Daycare is just continuing the loving family atmosphere here on campus. We want to provide a harmonious and enriching afternoon, with fun activities and getting quality school work done.
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Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream
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We are excited to present Peter Pan Jr., our 3rd Annual Spring production. Attached are the "Important Dates" for auditions, rehearsals, and performances. We hope all of our young stars will come out to auditions. No experience is necessary and all students will be given a role in the play!
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Little Lambs: Early Childhood Education News
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We've been listening to your feedback and looking for ways to improve afternoon pick-up. Our goal is to make the process run smoothly and efficiently.
Following is the revised Preschool/Pre-K Pick Up:
2:20 pm - 2:35 pm (or 11:30 am - 11:45 am): RED placards only
(no K-8
th
grade siblings)
2:35 pm - 2:45 pm (or 11:45 am - 11:55 am): YELLOW
placards (with K-8
th
grade siblings)
or RED placards
2:50 pm (or 12:00 pm) - conclusion: Anyone
Friday, October 12, 2018
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Early dismissal
11:30am-11:50am |
Friday, October 19, 2018
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Preschool/Pre-K ONLY -- No School & No Extended Care
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Friday, October 26, 2018
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Early dismissal
11:30 am-11:50 am |
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More information and dinner order form can be downloaded
here.
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| Order your yearbook today! |
Online ordering of 2018 - 2019 Yearbooks is now open! The cost if ordered today is $45.00.
The final day to personalize yearbooks is February 2, 2019. The final date to order yearbooks online is May 15, 2019.
Click here to place your order! |
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October is the Month of the Holy Rosary!
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As Catholics, we have an invitation to use this month to be intentional about praying the Rosary together.
A few ideas of how to pray a Rosary this month as a family:
Pray one decade each day on the way to school - by the end of the week, that's a whole Rosary!
- Rotate each child leading the Prayers (Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, Glory Be and Fatima Prayer).
Pray a decade each day before dinner.
Look up the Mysteries of each day to reflect on those Scripture references as a family.
Make a rosary out of beads and string that can become your family Rosary.
Watch the fruit of your prayer time blossom and the grace spill into your day!
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Save the Dates!
Mission of the Family Workshop
Tuesday, November 6th
Two sessions offered for parents:
After drop off from 8:15 - 9:15 am OR
In the evening from 6:30 - 7:30 pm
Attendance is free, RSVP requested.
Keep an eye out for the flyer in Thursday folders soon!
Family Advent Manger Building Workshop Event!
Thursday, November 29th
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Prepare for the Advent season by building a manger together and being inspired by the many names of Christ reflection cards!
More details to come soon...save the date!
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| Upcoming Volunteer Opportunities! |
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Wednesday lunches throughout the school year are hosted by our 7th and 8th grade students fundraising for their East Coast Study Trip. The DC Dining program offers a variety of meal options from a broad spectrum of local restaurants.
Please order DC Dining for Trimester 1 at St. Francis School. Please be sure to turn the form and payment into the office by
Monday of the week you are ordering a meal. DC Dining next
Wednesday, October 17, we will be serving
Panda Express.
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It's time to turn in your box tops you have been collecting through the year! This is a great way to help raise money for SFA playground equipment and box tops are on many products that are already in your house.
Please put box tops in a bag or envelope and label with your child's class and teacher.
Box tops can be turned into your child's teacher or in the box in the front office. The class that submits the most box tops will win an ice cream party!
Please turn in all box tops by Friday, October 19th!
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AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support our school every time you shop, at no cost to you. When you shop at
smile.amazon.com
, you'll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School. Simply click here to begin shopping through AmazonSmile.
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| Tri-School Football Experience |
| Mater Dei High School Admissions |
| Santa Margarita Open House |
Santa Clara de Asis - Children's Faith Formation
Volunteers Needed! |
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