With spring in full force, other sports such as golf are also now in full swing!
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Message from the Principal
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We are at that juncture of the school year where it feels as though we have reached the last remaining precipice of a roller-coaster ride – perched, looking over the edge, ready to fly down a track that still has a couple of loop-d-loops remaining before the coaster car can come to a full and complete stop. This is quite typical in the period that follows Spring Break and it is during this time that many of our students seem to shift into another gear. You may have also noticed a more concerted effort on behalf of your daughter/son of late, as they scurry about, tending to their studies, while at the same time busying themselves with the various co-and-extra-curricular activities both within and outside of the school with which they are involved.
Fear not! This is completely normal – it is usually about this time of the year when things begin to
gel
for the vast majority of our students. If you asked them, they would probably tell you that they have attained this new level of enlightenment on their own accord, having made the conscious decision to become the advocates for their learning. Should you ask the adults in their life (parents, teachers, and the members of our support staff), the reasons for this epiphany may differ significantly. Whatever the real reasons, I see this as a
good
thing
considering that we now have just over six weeks of classes remaining before final exams begin. This shift is further evidence that many of our students are approaching things in a different way – but better yet – it is a true indication that they are indeed maturing as learners!
To steal a line from Robert Frost’s,
Stopping By The Woods On A Snowy Evening
, however, “(we truly) have miles to go before (we) sleep”. It never ceases to amaze me the number of activities and events that we are able to jam into the final next two months of school before we break for the summer. In addition to the usual myriad of classroom activities, assignments, tests/quizzes, and projects that remain, our students, staff, and parents will also be involved in a number of events during the remaining weeks of this school year. To name just a few, this month there is the Walk-A-Thon, Greek Olympics, Band & Choir Spring Music Knight, and Grad Mass. The month of June will be busier yet with the long list of graduation events as well as our yearly wrap up of things such as the Night of Knights and Band & Choir Jazz Knight.
While the pace over the next few months will definitely be fast and furious, the journey is truly amazing! Like most of my colleagues, I often sit in awe when I think about the progress our students make over the course of a year. These next few short months provide us with phenomenal opportunities to have them demonstrate their learning to us in a variety of different capacities.
Blessings,
Mr. Steve Garland
STMC Principal
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Message from the President
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Thanks Dad
The Mother’s Day mass and reception at St. Thomas More Collegiate is one of the highlights of the entire school year. We gather as a community of faith and express gratitude for and to all the mothers and mother-like figures for the love and care for they show their children, grandchildren, Godchildren, nieces, nephews, and all children who come into their realm. We are blessed by your presence at STMC.
Sadly, STMC fathers and father-like figures get lost in our public demonstration of gratitude. Maybe it’s that Father’s Day happens right in the middle of the month where school is, as Mr. Garland says, at its most fast and furious before coming to that complete stop once exams are a distant memory. That is no excuse.
To all the fathers and father-like figures who share their time and talents with the STMC community please accept our deepest thanks. Whether you are here because of your passion for a sport, for your commitment to helping the next generation develop new skills, for giving back to a school from which you graduated or where unbeknownst to you, you have been volunteered to help (volun-“told”!), each and every one of us at STMC says "thank you". Your presence is the best example of strong role models. You are truly making a difference.
May God continue to bless all of the fathers, father-like figures, mothers and mother-like figures and that you will be given the strength to persevere in this important vocation.
Live, Jesus, in our hearts … forever.
Mrs. Neysa Finnie
STMC President
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May
3:
Walkathon and Greek Olympics
6-7
: Chancellor Music Festival
10:
Mother's Day Mass & Luncheon
10:
Band & Choir Music Knight
17:
School-wide Assessment Day, Grade 12 Grad Transition Presentation, THINKfast
20:
Victoria Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
21:
Blessed Edmund Rice Feast Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
23
: Graduation Mass
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Thank you to current parents, board, faculty, and staff who with their gifts moved the needle a little bit last month as we move toward surpassing $40,000 in the 2018/2019 Knights Annual Fund campaign. The Knights Annual Fund supports programs and initiatives that enhance our current Knights’ everyday learning experience. To make a one-time gift or monthly gifts to the Knights Annual Fund, please go to:
STMC Knights Annual Fund
.
Advancement Office Personnel Change
Since her arrival at STMC in January 2015, Jacqueline Doering worked tirelessly to develop and grow the Advancement Office. Under her leadership, in meeting a key Strategic Plan objective, sh
e authored the Advancement Plan, launched the Knights Annual Fund, and worked with donors to align their giving with STMC's needs. During her tenure, Jacqueline raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for STMC in support of the development of curricular and extracurricular programs as well as scholarships and bursaries. She cultivated relationships with our many donors through her stewardship efforts and oversaw the creation of the Walkway of Angels in honour and thanksgiving for our donors. In addition, Jacqueline worked closely with students in her role as moderator for the Legion of Mary. Jacqueline’s last day at STMC was April 30. She will be spending time with family, working on home projects, and pursuing other interests.
Thank you to Jacqueline Doering for her dedicated service to STMC.
STMC Advancement Contact:
Alice Roder
Thank you for supporting STMC!
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SCIENCES
Atlas Masterclass
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Students at TRIUMF as part of the Atlas Masterclass on April 13
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On April 13, three STMC students attended TRIUMF’s Atlas Masterclass, where the students had the opportunity to work on data from the Large Hadron Collider to study particle physics.
Ethan R (Grade 12), Chayce H (Grade 10), and Matt M (Grade 10) got to experience a day in the life of a particle physicist at an ATLAS Masterclass held at TRIUMF, a world leading particle physics research center located at UBC.
Their day began with learning some basics about the Standard Model of Matter, which explains how subatomic particles and forces interact with each other to make up the matter that comprises us and everything around us. This was followed by an explanation of how the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland collides protons to create new subatomic particles. They also had the opportunity to analyze real data collected by the ATLAS detector, and search for clues that would indicate the occurrence of a Z boson or Higgs boson event. After synthesizing their data, they enjoyed comparing their findings by video conference with the other Masterclasses, held at SFU and UVic. They concluded their day with another video conference, this time with physicists in Switzerland working at CERN, the European research organization that operates the largest physics laboratory in the world. The physicists answered many of their questions ranging from what their current projects are, to how they became interested in this unique field. This was a very enjoyable experience for them and something they hope to do again.
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Michael Smith Science Challenge Results
Back in February, several of our students participated in the Michael Smith Science Challenge, a national competition written by students in Grade 10 Science or lower. The results are in: Matt M (Grade 10) finished in the top 10 percent of the 1266 students that competed across Canada!
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Mini Med School Summer Internship
Grade 12 student Ethan Rajkumar (also pictured above in the Atlas Masterclass picture) has been awarded a prestigious summer internship at the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute. He will spend six weeks working with Dr. Sadarangani and Dr. Bettinger at the Vaccine Evaluation Centre. This opportunity was open to Ethan as a direct result in his participation in the BCHRI’s Mini Med School Program from this past fall.
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Kwantlen Junior Physics & Engineering Challenge
A group of our grade 10 students had success competing at Kwantlen Polytechnic’s Junior Physics & Engineering Challenge on Saturday April 27. The team finished first place in the mystery challenge and second place in a pre-built event where they had to build a water powered generator. The team was composed of Alicia B., Marina G., Ayesha M., Natalia S. for the day of the competition (pictured) along with Isabella L. and Kate S. who helped with the building. They finished third overall in the competition. Way to go Knights!
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Grade 10 students finished third at the Kwantlen Polytechnic Junior Physics & Engineering Challenge
.
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MATHEMATICS
This month on May 15, all grade 8 students will be writing the Gauss Grade 8 Math Contest administered by the University of Waterloo in Ontario. Students scoring in the top 25% will receive Certificates of Distinction. In subsequent years, qualified students will write the Pascal (Grade 9), Cayley (Grade 10), Fermat (Grade 11) and Euclid (Grade 12).
More information can be found
here
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STUDENT
ALUMNA HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH
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Zion Corrales-Nelson (class of '15) has been excelling since graduating and continuing her studies and her track and field career at the University of California-Berkeley.
Last week, she competed in the
Brutus Hamilton Invitational in Berkeley and received 3 gold medals in her events and recording personal bests in all 3 events. Her 100 meter dash was the fourth-best all time record at UC-Berkeley and with the win, she earned herself a spot at the NCAA regional meet!
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We'd love to hear about all the wonderful and exciting things
in which our Knights are engaged
! If you have something you would like to share on our social media feeds or in the monthly newsletter send an email to
communications@stmc.bc.ca
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Summer Basketball Camp - July 22-26, 2019
St Thomas More Collegiate is hosting our Annual Summer Basketball Camp designed to introduce players to the fundamentals of basketball in a fun and competitive atmosphere. It is open to boys and girls going into grades 3-8. Dates are July 22 - 26, 2019 from 9am until noon. For more info, click on the link below:
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The STMC soccer program is pleased to announce that 4 athletes have been recruited and will be playing post-secondary soccer next year. Cassia D. will attend Langara University. Chiara A. is off to Gwinnett University an NAIA school near Atlanta Georgia. Sara S. will be joining McGill in Montreal. Christian C. will suit up for NCAA division 2 power Simon Fraser University. We wish all of these players the best of luck as they represent their new schools.
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Our Ultimate teams have been busy in the month of April playing league games across the Lower Mainland and beyond. The highlight of the month was the Skookum-Huck tournament in Gibsons on the Sunshine Coast. Both the junior and senior teams made it through a heavy day of rain to win their respective tournaments. The junior and senior teams are both undefeated in league play so far, and the grade 8 team is developing well under the instruction of Mr. Harder and a group of recent alumni coaches. The provincial qualifying tournaments for Junior and Senior both run on May 14, 2019, with provincials taking place from May 23 - 26 at Newton Athletic Park.
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The Knights Summit: Esports Tournament
The STMC esports club hosted their first-ever tournament—The Knights Summit—during the Knights Comics & Collectibles Expo on April 13. A total of 22 players from all over The Greater Vancouver Area participated in a Nintendo Switch Ultimate Smash Brothers gaming competition. The final match-up was an intense battle including one of our own Knights, Abraham J., who finished in 2nd place overall. Congratulations to the 2019 Knights Summit Champion, Matthew H., a student from the Macpherson Educational Institute
🏆
Following the success of this tournament, the esports club is now looking forward to recruiting more members and hosting more competitions at the school. Many thanks to The Gaming Stadium and the STMC Parents Association for sponsoring the tournament prizes and providing the support and mentorship needed to help our esports team host a very successful gaming competition. Game on!
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The Student Art Exhibit was a great success! Many thanks to the student artists and supporters who contributed work to create a beautiful display for the Knights Comics & Collectibles Expo and the Knights Summit!
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Walkathon & Greek Olympics
Walkathon is on
May 3, 2019
this year!
This annual event at St. Thomas More Collegiate is the school’s largest student-led fundraiser and is a much anticipated tradition that showcases STMC’s vibrant school spirit and the school community’s generosity and commitment to living the Essential Elements of an Edmund Rice Christian Brother Education.
An STMC tradition for over 40 years, the Walkathon is a great opportunity for our young people to support their fellow students and their school by reaching out to family, friends and external community to raise funds.
After Walkathon, the Greek Olympics will take place in the afternoon. It will be a fun filled and eventful day!
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Hawaiian Knight Fundraiser
When: Saturday, May 25, 2019
Time: 7:00 PM - 11:30 PM
Where: Our Lady of Mercy School
(gym)
Cost: $40
This event is a fundraiser with silent auction, 50/50 tickets and includes appetizers and one drink. The money raised will support the varsity football team for their trip to play Damien Memorial (a fellow Christian Brother school in Hawaii). Partial proceeds will go towards the Bernie Kully Memorial Bursary Endowment Fund at STMC.
Any questions, please direct them to steve.delazzari@stmc.bc.ca or joe.adams@stmc.bc.ca
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Spring Music Knight
Come enjoy an evening of excellence in music making featuring all the concert groups from the STMC Music Program!
Friday May 10, 2019 in the StanJean Centre
Doors open at 6:30 show at 7pm
Students/Children under 3/over 65 free
Tickets $5 per person
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SOBC
On
Saturday May 11
, St. Thomas More Collegiate and Special Olympics BC will be running a Sports Day for children with intellectual disabilities. The camp will run from
10am - 2pm
at STMC. Students interested in assisting can sign up outside the Campus Ministry office or with Mr. Mattiazzo. Spaces limited.
Check out this
leaflet for more info!
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2019 STMC THINKfast
The STMC Annual THINK
fast
is scheduled to take place on Friday May 17
from 3pm until the next day on Saturday morning. THINKfast is a 20 hour fast for students from
grade 9-12
aimed to fundraise and heighten awareness regarding social justice issues.
Throughout the evening, members of the Blessed Edmund Rice team will be leading the students through a series of learning activities on poverty and social injustice in the world. The 2019 THINK
fast
is aimed at supporting our Christian Brother Missions in Latin America. For more information you can contact Mr. Mattiazzo at
dave.mattiazzo@stmc.bc.ca
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Call for Volunteers - STMC Website Focus Group
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It has been over six months since we launched our new STMC website, a major milestone for our school. In our Communications Plan, we have a goal of continuously improving communications with our stakeholders. As such, we are looking to form a diverse group of volunteers from the STMC community – parents, faculty, and staff - to help by participating in a focus group. Ideally, this focus group will consist of varying demographics and between 8-12 volunteers. Volunteers must have access to a computer and an hour to spare in the next few weeks.
If you would like to put your name forward and be a part of this small focus group, please email
communications@stmc.bc.ca
with the subject: “Website 2.0”. A set of instructions with directions on navigating the website will be sent to each of the volunteers who are selected for this group. The goal is to see what works well in our new website, and where improvements can be made.
Thank you, in advance, to all volunteers
.
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