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ST. LOUISE SCHOOL PARENT BULLETIN
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Attention! Last Call!
If you haven't yet done so, please register
HERE to attend our November 9th Auction. The deadline to RSVP is in one week - Friday the 1st! The Auction is not just a fun social event, but it's also a vital fund raising event. While raising money for your kids' school, you can bid on and win some fantastic items for Christmas gifts at both the silent and live auctions held in the Westin.
As you know, we always hold a special time during the live auction bidding when we stop everything so we can do our "Fund-a-Need!" This is when everyone in the hotel ballroom has a chance to get his/her bid card number recognized by the auctioneer as a "winning bidder," as you choose at which giving level you'd like to donate to the special need of the school.
This year, we are going to have TWO different Fund-a-Needs: one for adding to our
TUITION-ASSISTANCE ENDOWMENT FUND and one to ENHANCE
OUR SCIENCE CURRICULUM & TECHNOLOGY. Let me explain about these two special needs, in hopes you'll see why we must gather donations for these and will feel called to raise your bid card TWO times during the live auction.
Fund-A-Need #1:
Renovating and Expanding our Science Curriculum and Technology
Your children are natural scientists - born with a curiosity that fuels learning. Our teachers have the critical role of channeling this innate learning power to help students think like real scientists. We want to renovate our science curriculum so to result in better engagement, deeper understanding, and greater student achievement, along with better assuring what we teach is in line with the new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
- The new science program we would like to purchase for grades 6-8, Science Dimensions, allows teachers to guide students to learn about life science, earth science, and physical science through exploration, analysis, application, and explanation - in short, to think like scientists.
- In grades K-5, we would like to purchase a school-wide license for Mystery Science, a hands-on curriculum that captivates students in science and engineering by hooking them with a mystery or problem to be solved and then motivating them to participate in hands-on activities.
Our goal is to raise enough funds to be able to purchase eight-year licenses for both of the above science curricula.
We also need donations for Fund-a-Need so we can purchase a dozen more wi-fi radios and pay for the necessary cabling-labor to enhance our wi-fi connections in your children's classrooms. Currently, there are classrooms where the signal is weak or nonexistent due to not having enough wi-fi radios on site. Employing a strong and accessible wi-fi connection throughout the campus creates a wireless school, necessary for a today's learning environment.
All totaled, we need to raise $40,000 at our Auction Fund-a-Need to cover the cost of these science and technology expansions. We will need many parents to please raise their bid cards. The Auctioneer will announce the following giving levels, and you will choose which level to choose as your donation-amount to help St. Louise renovate our science curriculum and expand our wi-fi technology: $5,000; $2,500; $1,000; $500; $200; $100.
Fund-A-Need #2:
Strengthening our Tuition Assistance Endowment Fund
St. Louise School began an endowment in 2002 through the initial generosity of the Luger family, and it grew considerably in size in the years that followed thanks to generous school families and parishioners. An endowment works by having the principal (core amount) of the fund invested and kept intact, with interest income generated by these investments.
Our endowment fund was established solely for the purpose of generating income so to provide tuition assistance for students in need. Named for our pastor at the time, Father Phil Wallace, the Father Phil Tuition Assistance Endowment Fund has grown to a principal of $2.1 million! That allows us to generate approximately $100,000 annually in interest income, and this $100K is distributed in the form of financial aid scholarships to over 10% of our families each year. But because demand for financial assistance has never been so high from families in our St. Louise community, we have a necessity of continually needing to build up our principal. We did not have enough funds last summer to be able to meet all the applying families' financial needs. Providing tuition assistance to those needing help is part of the calling of Catholic communities and embodies the mission and philosophy at St. Louise Parish School.
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If you feel called to help a family who needs a tuition scholarship to be able to afford St. Louise School for their child, please raise your bid card on Auction night when it's time to raise money for our tuition assistance endowment. Our goal is to raise $50,000 for our tuition assistance endowment on Auction night. The Auctioneer will announce the following giving levels, and you will choose one at which to give, thus building up our endowment fund principal: $5,000; $2,500; $1,000; $500; $200; $100.
Please note, for those of you raising your bid cards at the $5,000, $2,500, or $1,000 levels during this Fund-a-Need #2, you will be gifted with a beautiful glass candle holder and candle. The light from this candle is a spiritual symbol of the hope your donation will bring to a fellow or future school parent who may be experiencing darkness, but due to your financial help will be able to afford a Catholic school education for their child.
Thanks in advance for your generous bidding!
***UPDATE***
We have just been approached by an anonymous donor-family who would like to start out EACH of our Fund-a-Needs with $10,000 donations! Yes, that's a total of $20,000 this St. Louise family is donating to the two Fund-a-Needs! This will now make it very attainable to reach our goals ($40K for Science/Technology and $50K for Tuition Assistance Endowment)! Wow! Julianne and I were so grateful for this donor's surprising announcement, and I'm sure you are too!
Hey!
I wonder...
Is there another school family or two out there who on the night of the Auction will raise their bid cards, so to match this $10K donation to Fund-a-Need #1 and/or this $10K to Fund-a-Need #2? Wouldn't that get the applause-meter rocking in the Westin ballroom!?
Enjoy God's blessings today,
Mr. Fitz
p.s.
Thank you for considering having your child's Halloween costume to be worn at school next Thursday to be that of a Catholic Saint. As you can see below in the Halloween article, students will get great treats from me if they're in Saint costumes! It's not just a nice thing to do to dress as a Saint, but it also eliminates the concern that the costume might be too "edgy" or inappropriate for a Catholic elementary school.
Make sure you note that next Thursday school is only in session until 12:00. The entire school has a noon dismissal, and we have no afterschool Kids' Club, because of the hard-to-concentrate time at school in costume and the prep-time that many need at home before trick-or-treating.
When we all return next Friday, it's All Saints Day, which is a Holy Day of Obligation in the Church. The classes will be going to 9AM Mass, and it would be wonderful if your kids saw you there, too! As always with our school Masses, we expect the students to be quiet and reverent in church, and you can help model that. I know it appears to be a convenient time to socialize with the fellow parents sitting around you, but they built church lobbies and patios for that reason.
;-)
There's an added reason to model silence in church next Friday, November 1. At the immediate conclusion of Mass, there will be the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, also known as Adoration. This is when Father will remove the sacred host from the tabernacle and place it in the Monstrance for adoration. "Monstrance" (which is Latin for "to expose") is the vessel used in the church to display the consecrated Eucharistic host. The Monstrance will them be solemnly carried in a procession to the parish chapel across the parking lot, for parishioners to pray before throughout the rest of Friday. During this procession out of the church, all of us who are at Mass will kneel in silence. Once the Monstrance has been carried out of church, we expect our students to leave church in silent respect, and we appreciate the adults modeling this same, reverent behavior.
For more information on Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, go here.
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Upcoming Calendar of Events
- 8th Grade Math Team to compete in Seattle Prep Math Games
- All-School Lockdown Drill
Thursday, October 31 -
NOON DISMISSAL FOR ALL
- No afterschool Kids' Club or extracurricular clubs
- Kindergarten concert at 8:40
- Fun Dress Day - please follow the costume guidelines; students dressed as "Saints" should see Mr. Fitz for their giant-sized candy treat
- Coming home in the red envelopes today are November Conference Confirmation Letters. Please verify you can conference with your child's teacher at the time he/she scheduled for you (based on your request in the parent survey), and return the bottom of the letter to the teacher.
Friday, November 1
Saturday, November 2
- 8th Grade Math Team to compete in Bishop Blanchet HS Math Tournament
November 4-8
- Auction Preview Week in the school lobby; come inside at the start or end of each school day to buy raffle tickets, sign-up for parties, view Black & White Photos, and get a sneak peek at the grade level art projects
Wednesday, November 6
- Parent Prayer Group gathering from 8:15-8:45AM in the faith formation office near the school lobby; all parents encouraged to come pray for your intentions and the intention of God's continued protection on our children and teachers
Saturday, November 9
- We Are One Auction at the Bellevue Westin, 5PM
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WE ARE ONE
Auction News
We are just 16 days out from
We Are One! Wow - all the preparation and planning is really coming together now! With the incredible support of our new School Sponsors, our SPRING tuition raffle ticket sales, and the registrations to date, we are officially 100% underwritten! Here's what that means, there's a cost to putting on an event like this, so we try to get everything paid for before the auction so that all the dollars we raise at the event come back to us - and we did it for
We Are One!!
Here are the three most important things you need to know this week about W
e Are One:
- Register HERE now so you can attend the big event! We want to see you there! Be sure to tell us who you want to sit with in the Special Accommodations field! We are doing well on Registration numbers, but we're missing some of you and would love to see our WHOLE community at the event!
- Volunteer for Set Up and Clean up on Auction Day! Click HERE to join our Item Display, Load In/Load Out, and Distribution teams!
- Parties & Sign-Ups open TOMORROW! Don't miss out on the fun! Sign up HERE for one of the amazing parties you'll see in today's Red Envelope. Worried you won't get a spot at the party of the year? Click HERE to see the list of awesome parties and events!
Take a look at today's Red Envelope for more information about the auction.
Cannot wait to see you there!
~Julianne Read
St. Louise Parent & Auction Director
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Tuesday Is Calling
We are looking for a parent volunteer to assist with Tuesday recess supervision from 11:50-1:00. You get to enjoy being outdoors, watching your child play with his/her classmates while making sure all the students stay safe. You'd be working with our two instructional assistant staff plus other parent volunteers. No experience is necessary, and moms with babies in strollers or toddlers are allowed to bring their lil' ones. Please contact
Lisa McKenna for more information.
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Do You Know a Veteran
or Active Military?
Please note that on Monday, November 11, the entire school will be holding an outdoor ceremony at 8:30 AM in recognition of Veterans' Day. We will be praying, singing, saluting the flag, and thanking any military veterans or active military who were able to join us that morning. If you or a family member (or neighbor) is a veteran or active military, it would be great to show up outside our flag pole on Veterans' Day to join us and be recognized!
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Free Parenting Class Offered in Bellevue
Kindering is pleased to announce a free parenting class for parents of children ages 2-12. The series of sessions for this class meet on Mondays from 6-8PM for ten weeks, beginning Monday, November 18th. (No classes are held during Christmas vacation.)
Parents who wish to strengthen their parenting skills in these areas are especially invited to attend:
- Building appropriate self-esteem in your child;
- Effective communication;
- Managing anger (both yours and your child's);
- Stress;
- Behavior management;
- Establishing family routines, including bedtime;
- The effect of media on children;
- The effect on children who need to transition between two homes.
The class will be held at Kindering's Bellevue location:16120 NE 8th Street. For more information or to register, please go HERE.
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Who Is Going to Win the Class Lunch Contest?
Only 7 more days left in this October contest to place an order online and help your
child's entire class win a free
pizza lunch & donut treats!
Current Class standings are:
- 2A leading in family participation with 56%
- 4A at 48%
- 1B at 40%
- 2B at 36%
The contest is close! Every order counts!
Contest Details:
- Online order must be placed October 1-31. Contest ends 11:59pm, October 31st.
- One online order counts toward the classes of all children in your family.
- Any size order qualifies. (Place an order as small as one $5 Charger Card!)
- Online PAYMENT is NOT required. Pay for your order by check or online (via Presto Pay).
- Winning class will be determined by the highest percentage of participating student families.
- Date of free lunch and donut dessert TBD by winning class's teacher
Auction Night Is Coming - Have You Bought Your Cards?
Rebates you can earn by purchasing Charger Cards that will come in handy when attending the Auction on November 9:
Gene Juarez-hair/makeup
$100 x 10% = $10 earned
Nordstrom-new clothes
$200 x 4% = $8 earned
Dominos-pizza for the kids staying home
$50 x 12% = $6 earned
Starbucks-for the morning after
$25 x 7% = $1.75 earned
The Charger Cards sale office in the central wing of the original school is open on school-Fridays from 8:15-9:00AM.
Charger Cards...It's simple, it's thoughtful and it's truly the gift that
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Tomorrow Is Last Day to Register your 4th-8th Grader for CYO
Basketball at a Reduced Rate
All registration/enrollment for St. Louise CYO Basketball is done online here, and regular registration
closes tomorrow night - Friday. (Late Registration runs to November 8, but the fee increases $35.) Registration fees paid during the regular
registration period are
$75 for the first child registered within a family, and
$55 for all additional children registered within the same family.
All grade 4-8 children who attend St. Louise School or whose parents are parishioners of St. Louise Parish can be a part of St. Louise CYO Basketball. Registration is open to children of all skill levels - from beginners to experienced - and every child on a St. Louise team will get guaranteed playing time in all the games.
All regular season CYO basketball games are held on weekends, either Saturday or Sunday, and most St. Louise teams get to play a number of games in our home gym. The first
games of the season start on the weekend of November 16, and the regular season ends by January 27. No games are scheduled over Thanksgiving and Christmas weekends. Teams typically play 7 or 8 regular season games.
If you have questions, please contact St. Louise Basketball Coordinator, Rodney Thomas.
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Halloween Costume Guidelines
All students at St. Louise are allowed to come to school on Thursday, October 31, wearing a Halloween costume. (
Remember: October 31 is a HALF DAY with a NOON DISMISSAL.
All classes dismiss at 12:00, and there is no afterschool Kids' Club this day.)
When helping your child decide what his/her costume will be, please take into account these "Fun Dress Day" guidelines:
- Costumes must be appropriate for an elementary school and more importantly, a Catholic elementary school; therefore, themes or dress that are disrespectful and/or too "adult" need to stay home. This includes, but is not limited to:
- No dressing up as the opposite sex;
- No costume with a crude sense of humor.
- Violent themes are not allowed. This includes, but is not limited to, the banning of:
- Bloody makeup;
- Weapons (including fake ones);
- Costumes depicting devils or vampires;
- Costumes depicting violent characters such as Scream, Freddy Krueger, It/Pennywise, Dementor, etc.
- Mr. Fitz and Mr. Fuerte have the final decision on which costumes are inappropriate. You may ask them, if you wonder if your child's costume will be considered appropriate or not. Or simpler yet - if you have to wonder...then the answer probably is you should choose another costume. ;-)
- Thanks for keeping the "Happy" in "Happy Halloween!" by making this a fun day with no hassles.
SPECIAL TREAT - NO TRICK!
Mr. Fitz will be handing out GIANT-SIZE candy bars on Halloween ONLY to students wearing costumes of actual SAINTS!
Perhaps you'll dress up as St. Gregory the Great...perhaps you'll be St. Therese the Little Flower...there are a thousand Saints from which to choose. Find some ideas here and here.
Let Mr. Fitz know on the 31st which of the Church's Saints you are dressed up as to receive your giant-size, candy treat.
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S
AINT OF THE
W
EEK
please read this with your kids
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Thank you for patronizing the following businesses and thanking these families who, through their generous sponsorship, help underwrite the costs of St. Louise School's Auction, Walk-A-Thon, and other events...
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See what's happening on our St. Louise Facebook and Instagram pages
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