Parent Bulletin
December 3, 2020
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Being one of the oldest members in the St. Louise School community (No, I’m not THEE oldest!), I have a lot of historical context and bona fides to officially declare 2020 as the most troubling, confusing, upsetting, and crazy year we’ve ever had in the last half-century! This year we have had lockdowns & protests, riots & violence, and viruses & election discord, and at the same time we have not been able to have school & sports, restaurants & parties, and Masses & Sacraments. America in 2020 is exhausting, depressing, and worrisome.
BUT….I have the antidote to all this!
Yes, I have the answer to our troubling times!
There is someone who can uplift your spirits, push away the dark clouds over your life, and turn your ten-month-old frown to a smile.
- Your burdens will feel lighter if you simply worship the King, not bow to politicians.
- Your heart will feel fuller if you simply pray to the Redeemer, not Facebook-post a message.
- Your life will be fulfilling if you simply look to the Light of the World, not set your eyes on wordly things.
Let’s look at the Book of Psalms to further explain the antidote to our troubling times:
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
The Lord works vindication and justice for all who are oppressed.
Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free.
With the Lord on my side I do not fear. What can man do to me?
The Lord is on my side to help me; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in man.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.
O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His steadfast love endures forever!
If you haven’t returned to Sunday Mass since the spring, please consider coming back to God’s House. Since July when the 165 Western Washington Catholic parishes began indoor Masses, there have been over 20,000 Masses celebrated without any reported cases of coronavirus spread. The churches are cleaner and more health-conscious that any grocery store you’ve shopped in this year! Unless you are a medically-vulnerable person, there is no reason to be anxious about going to Mass.
Our mission on earth is basic. We are put here for 3 purposes - to know God, to love God, and to serve God.
1) We are called to know God. To know Him we must spend time with Him. At Mass, we hear God’s voice through the Scripture and through the priest’s reflections in the homily.
3) Finally, we are called to serve God. Christ tells us to “go and make disciples,” but we cannot make disciples unless we are first disciples ourselves. Therefore, we must place Christ at the center of our lives, and at the heart of this is receiving Christ in the Eucharist, where His body, blood, soul, and divinity become truly present.
My plea to all our Catholic families who have stopped going to church is to come to Mass on Sunday to transcend our secular worries and earthly connections and to physically experience Christ. If you haven’t done so since the pandemic began last spring, returning to God by returning to Mass is the antidote to crazy 2020. And for our non-Catholic families, I hope you can return to your church. Or if you don't have a church, come try St. Louise!
Advent has begun, and we know that Advent’s purpose is for Christians to spend time both looking back to the first coming of Christ at Bethlehem, and looking ahead to the future when Christ will come again. In these four short weeks, we are not just preparing for Christmas, but we’re preparing for Christ's second-coming. Advent is our time to become more awake and watchful, so the Lord will not find us asleep when He returns. A Christian returning to church this Advent for the first time in many months will certainly be seen as having woken up!
Blessings on your day,
MR. FITZ
p.s.
Our SKYBALL - CHARGERS ARE FOREVER Virtual Silent Auction Week has been running all week and ends tomorrow. It's not too late for you to get in on the silent bidding and to register to attend tomorrow night's livestream event that includes a raffle drawing for free tuition and a mix & nosh event at 7PM. There's also a special fund-a-need that will directly benefit our amazing, tireless teachers! Go HERE for more information and please read Julianne's letter below.
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CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS
Tomorrow
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Rumor has it that Saint Nicholas himself will be visiting St. Louise school this morning! Ask your child about this after he/she finishes school today (but "Ssshh!", don't let them in on the surprise prior to this morning)
- All grade 2-8 classes will be going to Eucharistic Adoration in the church today for a 20-minute silent time of prayer and adoration. The pews are cleaned before/after use, and we will continue the 6-foot-separation rule for everyone when we sit and kneel in adoration.
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Grade 5 will be holding a Flavorful Friday Sale today, as they raise money for Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos orphans. Ice cream bars will be sold for $1 each.
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The weeklong Virtual Silent Auction ends today with a 7PM Live Event on Zoom. We will be broadcasting the event live from the school lobby. Go here to be a part of the fun!
Saturday, December 5
- Our grade 7 & 8 Math Team competes in another virtual tournament today.
Tuesday, December 8
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Today is a Holy Day of Obligation - the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception; grade 7 and 8 students will attend the parish's 9AM Mass in-person, while grades K-6 will be watching the Mass streaming live here; parents may watch the livestream or may attend in-person by RSVPing
Wednesday, December 9 - NO-SCHOOL DAY
- Please note the change from the original calendar - December 9 is a NO-SCHOOL DAY for all students; teachers will be using the morning time to receive technology training and the afternoon time to hold parent-teacher conferences
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Kids' Club childcare will be open from 8:00-5:45 on this NO-SCHOOL DAY; if you are a current Kids' Club member and wish for your child to come to the Lavelle Center on December 9, please email Maria Zambrano and let her know what timeframe your child will need supervision. If you are NOT enrolled in Kids' Club, but would like to give it a try, contact Maria about the opportunity to have your child attend Kids' Club on this no-school day for only $5 for half the day or $10 for the full day.
Saturday, December 12
- Our grade 6-8 Speech Team competes in the virtual Bishop Blanchet HS Speech Tournament today.
Monday, December 14
- Free Dress all week ONLY for students whose parents purchased this opportunity during Virtual Auction Week
Thursday, December 17
- Report Cards going home today with grade K-8 students; for students who are only doing online-learning at this time, your parents may come to school today to pick up your report card; all report card envelopes are asked to be signed on the back and returned unsealed to the school office to be reused next trimester
- Sweet-Treat Sale during lunch time; all prepackaged, commercial treats sold for $1 by our junior high students, with proceeds going to junior high activities
CHECK OUT OUR COMPLETE SCHOOL CALENDAR HERE
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Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences Continue Next Wednesday; No-School Day on Wednesday |
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Required Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences continue next Wednesday, December 9, for families who did not conference during Thanksgiving Week. For grades 1-8, we ask that the student sit in on the conference. If you will be conferencing virtually over Microsoft Teams, your teacher should have emailed you a link to log in. If you can't find this link, please contact your teacher today to confirm.
Conferences are being held on the 9th in the afternoon. On the morning of the 9th, the teachers will be taking some technology classes to improve their ability to teach synchronously - instructing their students learning at home over Teams and at the same time instructing their students in-person.
Because of their busy day, there is no school on Wednesday, December 9.
Kids' Club childcare will be open from 8:00-5:45 on the 9th. Not only current Kids' Club members, but also school families who are not enrolled in Kids' Club, may come to the Lavelle Center on Wednesday for supervised childcare. Current Kids' Club members, please email Maria Zambrano and let her know what timeframe your child will need supervision. If you are not enrolled in Kids' Club, but would like to give it a try, contact Maria about the opportunity to have your grade K-8 child attend Kids' Club on this no-school day for only $5 for half the day or $10 for the full day. |
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Your kids could use more supervision out at recess, and we're asking parents to consider coming once a week or once every-other week for as short as 40 minutes or as long as 120 minutes to help out. You would be working alongside school faculty, getting fresh air while you keep an eye out for safety on the playground. Times needed are for any or all of the following recess timeframes:
- 11:00-11:40
- 11:40-12:20
- 12:20-1:00
To commit to a day and timeframe, or to ask more questions about the volunteer job of an assistant playground supervisor, please contact Ann Marie Sweeney. |
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Online Auction Week Ends Tomorrow with Special Livestream Event |
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Dear Wonderful St. Louise Parents,
As you know, in a normal year, we host a huge gala event at the Westin in Bellevue in November and we generally raise around $230,000 in donations and corporate matching gifts through our School Sponsorships program, Live and Silent Auction, Fund A Need, as well as games, and a Dessert Dash. All of those standard items had to change drastically this year. So, we are making the auction a two-part event this school year, an Online Auction with Livestream event this week, and then in April this spring, we will (hopefully!) be able to host a larger in-person Live Auction with a virtual component.
Here are the three things you need to know for this week:
The link will prompt you to set up an account and you’ll be able to bid on about 120 awesome packages including dinners out (when we can!), a couple of getaways (again, when we can!), and lots of COVID hobby items including cooking and decorating implements, games (yard and tabletop), and lots of wine (please note you must be 21 to bid on items that include alcohol). Bidding will close tomorrow, Friday, during our Livestream event. You can set up your account and access it via your phone or computer. Also, share this link with family and friends. Anyone can bid!
Tomorrow, the week-long event will culminate in a Livestream event featuring our auctioneer, Stephen Kilbreath, live from our very own lobby! He’ll host a 45-60 minute stream beginning at 7pm. I am encouraging you, our virtual guests, to continue to bid on all of the awesome items! Wait – what is the “Mix & Nosh” part of the event?! Stephen will be joined by Chef Harold Donohue and Lead Mixologist Chaz Lee from Ascend Prime Steak & Sushi who will show you how to make two cocktails (the “Mix”) and an appetizer and dessert (the “Nosh”) during the livestream. If you want to cook and cocktail at the same time, be sure to purchase a Mix & Nosh Kit from our website (click here to do that).
3) Learn about our FUND A NEED:
The only “Live” item on Friday night will be our Fund A Need. This fall, we are raising funds to support our teachers! We are calling it our Above & Beyond appeal. It’s been a long year and we are hoping to provide our teachers with an extra bonus this month because of their super-human effort in keeping all our students learning, and safe, on our campus, and remotely. We are so grateful for all they are doing!
If you have any questions about how any of this works, please let me know. We are so very grateful for your incredible support as we navigate through this year. You are so appreciated!
Chargers really are forever!
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We Celebrate the Immaculate Conception and Honor our Blessed Mother |
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This Tuesday the 8th is a Holy Day of Obligation - the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. The Catholic Church proclaims: "The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin."
Our grade 7 & 8 students will attend the parish's 9AM Mass in-person on Tuesday, while grades K-6 will be watching the Mass streaming live here; parents may watch the livestream or may attend in-person by RSVPing
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Shopping on Amazon Can Support St. Louise |
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With the Christmas season approaching, are you planning on shopping online? Do you know that just by shopping via Amazon you can contribute to St. Louise School?
- AmazonSmile is a program that donates 0.5% of your eligible purchases on Amazon to a charity of your choice.
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All you need to do is start your shopping at smile.amazon.com or set your mobile app to earn donations.
From your desktop: Sign in to smile.amazon.com on your desktop or mobile phone browser. From your desktop, go to Your Account from the navigation at the top of any page, then select the option to Change your Amazon Smile charity, and search “Saint Louise” (spell out "Saint").
From the mobile app: Sign up on your web browser as instructed above. Download or update to the latest version of the Amazon Shopping app on your phone. You can find it in the App Store for iOS or Google Play for Android. Open the app and find ’Settings’ in the main menu (☰). Tap on ‘AmazonSmile’ and follow the on-screen instructions to turn on AmazonSmile on your phone. (AmazonSmile in the app is not available for iPads and other tablet devices.)
Thanks for helping your kids' school earn some easy cash, which will go toward supporting St. Louise's general operating expenses.
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Welcome Our New St. Louisers! |
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We have some more new families transferring to our school,
and we want to make sure we give them a warm St. Louise welcome!
(Photo #1 at top) Welcome the Kirsch/Masferrer family - parents Connor Kirsch and Marta Masferrer, and 2nd grade student Teddy Kirsch.
(Photo #2) Welcome the Coles family - parents Chris and Kami, and PreK student Emma.
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Flavorful Friday Is Tomorrow |
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Occasionally throughout the school year, our 5th graders sell ice cream bars to raise funds for a charity they support. Mrs. Cervantes' and Dr. Cruickshank's 5th graders support children at Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos.
The Flavorful Friday Sale's proceeds during lunch time tomorrow will all go to N.P.H. Every student has the opportunity to buy an ice cream bar or ice cream sandwich for $1. If you allow your child to participate in our Flavorful Friday Sale tomorrow, please have him/her bring the exact amount - a $1 bill - to school. Thanks for your support.
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Cesar Galindo and his wife Zandra Navarro, parents of then 8th grader Joaquin, planned and helped the 8th grade Class of 2018 create the Rosary walkway, which is on the east end of our school. Shown here is Cesar (center) with Fr. Gary at the 2018 blessing of the walkway.
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Congratulations to Alumni Parent and Soon-To-Be Deacon |
Alumni parent Cesar Galindo-Legaria will be ordained to the Diaconate on December 19. Cesar will be a permanent Deacon in our Archdiocese, and Archbishop Etienne has assigned him to serve at St. Louise Parish! Congratulations to Cesar, his wife Zandra Navarro, and their children, Daniel (Class of 2010), Benjamin (Class of 2014) and Joaquin (Class of 2018) on this great news for them and for all of us.
Cesar says of his Deacon assignment, "St Louise has been our home for 25 years, helping us to grow in faith and to educate our children. We are very grateful for the blessing of this community. I was very glad to be assigned here. I am looking forward to continue to be involved in the parish and working with you, now in a different form."
You can watch the ordination of Deacon Cesar on December 19, at the link below.
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Brianna was thrilled to be able to have fun with a cat in class. KA teacher Mrs. Curry fosters cats, and some of her latest foster kittens visited the KA classroom recently. |
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School Lunch Program Now Available on Mondays |
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Our school lunch program - Lunch Ladies - offers an option to order a school lunch on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays each school day throughout this school year.
Lunch Ladies has individual, prepacked lunches both in hot and cold to reduce any unnecessary handling of food. Lunch Ladies' commercial-kitchen is meeting all of the new health department guidelines which includes masks, distancing, reduced number of staff in areas, and temperature checks on employees.
Once your family is registered with Lunch Ladies, you will receive an email every Saturday on what the lunch menu is for the upcoming week and what is going to be served with each meal. This also can serve as a reminder to order for the week if you’re ordering on a weekly basis.
Click HERE for the information that you will need to register for the on-line ordering system. Should you have any questions, please contact Wendy at Lunch Ladies: 425-444-9573; w-szabo@hotmail.com.
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Thank You for Supporting our Supply Drive |
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We are teaming up this fall with the New Bethlehem Shelter for a Supply Drive, and it ends tomorrow - Friday. Thanks to all the St. Louise School families who have donated items that will be used to stock the shelves at the shelter for the families who are temporarily experiencing homelessness and need essential services including showers, laundry, and social services.
If you didn't get around to donating, you may deliver your donations to the boxes in the school lobby by tomorrow. If you have questions about our all-school Supply Drive, please contact Julianne Read. If you want to know more about the New Bethlehem Shelter, please talk to fellow parent Rebecca Nightingale, who serves on the NBS steering committee.
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Thursday's Theology: Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Is Tuesday |
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