St. Louis Catholic School Alumni Newsletter
Greetings from Your Elementary School Alma Mater!
WINTER 2020
Dear St. Louis Alumni,
 
We have just finished a grand road trip for this year’s 2020 St. Louis School Silent Auction! Each year I am amazed by the creativity and the enthusiasm generated by the St. Louis community. I am grateful for the support of our current and alumni families who help make so much possible in our school. A special thank you to Michael Bennett (Class of 1968) and Ourisman Chrysler Jeep Dodge of Alexandria for their sponsorship of the PTO's event. The PTO planned and executed an exhilarating evening of fun, food and fundraising. I am so very grateful for the thousands of dollars raised for the school (final totals are being tallied as I write), and equally important, I am grateful for the opportunity to meet with so many people who love our school. Whether you made a donation, bought a raffle ticket, attended the auction or prayed for its success, I thank you, the alumni, for being an important part of the evening. Some of the funds raised at the auction will be going towards our continued school improvement upgrades of student desks, Chromebooks, and interactive whiteboards with Epson projectors.

St. Louis School continues to thrive with full classes, and we have a growing number of alumni who are enrolling their children here. I know what a joy it is to be able to have your own child attend the same school you did, and even better is the opportunity to have taught at the same Catholic school while your own children attend! Many blessings to each one of you and your families this Lent. If you are in the area, join us for school Mass any Friday morning at 8:45am or Stations of the Cross every Friday during Lent at 2:30pm. We are always happy to see you!

Blessings to all of you,
Anne M. Dyke
Principal 
Alumni Spotlight
UPCOMING EVENTS

MARCH 28-29
PTO Bake Sale
After all Masses, McClunn Hall

APRIL 8
Living Stations of the Cross
2:00pm, St. Louis Church

MAY 1
May Crowning
8:45am, St. Louis Church

MAY 18
Spring Band & Chorus Concert
7pm, McClunn Hall

Please join us on Fridays for Mass at 8:45am and Stations of the Cross at 2pm during Lent.

Sr. Margaret Rose Gilmore, 1927-2019
Sr. Margaret Rose Gilmore served as St. Louis School's first principal when its doors opened in 1956. She passed away in late August at the age of 92. Her obituary may be found here . St. Louis students offered prayers in her memory and for the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany, NY with a beautiful prayer quilt provided by the St. Louis Prayers and Squares Ministry.
School News
In the Classroom
Teachers are busy with students in the classrooms! We are almost to the end of our 2nd trimester, and students are actively engaged in learning daily. Students get to experience all the benefits of a traditional Catholic education with Art history and appreciation, music theory and instrument play, as well as hands-on exploration of STEM related topics. Classrooms are equipped with digital tools like chromebook computers and interactive whiteboards which help us take learning beyond the textbook. Our 5th grade annual Wax museum during Catholic Schools Week is a perfect example of application and synthesis that can happen when students’ delve deeper beyond the autobiography to do more research to become a famous historian, scientist, author, or musician. We had quite an eclectic group of celebrities, saints, and politicians at this year’s Wax Museum! The greatest part is that learning came alive literally for our younger students as they were able to tour the exhibit. 

St. Louis has been getting some attention within our diocese for the work we are doing to build a more inclusive school. Perhaps you saw the article in the Catholic Herald about our approach! Rather than seeing the disability, we are seeking to find the ability to offer a Catholic education to all God’s children—there is something amazing that happens to all of our students when they are allowed to interact with one another, they lose the inhibitions and the scrutiny and grow in understanding and acceptance just as Jesus challenged us to do! In order to grow more inclusive, we will continue to expand our Resource team next year so that we can meet our students where their needs are at. In addition, our 2020 Annual Fund goal this year is to update our playground to allow more innovative, creative ways for all God’s children to explore and play. Your contributions will enable us to grow our outside play areas.
Catholic Schools Week
We can’t remember the last time we managed to get all five days of Catholic Schools Week in with no snow event---it was priceless to see the smiles and absolute joy on the faces of our students each day as we joined together in community to celebrate knowledge through the Spelling Bee or "It’s Cath-a-demic" or simply to have fun with spirited relay races between classes. On service day, students held a healthy snack drive for United Community's Early Learning Center at Bryant, and assembled "Welcome Home" baskets for New Hope Housing. St. Louis students formed a living World Mission Rosary — which dedicates the intention of each decade to a specific region of the world. Mission rosary beads have 5 colors: green for the forests and grasslands of Africa; red for calling to mind the fire of faith that brought missioners to the Americas; white for Europe, the home of the Holy Father; blue for the ocean surrounding the Islands of the Pacific; and yellow symbolizing the morning light of the East. We concluded the week with SLIME! Three student council board members, Mrs. Dyke, and Mr. Gerke were the beneficiaries of some gooey, gross colorful slime…all in good fun and for a good cause! Because of the incredible generosity of our school families, approximately $3100 was raised for two great charities: $2600 will go to our Prayers and Squares ministry here at the church—they make the beautiful prayer quilts that the children pray over and are frequently displayed in our school hallways, and $500 will benefit the work of Catholic Charities.
40 Days, 40 Acts
Beyond the classroom, learning is an important part of how we attain our mission of rooting our students in their faith so that they may grow in Christ. From Advent to Lent we have been seeking to prepare our students hearts’ and minds by encouraging kind acts and helping others. Groups of 8th graders greet every student who walks through the main school doors daily offering a smile and a high-five to start the day. During Random Acts of Kindness Week in February, Mr. Peace spoke to K-8 students with a message about how the world needs more human kindness which can be accomplished through compassion, love, and empathy and understanding. Students have been challenged to live this message through Lent with 40 Acts of Kindness. Follow us on social media as we document 40 acts of service and kindness throughout our 40-day Lenten journey.
Annual Fund - Buddy Benches Insure No Child is Alone
Our Annual Fund is focused on growing our play spaces. Through the generosity of our St. Louis alumni, school families and greater community, we plan to update the play areas to be more inclusive and ADA compliant so that all our students can benefit from the outside play spaces. Eagle Scout candidate John Robertson (Class of 2017) , will be building buddy benches for our play spaces. We are offering donors the unique opportunity to be recognized on these benches. Donors who give an unrestricted gift of $500 or more will have their name engraved on a plaque on one of 3 benches. For more information, please contact our Development Director, Mrs. Kristin Matheis ( development@stlouisschool.org ).

CLASS NOTES

Thank you to our alumni families who have shared family news with us. Do you have a life event or photos to share with the school and fellow alumni? We love to hear from our alumni - where you are now and your memories of your time at St. Louis.

Email your updates to development@stlouisschool.org

ALUMNI DIRECTORY

Currently our online Alumni Directory has listings for more than 1,000 Alumni from 1963-2019 for whom we have some contact information.

Don't see yourself? Please take a moment to register, and if you've moved, please be sure to update your contact information.

Looking for an old friend? Our Alumni Directory allows you to search for and be located by former classmates. If found, you may be able to connect through a web-based email form.

ALUMNI SPIRITWEAR

Available through Lands' End, the St. Louis School Alumni embroidered logo is available on a variety of clothing and gear items. Order yours online today!