Parent Bulletin
January 30, 2020
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T
oday begins our Early Admissions Period, running until February 13. Please be prepared to act today when the re-enrollment process will be explained to you via Mr. Fitzpatrick's letter in today's red family envelope, and via an email he is sending to you today. By acting now, you will save $125! The usual, annual application fee is $220, but currently enrolled school families who pay their fees online by February 13, only have to pay $95.
This year, everything with the process will be done
virtually
, so you'll be enrolling and signing your 2020-21 tuition contract
electronically!
Please note the new section on the contract called "Fill the Gap." This is a special and easy way families can consider going above and beyond to help St. Louise.
If you have questions about re-enrolling, plea
se contact
Lola/Mindy
in the school office.
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When I was a kid, parents could choose to send their kids to two schools - either the local public school or Catholic school. Today, there are so many more schools from which parents can choose. Each school has their own set of philosophies that govern how they teach and thus, how they will impact certain parts of a student’s development. As we are in national Catholic Schools’ Week this week, I’d like to share why I have been either a student enrolled in, a parent of two children enrolled in, and/or an educator employed in Catholic schools for 53 of my 58 years.
Catholic schools not only teach general education similar to public, private, and charter schools, but Catholic schools go above and beyond by also balancing education with deep spiritual immersion. Catholic education is very active in teaching a child that God is all around him/her. A child will learn how to see these “footprints of Jesus” in their daily lives.
A Catholic school not only gives its students the opportunity to learn Bible stories, but students are encouraged to put into their daily lives the lessons they have learned from the Bible and the life of Jesus. Catholic school teachers teach their students how to make use of the scriptures as a tool for guidance and inspiration to get them through during the toughest parts of their lives. Furthermore, Catholic students are given lessons that will give them a strong moral foundation and gospel values to help them make the right decision during future situations that won’t clearly be black and white, especially in today’s “anything goes” society.
Catholic education puts a lot of focus on service, as demonstrated at St. Louise by every grade level – PreK through 8
th
– being responsible for unique acts of service and/or support of specific charities. School-wide, all of our students participate in our annual Thanksgiving Baskets Drive and Ash Wednesday Rice & Beans Lunch, and once they reach 8
th
grade, every student develops his/her independent service project. Catholic students are always taught to be sensitive to the needs of others, and respond positively in any way they can to the service for which God calls us.
Catholic education recognizes the it’s important for students to be cultured. This is the reason why Catholic schools expose their students to music, visual arts, performing arts, and classic literature. While many other types of schools have dropped the arts from their curriculum, Catholic schools have never let them go because a well-rounded education requires components such as the arts and athletics.
Catholic schools have the benefit of being able to go above and beyond the “gun-free zones” and “drug-free zones” slogans of other schools. We get to promote being a “Christ-centered zone.” Our teachers at St. Louise are passionate about creating Christ-centered environments in their classrooms which promote community, integrity, and compassion.
No school is perfect, and each type of school system has its own philosophies that govern how it develops a child. Fortunately for you and me, we have chosen the Catholic education system, which has been shown both anecdotally and in research to offer advantages over other forms of education systems.
Congratulations on investing in your child’s education in such a unique and special way! Your investment will pay off in the years to come!
Enjoy God's blessings today,
MR. FITZ
p.s.
Last week, I inserted a contest in the Bulletin - "In what year did Lola Bazan first begin working as our school secretary?" The correct answer in 1995. Lola is in her 25th year! No parent guessed the correct year, so that means the Charger Card I was going to give the winner is still available. So email with your answer to this question, and if you're the first parent with the correct answer, you win the Charger Card:
"How many current school employees were students themselves at St. Louise when they were in elementary school?" The tie-breaking question is, "Can you name them?"
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CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS
Today
- Open House is tonight from 6:30-7:30PM; it's open to current families who want to meet next year's teachers and to prospective school families who are considering enrolling at St. Louise; please encourage your neighbors, co-workers, and friends to check us out!
- Today begins the Early Admissions application period; re-enoll your child for the 2020-21 school year (or newly register your incoming PreK or Kdg. child) by February 13, and receive a $125 discount!
Tomorrow
- Another Auction Lunch Day - a fast food lunch will be delivered to the students whose parents purchased this treat at the Auction
Sunday, February 2
- Our Chorale choir sings at the 11:30 Mass at Mary, Queen of Peace Parish in Sammamish
Friday, February 7
- Parents are invited to stop in to the parish chapel for any amount of time today for our parish's all-day Eucharistic Adoration; some of our grade 2-8 homerooms are scheduled to attend
Tuesday, February 11
- Final "Tuesday Tours" morning for prospective school parents to visit; please encourage your neighbors, friends, and co-workers with upcoming 4-14 year-olds to come check-out St. Louise; remember, if a newly enrolling family mentions you referred them, you receive one month's free tuition!
Wednesday, February 12
- Winter Concert featuring our school band and the 5th & 6th graders; 6:30PM in the parish hall; performers are to check-in by 6:15
Thursday, February 13
- Bake Sale to support junior high events
- Parents' Club meeting at 6:30PM in the faculty room; come learn about the Parents' Club if you're considering joining the PC Board
Friday, February 14
- CROWD Social for grade 6-8 students from 7-9PM in the parish hall; parents must come inside to sign-out their children when picking them up
Monday & Tuesday, February 17 & 18
- NO SCHOOL - George Washington's Birthday and extended holiday
CHECK OUT OUR COMPLETE SCHOOL CALENDAR
HERE
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Catholic Schools' Week Concludes Tomorrow
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Thanks for helping us celebrate National Catholic Schools' Week. The teachers certainly enjoyed a rare one-hour lunch yesterday, thanks to parents stepping-in to supervise the classrooms. And the lunch served by the Parents' Club's Hospitality Committee was delicious!
We also had wonderful celebrations at all the Masses last weekend, not only here at St. Louise but at our neighboring parishes. We appreciate the support of the pastors of these parishes, who see the value Catholic education provides to young people and its contributions to our church, our communities, and our nation.
Here are the last events as we wrap up Catholic Schools' Week:
Today, January 30
We Love Our School
- Read-In for the entire school from 2:05-2:45
- Open House of all Gr. PK through 8th grade rooms and specialists - 6:30 to 7:30; both current school families and prospective school families invited
Friday, January 31
We Love Our God
- School-wide prayer outdoors to praise and thank God for Catholic schools - done in unison with the six other Catholic elementary schools on the Eastside
- Parents may join us outside by the flagpole at 8:30AM
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Our Open House is tonight! Current school families are welcome to come during the 6:30-7:30 timeframe to visit next year's teachers, introducing yourselves.
In addition, if you have a neighbor, friend, or co-worker with upcoming 4-14 year-old kids, please offer to meet them at St. Louise tonight and give them a tour of the school, introducing them to teachers, Mr. Fuerte, and Mr. Fitzpatrick.
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Our 2020 Annual School Gift Campaign (ASGC) has begun! The ASGC
is a required fund raiser, expecting every school family to participate. Thank you for either sending in your one-time donation now, or at least sending in a pledge to pay monthly or periodically through 2020. If you have questions about how the ASGC works or the various ways you can pledge and/or give, please go
here
or talk to
Cindy Wagner
.
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Tax letters for documenting your donations to St. Louise via our endowment fund and Annual School Gift Campaign are being mailed out this week. Please contact
Cindy Wagner
if you do not receive your tax letter by next week. Thank you for your financial support of St. Louise!
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Thank You for Re-Enrolling This Week for the 2020-21 School Year
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Today begins the Early Admissions application period for the 2020-21 school year. For current school parents,
this means you will please need to start now with the re-enrollment process for your child for next fall (or newly register your incoming PreK or Kdg. child). If you complete this process by February 13, you receive a $125 discount in the annual admissions fee.
Please read through the information coming home in today's red family envelope. Note that this year, the majority of the process will be completed electronically - saving you time and saving paper.
Besides a new, electronic format, the Parent Contract also contains a new section - called "Fill the Gap." It's a special and easy way to go above and beyond in supporting St. Louise. We hope you'll consider filling the gap!
If you have any questions about re-enrolling, you may talk to Lola or Mindy in the school office (425-746-4220) or email
Dan Fitzpatrick
.
Thank you in advance for re-upping for what will be another outstanding year of your child receiving an excellent education with a Catholic foundation!
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Uyen-Mi was our "Principal" last Thursday. Thanks to her parents for purchasing this privilege at the Auction. If you recall, we actually had three families all "tie" for having the highest bids at the Auction for this special item, so later this year on two separate days, you'll be seeing other students serving as "Principal for the Day." These will be fun times for the students and appreciative days-off for Mr. Fitz!
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Every first-Friday, the parish has a daylong Eucharistic Adoration, and for four of those Fridays this school year, our grade 2-8 classes will be participating. The first one was in December, and the first-Fridays in March and April will be other times. Next Friday, February 7, will be the next opportunity.
Eucharistic Adoration, also called Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, is
a form of worship that is offered to the Lord through His most Blessed Sacrament – the Body of Christ as we see in the Eucharist/bread. People have their own way of praying before the Blessed Sacrament. Often, silent prayers during Eucharistic Adoration will last an hour, in connection with when Jesus told the Apostles in the garden of Gethsemane during His Passion, “Could you not spend one hour with me?” However, one can visit the Lord in the presence of His most Blessed Sacrament for as short as a few minutes, and for our students, the average class will be praying silently in Eucharistic Adoration for 20 minutes.
What is more important than the quantity of time spent is the quality. When adoring the Blessed Sacrament, one should be acknowledging Jesus deeply as our almighty God and loving Savior, praising and adoring Him. Indeed, the Lord is Himself present in the Blessed Sacrament, and the host that we gaze upon is the Lord Himself! We keep Him company (as he asked his apostles to do in the garden), and we do homage to Him by our very presence.
Although our teachers help on these first-Fridays to draw your children more deeply into the mystery of Christ’s Real Presence in the bread, children need to attend Adoration as a family so they can see their parents modeling this contemplative type of worship. Here at St. Louise, Adoration takes place in the church every Friday from 8:30-9AM and every first-Friday of the month in the parish chapel from 10AM-6PM. If you live near other Catholic churches, check schedules
here
, as many parishes have longer hours and more days available for Adoration.
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Create a Personal Plan Unique to Your Family's Budget
Charger Cards is happy to help you map a plan for your family to use this program to earn tuition credit and help support St. Louise at the same time! We can meet with you to create a personal plan unique to your family’s budget and everyday purchases to maximize your participation in the program! Please email
us
to set up a time to connect. Charger Cards program main function is to earn funds using budget that families are ALREADY spending. Simply change how you purchase (buy Charger Cards first for items you already plan to buy) NOT what you purchase.
January Gas and Groceries Raffle Ends Tomorrow
Our January Gas and Grocery Raffle ends on Friday the 31st. Buy ANY gas card or grocery card and you will be entered to win a $25 gas or grocery gift card of your choice! Reloading a gas or grocery card will earn a bonus entry!
Did you know if every family bought gas and groceries with Charger Cards, St. Louise could earn $100K each year in rebates for just those two categories?! Charger Cards would like to encourage every family to start using Charger Cards for their everyday purchases.
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The Charger Cards sale office in the central wing of the original school is open on school-Fridays from 8:15-9:00AM. You may always purchase 24/7 at
Charger Cards...It's simple, it's thoughtful and it's truly the gift that keeps on giving! For more information on Charger Cards and online ordering, please visit
www.stlouiseschool.org/chargercards
or email chairpersons Marsha and Katherine at
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Speech Team Does It Again!
Congratulations to the St. Louise Speech Team who won 1
st
place at the Seattle Prep High School Speech Tournament last Saturday! This follows the 1st place win our speech team garnered at December's Bishop Blanchet Speech Tournament!
Our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students pictured above competed against more than 300 participants from 20 other schools in eight different speech events. We are so proud of our team, and want to acknowledge the following members who placed in their events:
Ben Goett
– 2
nd
place in Junior Expository and finalist in Junior Humorous
Jack Kehoe
– 1
st
place in Senior Impromptu and 2
nd
place in Senior Humorous
Ellie Nightingale
– 1
st
place in Junior Expository
Debashish Ratnam
– 2
nd
place in Junior Humorous
Lauren Teders
– 1
st
place in Senior Oratory and Senior Humorous
Emmanuel Vimal
– 3
rd
place in Junior Humorous
A BIG congratulations to
Jack and Lauren
who won best overall male and female speakers
of the tournament earning each a $2,500 scholarship to attend Seattle Prep!
Thank you to our parent judges:
George Baumann, Frank Buysse, Alessandro Catorcini, John D’Costa, Susie Goett, Sangeetha Kanicka Dass, Stasia Kehoe, Vimal Stephen,
and
Kim Stockwell
. We appreciate the leadership of
Rebecca Nightingale
who will be taking over as our Parent Lead of the Speech Team next year. Finally, we want to thank our fearless leader of the St. Louise Speech Team,
Shannon Wallis
! For nearly a decade,
Shannon
has dedicated countless hours, endless energy, and unwavering devotion to our middle school students. Under her tutelage, the St. Louise Speech Team has reached new pinnacles of success as is evident by our two 1
st
place team awards this year!
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Saint of the Week
please read this with your kids
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Opportunity for Adult Faith Formation
World-renowned speaker Christopher West is coming to Kirkland with his new event meant to equip men and women to learn, live, and share the beauty of the divine plan for human life, love, and sexuality. This event will sell-out, so go
here
now for tickets.
(Please note: this April 29th date is the same evening as our grade 3 & 4 Spring Concert.)
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Apply Soon for a Tuition Assistance Scholarship
Don't forget that thanks to generous donors throughout the years, including through our recent Auction's fund-a-need, our Endowment Fund for Tuition Assistance is healthy and available to parents who need support in order to pay tuition. If you foresee a need for some assistance in paying your tuition in 2020-21, please go
here
to learn how to apply for a scholarship. The deadline to apply is April 15.
View this
video
for a quick look at how a Catholic school such as St. Louise is funded and how tuition assistance scholarships work.
If you have questions about financial aid, please contact our bookkeeper,
Angie Ogilvy
.
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Please Consider Throwing Your Hat in the Ring
Unlike a public school with its School Board and PTA organizations, a Catholic school is different in that we have a School Commission and a Parents’ Club. Our Commission’s job is to advise and support Fr. Gary and Mr. Fitzpatrick in the areas of school finance, policies, and marketing. Our Parents’ Club Board focuses on how to support the school in the areas of volunteering, fund raising, parent education, and community building. Both groups are made up of school parents who serve three-year terms.
Each year at this time we advertise that the School Commission and Parents’ Club Board will have openings to begin a three-year term, starting in the upcoming new school year. Joining one of these groups is a productive way to volunteer for the school and a fun way to meet other parents. In addition, you get the important role of providing input toward school decisions.
Each group meets about five evenings a year, from September through May. Additionally, members will help with other functions, such as greeting at Open House or serving on committees. If you want to know more about what the various jobs entail, you should first go to the groups’ respective pages on our
website
to learn more. Then contact School Commission chair
Sean Manne
or Parents' Club president
Karen Reed
to express your interest. They will invite you to attend their next meeting to learn more. The Parents’ Club Board next meets on February 13, and the School Commission next meets on March 5.
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