“Actions speak louder than words. Let your words teach and your actions speak.”
-St. Anthony of Padua
Greetings from Mr. G
October 30, 2020
On a cold, dreary day we warmed the hearts and brightened the lives of people in need through our Trick or Treat for Faith Food Pantry service outreach. Students gave hope with their donations and lit up the classrooms in their Halloween and fall festive attire. This week our Kindergarten class assembled gift pumpkins for the Newtown police -- they will do nice things for our helpful officers throughout the year. The spirit of our St. Rose School community is a blessing.
Dear St. Rose School Families,
We have completed 2 months of school in a safe, strong and sustaining manner. This is an incredible accomplishment given the times in which we are living. Teamwork is at play every day and God is at the center of all we do. We ask His continued protection on all.
This weekend is special in many ways. Tomorrow is not only Halloween but the day that Fr. Michael McGivney, the founder of the Knights of Columbus, will be beatified. Fr. McGivney was a good and holy man, devoted to helping orphans, widows and the poor. He had a gift for creating community and building up the church. His path to sainthood is a beautiful testimony to the graces he bestowed on the church and it all started in Connecticut, at St. Mary's Parish in New Haven. If you would like to learn more about Fr. McGivney here is video, Knighttps://www.fathermcgivney.org/en/index.html. Personally I am so grateful to the Columbus for the good works they do to support our school. They are carrying on Fr. McGivney's legacy for which we are blessed.
Sunday is All Saints Day. We can learn so much from these faithful men and women. Our 7th grade students have been doing a wonderful job presenting their Lives of the Saints reports in preparation for Confirmation. Devotion to the saints adds a tremendous dimension to prayer.
The first quarter officially closes on November 1st. I commend all students for their hard work and class participation. They are making great strides. Parent teacher conferences will take place virtually; you will receive information about sign ups shortly. Report cards will be mailed at the end of next week.
The Book Fair is coming! Although we cannot have a physical store this year the virtual store is very impressive. I hope you will take time to visit and find some great titles for family and friends. The monies raised benefit our school. Thanks to Mrs. DiCandido for making this possible.
I am looking forward to buying my Tuition raffle ticket next Thursday, November 5th. This is significant fundraising opportunity for our school so I hope everyone will participate. You'll hear about that and more at the State of the School/HSA Meeting November 5th at 6:30 pm via zoom. Please make every effort to be at this important meeting.
On November 13th the Knights of Columbus will hold a Veteran's Day presentation after mass. This annual tradition will be modified due to Covid but it is important to recognize our veterans and the significance of their achievements. Six St. Rose students who have been chosen as winners of the Veteran's Day poster and essay contest will be recognized at the ceremony. The school will participate virtually and a link will be provided for all families to attend.
November 15th-22nd is Discover Catholic Schools Week. Please help us get the word out about St. Rose School. We will be sharing special Facebook posts, conducting on site and virtual tours and finding special ways to highlight the joys of our academically stellar, faith focused education. We have a rich history and a bright future.
Please remember that Tuesday, November 3rd school is closed. Have a fun weekend. Be safe, enjoy the festivities and keep Fr. McGivney, the Saints and recently departed souls in your prayers.
Did you know it costs $8,538 to educate EVERY 1 student at St. Rose School? This means that $1,958 per student is not covered by tuition. Thanks to those who have come forward with donations. Please carefully consider donating some or all of your family's Gap. Thank you. Read more
CARRY ALL CADDY Fundraiser
Get it while supplies last! The caddy is ideal for trips to the grocery store, the beach, picnics, play dates and so much more. Get organized and show your St. Rose School spirit! Great gift idea!
VISIT THE BOOK FAIR FROM THE COMFORT OF HOME (OR PHONE)
Saint Rose of Lima School invites you to shop our Online Book Fair and support our school! The Fair runs from November 9th - November 22nd. All purchases will benefit our school directly (25% back in rewards!). Don’t miss these two weeks of events, fun, and books!
Help us kick off the Tuition Raffle in full force! Look out for the red tent and balloons at drop off and pick up November 5th where tickets will be sold. Checks and cash are preferred but credit cards are accepted. Mrs. Sweeting will also have tickets in the main office if you would like to purchase them during the week. This is a critical fundraiser for St. Rose School and an awesome opportunity with great odds. We have 3 months to sell 350 tickets so we are counting on 100 percent participation! Class parents will be in touch with details.
STUDENT LIFE UPDATE by MRS. B
Dear St. Rose Families,
I know we have been talking about how quickly time is passing and that we are turning another page on the calendar to go ahead, while turning the clocks back an hour; but, SNOW?! Instead of falling leaves, for parts of the day, we saw beautiful white snowflakes gracefully falling down from the sky! Just a quiet, gentle reminder, from our Lord, that we are moving ahead and seasons change, and so this too shall pass. We are grateful to our school community for all the support and cooperation in helping us to keep our school moving forward five days a week. While we don’t know what is ahead, we are blessed to have had these months and continue in prayer as we hope to keep going together, in-person. We look forward to meeting with all of you on November 5th to celebrate what has been accomplished and to share plans for going into the next quarter.
Today we celebrated Trick or Treating for Faith Food Pantry! It was heartwarming to see the hallways fill up with canned and boxed goods! These will go to Faith Food Pantry to help fill their shelves for the upcoming winter months and holidays. We are not surprised by your continued generosity, setting the example, for the children, by taking care of those who are in need. We wish you many blessings for your goodness!
Our children did not only bring bags and boxes of food for the food pantry; but, in costume, our kindergarten, first, and second graders continued the theme of bringing joy to others by visiting our neighbors at Church Hill Village. While the snowflakes swirled around, they bundled up in costumes and coats and we paraded across the street to visit our friends; we were also ambassadors of wishes as we delivered cards and greetings from grades 3-8! The residents and staff were overjoyed to see the children; and were waiting with signs, applause, waves, and a little treat for each one! Not only were the residents and staff thrilled to see little ones in costume, but the beep of horns and waves from the passing cars as drivers, waved and smiled, seeing signs of Halloween. It was a definite moment of, this is why we are at SRS, as I walked with the classes, and listened to the squeals and giggles as they chased the snowflakes and tried to catch a few! Definitely a warm light on a dreary, cold weather day!
Class of 2022 Saint Projects:
Another tradition well-loved at this time of year is the 7th grade Saint Project. The 7th graders, in preparation for their Confirmation, select the saint’s name they would like to take as they make the sacrament. They research their saint and then do a presentation in their religion class. Sister Thaddeus then selects one student to present at the Friday mass before All Saints Day. Since we couldn’t gather in person today to share in the presentation; we are providing a link to three presentations that we hope you will enjoy viewing as we continue our tradition.
Alina Budzynski is St. Ann
Anna Campolettano is Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta
SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY…Lands’ End Scholarship is open for submissions! Please see the flyer in the important documents section of this newsletter. They will accept applications until they have 1,000 or until December 15th; so please get your application in early! This is a wonderful opportunity as they will award $5000 to up to 5 students to use towards school or college tuition!
Uniforms:
Winter Uniforms begin November 2; if you are in need of school uniform items, you have two options available…
Lands’ End is having a sale, the school uniform site will be 20% off through 11/27. PROMO CODE is CLASS, PIN# is 5391.
We have also been asked about the switch to winter uniforms. We have made the following decision to accommodate all families and the purchases you have made or plan to make.
Regarding the winter uniforms, as outlined in the handbook, we still would like the switch over to the long pants, jumpers, and winter skirts. We would also like the long sweatpants on Tuesdays and Thursdays. As for the top of the uniform, we will allow students to continue to wear the short sleeve polo shirt, a long sleeve polo shirt (available through Land’s End) or the oxford shirts (boys won’t wear ties everyday) and for the girls, an option of a white turtleneck.
We have made it through the first quarter, in person, we are so blessed! Thank you again to all our families for your support and cooperation these first few months. We are all grateful for your generosity to our classrooms and for partnering with us to keep all good things moving forward!
A big hug and thank you to our costumed, bearers of joy, as they delivered the spirit of kindness and caring, on a day that might have kept others inside. Like the mail carriers; neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night can prevent them from being the light of Christ; especially at a time the world so badly needs it! They are truly the bearers of joy God intended them to be!
Wishing you a Safe and Happy Halloween! Don’t forget to set those clocks back an hour this weekend!
We are looking forward to Trunk R Treat tonight and seeing all the decorated trunks and costumes! Thank you to all those who registered and are planning to attend and a special thank you in advance to the Bauco family who generously donated fireworks for tonight.
Please mark your calendars for the next HSA (Zoom) meeting on Thursday, November 5th at 6:30pm which will include Mr. G's annual "State of the School" presentation and updates from school leadership. Please see the email that went out yesterday with the Zoom meeting details. We welcome any questions, kudos or feedback and please ask that you submit questions or topics you would like covered by Monday evening, 11/2 , hsa@srles.com.
The Book Fair will take place online this year, from November 9th through the 22nd. The Book Fair has been a source of funds for the school in years past and due to it being virtual this year, we encourage parents and families to shop for special holiday gifts and help the teachers stock their classrooms with books from their wish lists. Teacher wish lists will be posted by Nov. 9th in their Google Classrooms. The Book Fair homepage can be found at https://www.scholastic.com/bf/stroseschool10
There is a great selection of over 6,000 books!
Have a great weekend.
Your HSA Board
NURSE NEWS
Nurse Bonnie is in Monday-Friday during school hours. You can contact her via email, nurse@srles.com or by calling 203-425-5102. Please take note of the following documents.
