Trinity Weekly

Volume 4, Issue 6

September 11, 2020

Trinity High School has received a $1.25 million matching gift pledge from an anonymous donor to renovate the auditorium, as part of our Faith in our Future Capital Campaign! Read more in this story by the Catholic Witness, and learn more or donate to our Campaign here.

If so, you can donate 100% of your state income tax liability to Trinity High School through the SPE (Special Purpose Entity) arm of the EITC (Educational Improvement Tax Credit) program. These donations benefit Trinity's Tuition Assistance efforts.

An example of how it works: If your state income tax liability is $4,000, you can donate up to $4,000, but no more (do not overcommit; if you do, the entire donation will be void). You will receive a 90% credit ($3,600) in the form of a check from the state in the following year. In addition, you’ll be able to deduct the remaining 10% ($400) on your federal income tax return.  

To redirect your state income tax liability, complete the Joinder Agreement and return it to Trinity High School at the attention of the Advancement Office. It’s that easy!

Find more information about the program here. If you have any questions about the program, feel free to contact Mrs. Monique Abbas at (717) 761-1116. Help a Trinity student today!

Our 4th Annual Central PA Crab, Beer, and Wine Festival is Grab-n-Go this year! The event is Saturday, September 19, with pickups from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Orders must be placed by September 16. Meals of varying sizes of crabs from Harbor House Crabs, and BBQ from Redd's BBQ, are available. For more information and to order, visit this website.

The last day for students to drop or add a class is Friday, September 18. Any requests to change classes must be made by a written note from a parent and must include the $100 course change fee. Not all requests to add a class may be fulfilled, as some classes are full.

Monday, September 14, will be the last day that a parent can request a change from one style of learning (in person, hybrid, online) to another until the end of the first quarter, which is October 30. After that date, if extenuating circumstances arise, parents may request to change their student's mode of learning by contacting Ms. Poplaski.

College and career information for senior students and their families can now be found on Rediker. Under the "Groups" tab, there is now a "College & Career" group link. Click on this link and then click on "Group Page" to access this information. The page contains critical instructional materials seniors received in a classroom lesson last week. Easy access to links and files that seniors need is provided on this page. Miss Campbell, the College and Career Counselor, will update this page regularly.

Applying to post-secondary programs and schools can be daunting at times for students as well as family members. By providing access to information about the process, paired with timely announcements, the hope is that families can better support and encourage students throughout this journey.

Seniors have additional access to the Trinity Guidance Google Classroom, which contains supplemental resources to be used during the college/career exploration and application process.

New Email Address for Attendance--For all future Attendance concerns, please use attendance@thsrocks.us regarding dismissals, absences, attendance notes, or remote work during illness. Jennie Lafferty will receive all non-attendance related communications at jlafferty@thsrocks.us.

Virtual Doctors Visits--For virtual medical visits, the Attendance Office requests a screenshot of the ended session with the physician. Photos of the physician or student are not necessary. The end of the session should indicate the name of the doctor's office and that your student was present for the virtual visit. If the virtual visit is through any other format other than Zoom, we reqyest a note from the doctor's office either by email or through fax at (717) 761-7309.

Working Remote through Illness--Parents whose sick student wishes to work remotely due to illness should email the Attendance Office by 7:30 a.m. the morning of the school day that your student is not present in school. If you email by 7:30 a.m., we will be able to mark your student present for the day and communicate this to their teachers. Your student must be present for all livestreaming classes. If a teacher notifies attendance that your student is not present remotely, then the student will be marked absent for illness and a note will be required.

Any other family trip days and college visit days are not included in working remotely at any time. However, the students may use this resource to stay on top of their classes.

Monday, September 14 - Regular Schedule

Tuesday, September 15 - Special Mass Schedule

Wednesday, September 16 - Special Mass Schedule

Friday, September 18 - House Wednesday Schedule for Activity Fair

Many students are overwhelmed with the number of notifications they receive from Google Classroom. In English classes, all students viewed this video, which shows them how to change their notification settings. This link is for parent and student reference.

Mrs. Jo Reider (Science Department) and her family suffered a fire at their home this week. Students dressed down on Friday, September 11, for a minimum of $2.00 to collect money for the Reider family, and the Trinity community's donations totaled $3,300! Anyone wishing to donate more may do so through this link.

The Trinity Dance Team is looking for new members for the 2020-2021 school year! If you are interested in trying out, please email Mrs. Karen Tribeck or stop by the Dance Team table at the activities fair next Friday, September 18.

The Boys Soccer Team continues to hold open tryouts. If you are interested in playing, please contact Coach Dan.

Save money on your tuition by purchasing gift cards to local grocery stores and other vendors from Trinity High School. In order to make a gift card purchase in person, please contact Mrs. Terri Kenski at 717-761-1116 x101 to verify we have the cards you want in our inventory and so that your order may be pulled and ready for you to pick up. Upon arrival at the school, please come to the front door, enter the security vestibule, and ring the doorbell to your right. Your gift cards will be brought to the window and payment will be accepted there. You may also send orders and payment in with your student. Have them stop by the main office any time.

If you are unfamiliar with the program, an overview and registration form may be found here. The registration form only needs to be completed once. All families making their first purchase of more than $250 will earn an automatic $25 tuition credit. Please contact Mrs. Kenski with any questions. Thank you for your continued support of Trinity High School.

September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and this article explores the risk of teen suicide rising before and during the pandemic. The Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be found here.

Scrip Program | Rocks in Motion | Shop Trinity | Order a Yearbook

Donations can be made to Trinity High School through the United Way for the Capital Region's Workplace Campaign. Donors need only write "Trinity High School" as the name of the organization and include our phone number, (717) 761-1116.

Lunch accounts can be created and viewed here. Users can view their child's balance and set up an alert for when the account falls below a certain threshold. Payments can be made by sending in cash or a check payable to "Trinity High School" (please put "lunch" in the memo line) that can be handed to the cashier when checking out with lunch. The lunch menu can be viewed here and can always be found in the Quicklinks section at the bottom of the website. Please note, Trinity does not participate in the free lunch program.

The required Trinity gym shorts are available for pre-order from Flynn O'Hara now through September 14. They will be ready for either pick-up in store, or may be shipped. Students will need these for class beginning Thursday September 24. The shorts can be worn during the school day for the months of August, September, and October, as well as May and June. At all other times, on PE days, students must wear plain sweatpants during the school day.

Interested in playing for Trinity's Handbell Choir? We meet Wednesdays after school from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. in the auditorium. Our first practice will be on September 16! If you are interested, please email the director, Mrs. Denise Auriemma, to sign up. Hope to see you soon!’

Trinity is committed to providing our seniors with a Kairos experience. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, modifications are being made to the schedule and location of the retreats. The September Kairos has been rescheduled for April. The 2020-2021 Kairos dates are as follows: December 16 to 18, March 10 to 12, and April 14 to 16. Registration information will be sent to senior email accounts the week of September 14.

The Rocks in Motion Service Program has been suspended for the 2020-2021 school year due to the situation created by COVID-19. Many events where our students volunteer are not being held or may be cancelled with little notice. We are also mindful of the safety of our students, their families, and the community at large.

Service is, of course, still encouraged, and we ask that any students who complete service hours to continue to report those and submit the Service Forms to their Theology teachers. During the school year Mrs. Fejfar, our Service Coordinators, and our Service Mentor Group leaders will plan opportunities for Mentor Group time. If you have some ideas for service projects that can be done in school with social distancing, please email Mrs. Fejfar.

There are Virtual Service Opportunities posted on the Rocks in Motion service website for any student who is interested. Throughout the year we may get requests from organizations for volunteers for service events. Mrs. Fejfar will verify with the organization that CDC Guidelines are being followed. You always have to the option whether or not to participate in service that is on location. The health of our Trinity Community remains our first priority. We are proud of the service offered by our young people!

Saturday, September 19: Grab-N-Go Crab Fest (order by September 16)--see information here

Congratulations to Lucy Cooper-Silvis '21 (Loyola House) and Olivia Maddux '21 (De La Salle House) who were named Semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program as a result of their PSAT scores. They are among 16,000 students honored out of 1.6 million entrants nationwide. Lucy and Olivia have the chance to advance as Finalists, which will be announced in February of 2021. Congratulations to these students on this wonderful academic achievement!

Peter approached Jesus and asked him, "Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.' Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount.

He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, 'Pay back what you owe.' Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' But he refused. Instead, he had the fellow servant put in prison until he paid back the debt. Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?' Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart." --Matthew 18:21-35

Click to read more of Sunday’s readings.

Forgiveness. How often must we forgive? Seventy-seven times? So on the seventy-eighth time, we can be spiteful, hurtful, and unforgiving? No. This is not what Jesus is saying. Peter and the people of Jesus' time would have understood the symbolism in seventy-seven times. Jesus is telling Peter that we need to forgive those who hurt us in a perfect and infinite way. But how can we forgive perfectly and infinitely? Understanding that we ourselves are sinners who need forgiveness, and who believe that God will forgive us perfectly and infinitely, will help us to understand that we are called to do the same. As fallen human beings, we sin and hurt one another. As followers of Christ, we build relationships through the gift of forgiveness. Forgiveness is essential in sharing the love of God with others.

Heavenly Father, As we go through the course of this week, we know that people and circumstances are going to challenge us. Grant us your peace to handle each person and each situation with your love and peace. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

The Diocese of Harrisburg and associated entities are required to publicize this notice of the court-approved claims process for, among other things, the submission of claims by survivors of abuse.

These attachments have more information: Sexual Abuse Claims Notice and Claims Bar Date.

Items for consideration in Trinity Weekly should be sent to communications@thsrocks.us by noon each Wednesday. Please write a blurb and include any relevant information, including links or images.