Parent Bulletin
April 1, 2021
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Today is Holy Thursday, remembering 2,000 years ago when Jesus Christ held the first Mass and established the Sacrament of Holy Communion prior to his arrest and crucifixion. Jesus celebrated a dinner - aka The Last Supper - as a Passover feast because Christ would fulfill His role as the Christian victim of the Passover for all to be saved by His final sacrifice.
The primary act of Holy Thursday is the ritual reenactment of the Last Supper at Mass. But you don't have to attend a once-a-year Holy Thursday liturgy to recall and participate in this event. This miraculous act is celebrated at every Mass - every Sunday, every weekday - as part of the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
During the original meal, Jesus broke bread and gave it to his Disciples, uttering the words, "This is my body, which is given for you." He then passed a cup filled with wine and said, "This is my blood..." We Catholics know through faith that the bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of Jesus Christ through a process known as transubstantiation. The Last Supper is celebrated daily in the Catholic Church as part of every Mass for it is through Christ's sacrifice that we have been saved.
The Eucharist is one of those things which cannot be understood by reason. Human arguments can never explain Christ’s "Real Presence.” The Catholic Church is simply taking Jesus at His word when He said:
Today, as we commemorate the first Eucharistic miracle that would continue for 2,000 years daily on altars throughout the world, may each of us continue to be amazed and humbled by the fact that God not only sent His Son into our midst to die for us, but also to remain physically in our midst through the wonderful sacrament of the Eucharist. Let's not let this opportunity pass - let's all get ourselves and our children to Mass this Easter Sunday...and EVERY Sunday!
May the resurrection of our Savior give your life meaning and joy!
Blessings on your Easter celebration, and prayers for a happy Easter vacation!
MR. FITZ
p.s.
I am asking all school parents to please participate in our special springtime Auction in one of three fundamental ways:
1) The most fun way is to register to attend the in-person event at St. Louise School on Saturday the 17th. Dinner and cocktails will be served in individual classrooms, and you'll watch the Livestream on the room's flat panel screen with fellow parents, school faculty, and school supporters.
2) If you want to enjoy dinner and wine like those attending the Auction in-person, but would rather not come to school on April 17, you may register to attend the remote event. After you go here to register and pay, you'll be asked to note if you will be staying at home to view the livestream. The same delicious catered dinner and cocktails that will be served at school that Saturday night will be provided to you to enjoy at home.
3) A third way to support the Auction is to simply watch and bid during the livestream on the 17th without registering. No meal is included, so there will be no need to register ahead-of-time. You just log in on Auction-night to start your bidding...and order out a pizza or raid your refrigerator.
Please choose now which of three fundamental ways you'll be supporting the Auction. The registration deadline is April 12 - our first day returning from Easter vacation.
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New York priest stands outside grocery store this Lent and says, "I wanted people to meditate upon the fact that everyone is starting to return to their normal daily lives and routines, but Mass attendance was not increasing. I kept thinking about ways to encourage people to come back to Mass in a way that was approachable, funny, but still truthful.”
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CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS
Today
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Holy Thursday Prayer Service, 9AM; attended by grades PK-3; others may watch streaming liturgy here
Tomorrow - NOON DISMISSAL
- All classes dismiss at 12:00; no afterschool Kids' Club
- Good Friday - all classes will be walking the outdoor Stations of the Cross in the morning; parents who want to walk with their children should see their children's teachers' messages as to when they will be walking
- Today is the registration deadline for CYO Soccer (registration deadline for CYO Kickball is April 9)
Sunday, April 4 - ALLELUIA!
- Easter Sunday
- Easter vacation runs through April 11
Monday, April 12
- School resumes in-person; grades 6-8 continue usual hybrid schedule
- Auction preview week begins!
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Monday is the last chance to purchase Auction tickets and dinner/drinks for either in-person or at-home attendees
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Tuesday begins Mobile Bidding for all
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Friday opens up Live Bidding; at-home attendees pick up dinner/drinks this day
Saturday, April 17
- Auction!
- Charger VIPs arrive starting at 6:00
- Other in-person attendees arrive starting at 6:20
- Livestream begins for those at home at 6:30
Monday, April 19
- Grades 6-7-8 do NOT have school today; teachers are preparing for daily return of students on the 20th
Tuesday, April 20
- Grades 6-7-8 return for DAILY in-person learning!
CHECK OUT OUR COMPLETE SCHOOL CALENDAR HERE
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Auction Night Is 2 Weeks Away; Register Now! |
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Saturday, April 17, is our special spring-time Auction, and we are excited to be the first Archdiocesan school to hold this type of event in-person over the past 13 months!
We ask you to please register now to get in on the fun, as registration ends the day we return from Easter vacation - Monday the 12th! There are several different registration packages this year, please be sure you choose the one that fits the experience you want to have: in-person or at home.
When registering, you can note with which specific people or with which grade level parents you'd like to sit with for dinner. You'll be dining in the classrooms with an elegant table setting and the use of the flat screen boards to watch the auctioneer and live bidding, while bidding from your dinner table using your smart phone. Plus, we'll have some special surprises for you!
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We would love to have parents earn some volunteer hours by helping with set up, clean up, or other support roles? Click here to sign up to help! Thank you!
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Charger Hope glassybabys are on sale now! The Dove design represents hope for the coming year, and was created by our very own, Mika Walker, using a line draw technique. They have arrived, so purchase yours now, or stop by the Charger Cards office on Friday to purchase! Missed out on the first 2? Charger Spirit and Charger Blessings are also available in VERY limited quantities! Click here to find out more!
- The Premium Wine contest ended last week with 1B and 2B parents tying for bringing in the most wine donations for the Auction. For the prize, the students of 1B and 2B will be getting a Root Beer Float Party soon! Thank you to ALL the parents in ALL the grades who donated wine bottles! On Auction night, these premium bottles of wine will be available for purchase to enjoy with your meal.
For any auction-related questions, please reach out to the auction team or visit the SKYBALL page on our website!
We are always so grateful for the support of our generous and awesome families. We look forward to celebrating with you on April 17th!
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The Easter Triduum at St. Louise |
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Today, tomorrow, and Saturday represent the Sacred Triduum in the Catholic Church's calendar, and at St. Louise School we begin with a Holy Thursday Prayer Service this morning at 9AM. This will be attended in-person at the church by grades PK-3. The other grade levels will watch a live-stream of the liturgy here.
Tomorrow is Good Friday, and we will continue the St. Louise tradition of having our 8th graders lead all classes in walking the Stations of the Cross outdoors. Each homeroom has a specific time they will walk the Stations, beginning outside the front entrance of the school. If any parents/grandparents wish to join their children, your children's teachers let you know at what time you should be waiting outside (near the flagpole. No need to come inside for a nametag.)
If you can't come in-person to walk the Stations of the Cross, you can view a virtual Stations HERE that Mr. Fitz created for St. Louise families last year.
At St. Louise Parish, there are a variety of opportunities to come to church for prayer and liturgies during these next three days. Look here for information, as well as to find Mass times for Easter.
Please remember - we dismiss school at 12:00 Friday, and begin Easter Vacation.
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Track Athletes, Take Your Marks |
The St. Louise Parish Athletic Board recently announced that CYO Track for grades 4-8 will take place this spring. The deadline to register is May 6, with the $55 per student fee including a new team shirt.
- Track practices will begin on April 29th, and will be every Tuesday and Thursday from 5:00-6:30pm at Highland Middle School in Bellevue through June 3.
- The CYO track season is virtual this year, so there will be no large track meets with other schools; instead, we will be having our own St. Louise track meet on Thursdays during our practice time.
- All races will be timed and field events will be measured and turned into CYO, who will post results from all schools on Athletic.net.
- The exception is the 8th Grade Pentathlon, which will be held in-person at West Seattle Stadium on Sunday, May 23rd
- St. Louise track meets at Highland Middle School will be:
- Qualifying Meet 1: Thursday, May 6th.
- Qualifying Meet 2: Thursday, May 13th.
- Qualifying Meet 3: Thursday, May 20th.
- Championship Meet: Thursday, June 3rd
The track program will need many volunteers to help with track practices and meets! To sign up you child and to offer your volunteer help, please visit: https://www.stlouise.org/cyo-sports.
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Congratulations to our Honor Roll Students |
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The following 7th and 8th graders earned placement on the St. Louise Honor Roll for the 2nd trimester - having 90% or higher grades in all daily subjects and 3 or higher marks in all specialist subjects and behavior/work ethic marks.
Congratulations to:
Charlotte Aitken, Kate Banic, Bella Barros, Becca Blank, Ellison Brown, Briony Brown, Anthony Caso, Simone Cimprich, Aliana Cruz, Melissa D'Costa, Anna DeBord, Eliana Estrada, Angeline Fernandez, Lucy Flaat, Malia Gregorios, Elise Hueffed, Brayden Jensen, Ocean Kincaid, Sammy Kujath, Kayla McCulloch, Ellie McHugh, Kylie Mineiro, Jensen Muller, Pia Munar, Ellie Nightingale, Brooke Nowak, Kate Perreault, Elina Phan, Gaea Ponte, Debashish Ratnam, Isabella Sabol, Camila Soto, Fin Sweeney, Sarah Tano, Emmanuel Vimal, Annie Wilken, Ian Woelfl
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Please Read This If You Are Traveling during Easter Vacation |
St. Louise School does not have a requirement about self-quarantining for precautionary measures for students or school staff who travel and return to school.
In all instances, there is no requirement for self-quarantine when returning to either Washington State (from another state) or returning to the U.S. (from another country). Any type of self-quarantine or COVID-testing once people have returned from travel are voluntary actions as part of guidance/recommendations, and not mandated actions. Thus, if St. Louise students and/or staff members travel out of state or out of country this spring, including during Easter Vacation, they are welcome to return to school immediately upon return – provided they have followed our regular, daily protocol:
- Verify every morning before leaving for school that there are no symptoms of COVID-19 or the flu.
- If a student or staff member exhibits any one of the following symptoms, he/she must remain home:
• Fever (100.4 or higher) • Chills • New loss of taste or smell
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing • Cough • Fatigue • Headache • Muscle pain/body aches • Sore throat • Runny nose or congestion • Nausea or vomiting • Diarrhea
However, if a student or staff member is showing only one of these short-term symptoms for COVID that begins and resolves in less than a 24-hour period, and that person has not been in close-contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID, he/she may return to school the next day and without the need for a COVID test, provided the short-term symptom has resolved. The symptoms identified as short-term are:
• Fatigue • Headache • Muscle pain/body aches • Sore throat
• Runny nose or congestion • Nausea or vomiting • Diarrhea
It’s possible that some St. Louise families will choose to keep their child home from school upon return from a trip, simply out of precaution. In this case, the parents are asked to please inform the school office (office@stlouiseschool.org) and the child’s teacher(s) as soon as that decision has been made. Since it is not always possible for a teacher to revert immediately to remote-teaching via Microsoft Teams for a student who suddenly announces he/she is staying home for a few days, there may be a delay in getting online-learning initiated for the first day home.
Finally, unlike when school resumed following Christmas Vacation and the entire school was conducted remotely for the first week back, when school resumes this April 12, after Easter Vacation, the entire school will be conducted per usual – with the school building open for in-person teaching. (Grade 6-8 classes will continue with their hybrid schedule.)
As we begin the spring season with more outdoor-time and assuming less illnesses, we still need to continue diligence in daily checking children’s conditions, in not sending students to school if they exhibit any symptoms above, and in following our protocol as explained here.*
*NOTE: THIS PROTOCOL HAS BEEN RECENTLY UPDATED!
Thank you, St. Louise parents, for your outstanding cooperation with all of this!
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Two Deadlines on April 15 |
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Springtime is when St. Louise teachers get together to create next year’s grade K-8 homeroom lists. Teachers create these new homeroom rosters for next year’s grade levels, mixing up the current group of students in each grade and adding any newly admitted students. Just as parents are trusting their children's teachers this year with daily caring for and teaching your most precious possessions, so too can you trust them with making the decisions this spring on which children to place in which classrooms. Teachers take into account many things, making sure there is a balance in each class of: boys and girls; highly verbal and low verbal personalities; kids with strong academic skills and those who need extra help; etc. They also know which students would best be served by being separated from certain classmates or grouped with certain others. Finally, they try to match each child’s learning style with the teaching styles of next year’s teachers.
Trusting the knowledge of our teachers in choosing the class placement that will be best for your child and best for the entire class of students, close to 99% of St. Louise parents never put in a request for a specific classroom or teacher. However, should parents have a unique point they want the faculty and Mr. Fitzpatrick to consider for the best learning-atmosphere placement for their child next year, they have an opportunity each April to send this information in writing. Parents are asked to not talk to a teacher about this, as all requests must come through Mr. Fitzpatrick. There is no guarantee a parent request can be honored. Mr. Fitz asks that you any written request focus on what type of "learning atmosphere placement" parents want the faculty to consider; please don't just "name the teacher" you want your child to have. Furthermore, note that the school keep tracks of the number of requests a parent has made for a child's class placement request, as it would be too complex to accommodate a family's multiple requests during their child's PK-8 era. Please note there is an April 15th deadline to get any class placement requests into Mr. Fitz for the 2021-22 school year.
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Speaking of an April 15th deadline, another deadline on that same date is to apply for a Father Phil Wallace Tuition Assistance Endowment Fund Grant. The online application and the accompanying documentation must be submitted to the company we use to process these applications (FACTS) by April 15. Please go HERE for more information, and if your family will be struggling this coming school year with your earnings, please consider applying this coming week. Since it takes time to upload supporting financial documents, and FACTS often needs to get back to applicants with further instructions or needs, don't wait until April 15 to submit, as it may take a week or more of completing all the steps.
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Shop Online over Easter Break
Over the Easter break, if you shop online you can earn rebates and help St. Louise School raise money. If you use the RaiseRight app you'll have an optional way to manage your gift cards and purchase from your phone while shopping. RaiseRight allows you to view and use your eGift Cards, even when you're offline and add money to your reloadable cards
1) Sign in with your same ShopWithScrip username and password.
2) Access your gift cards right away.
3) Check out with payment information already saved to your account.
Discover new earning opportunities every day
- Daily bonuses
- Giveaways
- Seasonal offers
- In-app exclusives
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Charger Cards Getting-Started Checklist
You will want to register for Presto Pay or pay by credit card. PrestoPay is our online vendor’s version of PayPal. Registering for PrestoPay allows you to pay online so you can get “instant” printable/phone usable e-gift cards. You will find PrestoPay information at https://www.stlouiseschool.org/chargercards.
You will be able to setup online payments and securely pay online after you set up your account in a matter of minutes.
If you have questions, please email us or stop by the Charger Cards sales-window each Friday school morning from 8:15-9:00.
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In-person sales every school-Friday from 8:15-9:00AM in the central hallway of the original school building. Orders made online or drop-off forms received at the school office by 9am Monday will be delivered Friday of that week.
For more information on brands/cards available for purchase 24/7 please go to shopwithscrip.com.
Please return Charger Card plastic envelopes to the main school office once you have received your Charger Card order.
Thank you for supporting St. Louise Charger Cards!
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We Are Just One Month Away from the Walk-a-Thon |
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We are holding our Walk-a-Thon the first Friday in May, and we are returning this year to an in-person event, after having to hold a "virtual" walk last year!
Soon after Easter vacation, you and your kids will be receiving information on how the Walk-a-Thon will work this spring. We will be calling on each school family to procure minimum donations in the amounts of:
· $95 for 1-student families;
· $190 for 2-or-more-students families.
Pledge-collecting of donations will take place from April 19 through May 7, and will be handled electronically, so you and your kids can easily email grandparents, aunts & uncles, and family friends, asking for their support.
There will be Walk-a-Thon prizes given for both individual students and grade levels who bring in the most donations as well as run the most laps on the day of the event – which will be Friday, May 7. Earlier that week will be Walk-a-Thon-Spirit Week, with fun activities and free dress days, as we all get hyped for the big day!
If you would like to help Jim and Cari O’Loughlin-Britt with some of the organizational and clerical needs of preparing info-packets and helping with prizes, please email Jim.
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