School Newsletter
03.17.22
Mission:
St. Anthony of Padua School Community
engages students in academic excellence
while guiding them to live as a reflection of Jesus.
School Calendar:

All upcoming dates can be found on the school website or app.  


Google Calendar Subscription (click the + at the bottom right to subscribe)
From Mrs. Pudelko:
Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Did your students share with you that they had a Twinkie and Root Beer this week? I read the school a story about kindness where two strangers shared Twinkies and Root Beer. I encourage you to take a moment to read it, as well.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the Art Show on Tuesday evening. It was great to have the community together. As we set up additional events for the Spring, I ask parents to consider volunteering some of their time. Many hands make light work, and it is a great way to give back to our community!

It's hard to believe that we are approaching the last quarter of the school year! Your help with completing your enrollment paperwork for next year is critical for our planning - I'm in the midst of budgeting for next year and staffing is a large piece of our school budget! I sat in today on a meeting for a new system, called School Admin, that will be used throughout the Diocese. I promise you that this is the last year for paper/pencil enrollment paperwork. We will be moving to continuous online enrollment. This system will also take the place of Smart Tuition so we will be asking parents to complete one document for enrollment later in the school year. These are positive changes for all of our schools and families!

Our Summer Camp (child care) sign-up is well underway! We are so excited to be able to offer this program to our families. Thank you to the team of parents who did research to ensure that we have a feasible and financially reasonable program. If we can answer questions, please do not hesitate to reach out. Sign-ups are due May 1, but early sign-ups are guaranteed a spot in the program.

We have a volunteer opportunity for a small group of parents - we'd love to set up a uniform exchange closet that would be available to parents throughout the school year. This is a minimal time commitment, but could positively impact our school community. If you are interested or would like to know more about this project, please contact the school office.

God bless -
Jenny
Noteworthy News:
  • REGISTRATION PACKETS: Please be sure to turn in registration packets as soon as possible! The deadline for returning students to register is March 25, 2022, with no registration fee. If you are having any trouble accessing Blackbaud's Tuition Management or Financial Aid system, please use the following links:

https://www.blackbaud.school/

https://studentfinancialaid.blackbaud.school/#!/login
  • FAMILY DIRECTORY OPT-OUT FORM: The school office is compiling a digital family directory for the 2021-2022 school year. Please fill out the following FORM by Friday, March 18, 2022, if you would like to opt-out publishing any portion of your personal information (cell phone number, address, email address).

  • NEW STUDENT REFERRAL PROGRAM: We continue to offer our referral scholarship again this year. If you have friends or family who may be interested, please pass along the information. Check out the details HERE.

  • JOHN O'DONNELL STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP: The John O'Donnell Student Scholarship is named in honor of John O'Donnell, a St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School alumni. John's life was cut short by a tragic auto accident. This scholarship is open to 5th-7th grade students and was established to assist other students in pursuit of a quality St. Anthony of Padua Catholic education. For those interested, please complete the attached APPLICATION and student reflection by Friday, April 22, 2022. 
  • SUMMER CAMP (CHILD CARE): St. Anthony is excited to offer licensed child care during the summer! This is a fun opportunity for students ages 3 and up to get great care while also participating in learning activities, prayer, crafts, and outdoor activities! Please note the due date to sign up for Summer Camp is May 1. Click HERE to sign up.
Notes from last week:
  • SAVE THE DATE...DADDY DAUGHTER DANCE: The Daddy Daughter Dance will be held on Saturday, April 23, 5:30-8:30pm. Stay tuned for more details!

  • ARTOME ART SHOW: Thank you to all families who came to the Artome Art Show this week. The online portal is fixed and extended until March 23 to purchase originals or reproductions. Click HERE to start your order.

  • WHITECAPS READING CLUB: Last week, students were given Whitecaps "reading trackers." Students will read during the month of March, have their parents fill out the back of their tracker form, and use this as their voucher to redeem 2 free tickets. Parents may redeem tickets by sending them in the mail, in person, or online. Participation in the Whitecaps Reading Club is optional.
March Hot Lunch Menu:

Click image to bring up interactive live calendar. Please note we will not be continually sending separate blasts with last-minute changes due to continued shortages in the supply chain. This link along with the app will be updated automatically as soon as changes occur. (click on the calendar)
March is Reading Month!
One Book. One School.

Week of March 21-25
Families can read chapters 13-18 together this week. 

Dress Up Day: Thursday, March 23 
Wild About Reading - Wildcat Spirit Wear 

Home Activity: 
Write an acrostic poem or create a new book cover for the book. 
Use the template provided to create a poem about our book for the month. Share all your favorite events from the book.  

At School Activity: 
Kindness Challenge 
Students will complete 3-4 kind acts on the chart. Completed Kindness Challenges can be turned into the school office. At the end of the month, all challenges will be put into a drawing for a number of prizes.  

A-Z Word Hunt - Students will look for words from a-z around our school.
AmazonSmile:
AmazonSmile is a great opportunity to raise money for St. Anthony School. If you are planning to make any purchases on Amazon, please look at using AmazonSmile when making your purchases, as St. Anthony will receive .05% for each purchase when using AmazonSmile at no cost for you!

How it works:
  • Go to https://smile.amazon.com/, and then log in to your Amazon account.
  • Click the "Get Started" button.
  • When looking for the charity name, type in "St. Anthony of Padua Church" - please make sure the location is listed as Grand Rapids, MI.
  • Begin shopping!
Athletic News:

  • SPRING SPORTS REGISTRATION NOW OPEN: Registration for GRACEAC spring sports is now open! The following sports will be available for 5th-8th graders at GRACEAC member schools and parishes this spring - girls soccer, girls lacrosse, boys lacrosse, baseball, boys & girls track, and boys & girls tennis (6th-8th graders only). Registration can be done at the following link: GRACEAC Spring Sports Registration

  • ATHLETIC COMMUNICATION and CALENDAR: The athletic calendar will be updated regularly with practices times, game times, and deadlines. Please use the athletic calendar as a reference point for planning. It can be found on the school website and St. Anthony app. All athletic communication should be sent to athletics@saparish.com. **Please note all last-minute changes and cancellations will be found on TeamSnap App Notifications and Chats screen from GRACEAC, coaches, and athletic directors**

  • NW YOUTH SOCCER ASSOCIATION: Open to all children ages 1-15. See the attached FLYER for more information about the spring soccer season or click HERE for the sign-up form. The sign-up form is due by March 27.
Home & School Association Updates:

  • PANDA EXPRESS RESTAURANT FUNDRAISER: March 22, 11:00-8:00. Support St. Anthony's by eating out next Tuesday! Click HERE for the flyer (it must be shown when ordering in the restaurant or drive-thru). Or order online (order.pandaexpress.com) and use code 334237.

  • DADDY DAUGHTER DANCE - NEW DATE: The Daddy Daughter Dance has been rescheduled for April 23. Stay tuned for more information coming soon!

  • HOME & SCHOOL MEETING: We had a great meeting last night. Join us for our next meeting on April 20 at 6:00 pm.
SCRIP News:


Cash and Carry and Order Pick Up Schedule:
  • Friday 8am-8:30am and following school Mass until 9:30 am
  • Sunday - following 9:30am Mass
St. Anthony of Padua App:

Please search "St. Anthony of Padua School" in the App Store or follow one of these links to download it. From here, all school information will be at your fingertips! The push notifications will allow you to stay connected to all important information, quick calendar access, staff contacts, and much more!
Newsletter / Emails Resubscribe:

Please take caution when viewing the School Newsletter via a tablet or smartphone, that you do not 'unsubscribe' to the school emails. While 'swiping' with your finger to view the newsletter, it is easy to hit on the 'unsubscribe' button at the bottom of the page. When this is done, you will no longer be able to receive newsletters or email blasts from the school.

If you find you are no longer receiving emails from school, please call the school office at 453-8229, ext. 200. We will send you a 'resubscribe' email. After we get confirmation from you that you accept it, you can be added back to the contact list.
St. Anthony of Padua School | 616-453-8229 x200
schooloffice@saparish.com | www.saparish.com
The school newsletter is sent weekly on Thursday. Any items to be submitted for the newsletter must be submitted by Tuesday via email to Ben Novitsky (bnovitsky@saparish.com).