The Seelos Star
Winter 2021
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Dear Families,
Our Lenten Journey began weeks ago and we are about to enter the Easter Triduum and celebrate the beginning of the Easter Season. We are excited to be able to take a break from many of the things in our lives that we have been so focused on and reflect on the beauty of the Easter Season. The Spring weather is returning and nature is awakening and we too are looking forward to these welcomed changes, but what will not change is our dedication to our students and our school community. I am so proud of how our teachers, students, and families have responded to the challenges we have faced this year. While many of these challenges remain, I know that Blessed Francis Seelos Academy will continue to meet those challenges as we push toward the end of the school year with hope!
I wanted to thank everyone for being part of our school community. In supporting our activities, our fundraisers, and being just by being part of our community, you have made our school a better place! On behalf of the faculty and staff, I wish everyone a happy and relaxing Easter break, and we will continue to keep you in our daily prayers!
God Bless,
Mr. Reese
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VIRTUAL VISITORS SURPRISE PRESCHOOLERS
The Early Childhood Center teachers like Mrs. Gasse have found unique ways to incorporate many of the surprise guests that have visited the classrooms in previous years.
During their unit on community helpers, they were visited “virtually” by a dentist and a father to one of the students. He helped them practice flossing using dental floss, Legos, and Playdoh. Visits from mystery readers also created a lot of excitement. There was a different reader every day for the month of February and the students didn't know who the person was going to be, until they joined virtually through Google Meet.
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SIXTH GRADE CRAFTSMAN DONATES BIRDHOUSE
While many 12 year-olds were busy playing with their new games this Christmas, sixth grade student Victor Wagner took delight in learning the basics of carpentry with his new miter saw. The gift was a surprise and came with enough wood to begin some projects.
With the help of his dad, Victor tested his skills by building a bird house. From there, he kept cutting and crafted four 7”x 5” x 12” bird feeders as gifts for family and friends. When he returned to school from Christmas break, he donated one of those birdfeeders to Seelos Academy’s living science courtyard that is used often by his former fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Suzy Grice. Mrs. Grice was very impressed with Victor’s work and generosity and said she will see to it that the birds enjoy this kind of donation.
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BIRTHDAY BOOK CLUB
One thing that has not changed in this pandemic environment is the ability to enjoy a good book from the school library. Mrs. Huerbin’s goal at the beginning of the school year was to continue the long tradition of the Seelos Academy Birthday Book Club. This year, in particular, was especially important to Mrs. Huerbin to help provide some normalcy to a school day that has been changed in many ways to accommodate in-person learning. And, she succeeded with over 100 new books donated to the school’s library.
Families enrolled in the Birthday Book Club donate brand new hard-cover book for the library with a nameplate that bears the student’s name. The student is the first to check out the book and their birthday is celebrated with a photo taken and displayed on the Birthday Book Club bulletin board.
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BASKETBALL TEAMS PRACTICE WINNING EVERYDAY
Girls
The Seelos girls’ basketball season was impressive to say the least! After a slow start due to COVID, our female Saints went on to play aggressive throughout the season. The Varsity team faced some tough competition, but continued to work together as a team under coaches Bill Belko and Maureen Risdon.
The JV girls had a successful season under coaches Pat Perri and Chris Lazzara, finishing strong in third place. Both teams advanced to the playoffs before COVID caused them to sadly withdraw from competition for the season. The Developmental teams also enjoyed action-packed seasons under the tutelage of coaches Eliot Pecorara (JV White), Mandi Downey (4th grade) and Mike Lindenfelser (3rdgrade). The girls competed against public and private schools throughout the area and put their skills on display! Tara Aiello
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Boys
After being postponed in November, the Seelos basketball season got underway in January with Seelos fielding boys and girls teams for 3rd grade, 4th grade, JV Blue & White, Varsity Blue & White, plus the Little Dribblers program. Playing with masks and other COVID challenges across the league ensured this was a very unique season, but the players and coaches took everything in stride, rose to the challenge and competed safely.
Congratulations to the JV Blue Boys for their first round playoff win before activities were shut down this month! Bill Campbell
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FISH FRY
The famous Saint Alphonsus Fish Fry is back this year as a take-out only event and renamed "Saint Aidan Parish Fish Fry". Proceeds benefit our school and the parish. Pick up curbside (pre-order only) every Friday during Lent, including Good Friday.
Donations are still needed for this event in order to meet the sponsorship goal. We are in the home stretch of the fish fry and so close to reaching our sponsorship goal. We greatly appreciate your generosity and those that have already contributed.
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DONATE TO OUR ANNUAL APPEAL
Each year, Seelos Academy reaches out to our alumni, friends, and families asking for donations to our Annual Appeal. Please consider an end-of-the-year donation to our school. 100% of your donation will help us reach our fundraising goal, fulfilling our mission of providing a quality Catholic education to our students. Letters and emails are currently in process, or you can donate now via PayPal on our webpage.
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GIFT CARD PROGRAM
Families earn tuition credit by purchasing gift cards through the school. The program generates additional revenues used for the operational costs of Seelos Academy. Order online at bfsafundraising.com, at either campus office, or Sign up for ShopwithScrip and make gift card purchases from your phone on demand. For more information, contact giftcards@seelosacademy.org.
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AMAZON SMILE!
Blessed Francis Seelos Academy receives cash back from Amazon Smile! Simply login to your Amazon account and type "Amazon Smile" into the Amazon search engine. Designate North Hills Regional Catholic Elementary Schools as your charity that will receive 0.5% of each of your eligible Amazon purchases. The NHRCES will distribute funds to Seelos Academy.
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BOX TOPS
Clipping and submitting Box Tops, or scanning your receipt using the Box Top app is an easy way to help earn money for Seelos Academy. This fundraiser has netted thousands of dollars over the years.
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CHICK-FIL-A & MOE'S
Save your Chick-Fil-A receipts from the Wexford and Cranberry locations MOE'S receipts from any location and return to school. Through credit earned for reimbursed receipts we are able to provide food items for the school community, including our annual 8th grade picnic and teacher luncheons.
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MABEL'S LABELS
Mabel’s Labels are a great way to ensure your items don’t end up in the lost & found or mixed up! These personalized, dishwasher and laundry-safe labels are great for everything from shoes, clothing tags, water bottles, and backpacks.
Visit campaigns.mabelslabels.com and select Blessed Francis Seelos Academy. Orders ship direct to your home. Seelos Academy receives 20% cash back on each order.
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MARKET DAY
Market Day is a direct order program with food products delivered directly to your door. Market Day will return 10% of funds spent back to our school. Of this 10%, 5% will be able to be directed to your tuition accounts. The other 5% will go to our school's overall fundraising goal. Instructions for registering can be found here.
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