🙏 The Messenger - Feb. 11, 2021 🙏

February 11, 2021

Dear Families of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School,

This Wednesday, February 17th, marks the beginning of Lent. Ash Wednesday’s roots are found in the Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The ashes remind us that “we are dust and to dust we shall return”. Additionally, the ashes symbolize the grief we feel due to our separation from God caused by sin. This year, the distribution of ashes will look different as we follow the guidelines of Pope Francis to sprinkle ashes on the crown of the head rather than in the form of a cross on the forehead. At St. Anthony of Padua, all of our students will receive ashes. All will either attend or watch the live-stream Mass. Ashes will be distributed to some in the sanctuary and others in the classroom. May this season of Lent be one of reflection, penance and renewed faith. For more information on the history of the distribution of ashes, please read: For Ash Wednesday, Vatican asks priests to 'sprinkle' ashes on heads | National Catholic Reporter (ncronline.org).

Only by His Grace,

Veronica Tucker

Principal

SCHOOL NEWS

NEW STUDENT ENROLLMENT

New Student Enrollment continues until Feb. 19 at: staopcs.org/admissions
If you have a sibling of a currently enrolled student, you will submit their application at the link above.
If you have questions or need assistance contact Cathy Russell at crussell@staopcs.org.

CAR LINE NOTES

Baseball & softball games will be starting next week. On home game days, cars from the visiting teams will be entering the St. Teresa parking lot from Bay Branch and will be parking in the St. Teresa Center lot. Games start at 4:15 pm, so cars will be arriving during dismissal time. If you are in back carline, please be extra cautious of traffic coming in as you are exiting through the St. Teresa Center parking lot.

FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT - FEB. 27TH

Food trucks available at 6 PM | Movie starts at 6:30 PM

Flags will be positioned on the field to enforce social distancing for families.
Parents must remain in attendance with their children.
Masks must be worn when ordering food and moving throughout campus.
Picnic blankets and low-lawn chairs are welcome!

2021 SCI://TECH Private School Science Fair Results

Behavioral/Social Science - 7th Grade

4th Place: Andrea Garcia - "Which Egg Shell is Stronger?"

Behavioral/Social Science - 8th Grade

1st Place: Agustin Mora - "What Affects Someone's Relative Pitch?"

Biochemistry/Microbiology - 7th Grade

3rd Place: Anderson Dufrene - "Electrical Edibles"

Biochemistry/Microbiology - 8th Grade

1st Place: Luke Tucker - "Rotting Time, Which Fruits Rot Fastest?"

3rd Place: Audrey Bitting - "Ice Cream Chemistry"

Botany/Environmental - 7th Grade

1st Place: Luke Podowski - "How Do Earthworms Affect Fertilized Soil?"

2nd Place: Lia Nelli - "Growing Plants Without Soil"

3rd Place: Bryer Peik - "Do you know H2O?"

4th Place: Rex McKeig - "Floodlight Food?"

Botany/Environmental - 8th Grade

3rd Place: Sofi De Aguirre - "How Soap Concentrations Affect Plant Growth"

4th Place: Jessica Olsen - "The Secret of Mushroom Substrate Growth"

Chemistry - 7th Grade

2nd Place: Connor Staed - "Which is the Greatest Glue?"

3rd Place: Christopher Ross - "Reactant Size Changes the Chemical Reaction"

Physics/Energy/Transportation - 7th Grade

1st Place: Ethan Rivers - "Gauss Rifle"

2nd Place: Harper Smithson - "The Theory of Sound Waves"

3rd Place: Mikey Johnston - "Turning Mud into Energy"

4th Place: Matthew Henzler - "Fastest Way to Shoot in Lacrosse"

Physics/Energy/Transportation - 8th Grade

1st Place: Anna Bong - "Boyle's Law is Tested"

2nd Place: Manuel Del Valle - "Can Color Affect Heat Absorption"

4th Place: Marian Keklikian - "Testing of a Saltwater Zinc-air Battery

Animal Science/Medicine/Health - 7th Grade

2nd Place: Nicolette Naeher - "Dog Drool Disinfectant Lab"

Animal Science/Medicine/Health - 8th Grade

1st Place: Nadean Ibrahim - "How Climate Change Affects Marine Life"

3rd Place: Molly Miller - "How's My Hair?"

4th Place: Annie Pesce - "What Substance Attracts the Most Animals"

2020-2021 YEARBOOKS

It's yearbook time! Click the link below to purchase a 2020-2021 Yearbook! Yearbooks are $45 and will be delivered in August. Yearbook ads to commemorate your student are also available for purchase at the same link.

YEARBOOKS & ADS

“The Rosary is the best therapy for these distraught, unhappy, fearful, and frustrated souls, precisely because it involves the simultaneous use of three powers: the physical, the vocal, and the spiritual…” - Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

ENGLISH ROSARY REMINDERS

Just a reminder that you are invited to join other parents in praying the rosary for our school every Monday afternoon at 2:30 pm inside the church. The English Rosary Group meets at 2:30 pm every Monday that school is in session. Drivers in the front carline have permission to park in line and leave for the rosary, as long as the orange carline number is displayed. We are typically finished by 3:05. There is no sign-up, and children are welcome. Masking and social distancing are required inside the church.

During this Year of St. Joseph, which began on December 8, the English Rosary Group will read the attached St. Joseph prayer at the end of our rosary. Also attached are this month's intentions--please feel free to send any additional intentions you'd like us to include to Denise Nahigian at neesta85@aol.com.

St. Joseph Prayer

February Intentions

NURSE'S NOTES & COVID-19 REMINDERS

SCREENING AND ON-CAMPUS REQUIREMENTS

We will continue to work closely with our local health department officials and the Catholic Schools Office to ensure the safety of our students and staff should the school experience a positive case of COVID-19. Please see the attached documents regarding screening of your students and on-campus requirements should someone test positive for COVID-19.

SCREENING QUESTIONNAIRE

ON-CAMPUS REQUIREMENTS

~~STEPS~~ SNOOZE FOR STUDENTS

FINAL DAY TO JOIN OUR TEAM AND RECEIVE A TEAM T-SHIRT IS TODAY - Thursday, Feb. 11th by Midnightnight!

Due to COVID restrictions there won't be a Steps for Students 5K race this year ☹️ but we are hosting "Snooze for Students"! Students who register for our Steps for Students team may arrive at school an hour late (9 a.m. and no tardies) on Friday, Feb. 26th and have a Free Dress Day (pajama bottoms or sweats allowed!).

Students will also still receive the famous Archdiocesan race t-shirt and our school's commemorative dri-fit Snooze for Students shirt sponsored by Doucet Safety Analysis, LLC (Pictured) if registered by Feb. 11th.

Help Raise Funds and Awareness for Catholic Education! And hopefully we'll be back to racing together in 2022!

FINAL DAY TO JOIN OUR TEAM AND RECEIVE A TEAM T-SHIRT IS TODAY - Thursday, Feb. 11th by Midnight!

Join our team at: https://runsignup.com/staopcs

JOIN OUR SNOOZE FOR STUDENTS TEAM

HAVANA NIGHTS - 20TH ANNUAL GALA

WINNER'S CHOICE RAFFLE

St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School is holding a Winner’s Choice Raffle in conjunction with our Havana Nights Gala! We are very grateful to TACHUS for sponsoring this year’s raffle!

WINNER’S CHOICE RAFFLE • PRICE: $20.00 each

One Grand Prize Winner will win a choice of one of three trips:

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise - 3-Night Stay at The Fairmont Lake Louise in Banff, Canada with Airfare for 2
Napa Valley Backroads & Railways - Wine Train, Chauffeur, 3-night Stay at Meritage Resort and Spa with Airfare for 2
Fairmont Bermuda - 4-Night Stay at The Fairmont Southampton in Bermuda with Airfare for 2

Tickets were sent home to each family! Please let us know if you need more tickets to sell! Raffle tickets can also be purchased online at: https://e.givesmart.com/events/hnz/i/_Auction/cw8P/

Please be sure to read the Raffle Ticket Sales Guide thoroughly to answer any questions. All paper tickets and/or payment are due to the school by March 26th, with final ticket sales taking place at the Gala.

Thank you to this year's Raffle Sponsor:

GALA WEBSITE

CLASS PARTIES

THANK YOU! Thank you to everyone who is helping to coordinate parties for your classrooms - More parties have been purchased this week!

Pre-K4A: Carnival Party – Thank you to the Brignac family.

2A: Glow Party – Thank you to the Pond, Ellis, Liggon, Kwiatkowski, Higham, Cavazos, Ruiz Camacho, Johnston, De Azevedo, Barr, McDevitt, and Gonzalez families.

With respect to current school safety, this year we are offering Class Parties as in-class events held during the school day. Class Parties may be purchased for $500 each for any Pre-K through 8th classroom rather than purchasing individual tickets. If you are purchasing a party for Middle School (6th through 8th Grade) it will take place during their grade-level's Religion block with Mr. Cayanan. When a party is purchased for a classroom, the teacher and all students are invited for the fun!

Anyone may purchase a party for the benefit of one (1) classroom, but we also encourage families to join forces to select parties that their students will enjoy. Grandparents are also welcome to purchase these fun experiences for our students as well. Parties will be held on a mutually agreeable date with the teacher. Out of respect for classroom instruction, purchases will be limited to no more than two (2) parties per classroom.

The following classes have "maxed-out" the number of parties that can be purchased:

Pre-K3, Pre-K4A, KB-Faw, 1A-Meyer, 1B-Doyle, 2A-Abib, 2B-Macora, 3A-Loyo, 3B-Preuss, 4B-Gambertoglio, 5A-Graff, 5B-Ramirez, 6-2 Religion, 8-2 Religion. Thank you!!

All Class Party descriptions are available on the Gala website. Click button below to view.

GALA WEBSITE

PADUAN PARENTS & VOLUNTEERING

PADUAN POINTS REMINDERS

Each family is required to complete 20 Paduan Points for school-related volunteer activities between August 1 – April 30. Don't forget to log your Paduan Points for the 2020-2021 school year!

Volunteer hours* can be logged in ParentsWeb by following these simple steps:

Log in to ParentsWeb.
Select “Family Information” from the ParentsWeb navigation list.
Select the name of the parent who has volunteered, then select “Service Hours ” (link next to Parent Contact Info).
Select “Add Service Hours”.
Select the Date of service. Select Description from drop down list. Enter Total Hours or points assigned to your duty - list of volunteer positions and points assigned to them are listed below. The Note section is optional and can be used for further detail about volunteer service. If known, indicate who is responsible for the program for which service hours were performed in the Verified By field (leave blank if unknown). Select “Save”. Service hours summary will appear after saving.

For more information about points opportunities and volunteering visit: https://staopcs.org/volunteer-opportunities

Paduan Points Chart

SAFE ENVIRONMENT TRAINING

Our school requires anyone wanting to get involved in volunteer activities to complete Safe Environment Training. As a community of faith it is our moral responsibility to safeguard children. As we begin to open our campus for more volunteer activities, please make sure you have completed the Safe Environment Training. Reminder - You can track Safe Environment Training for Paduan Points!

Safe Environment Training

UPCOMING DATES

2/12/2021 - SCHOOL HOLIDAY

2/15/2021 - Staff Development Day

2/15/2021 - STUDENT HOLIDAY - President's Day

2/16/2021 - Early Childhood Mardi Gras Parade

2/17/2021 - ASH WEDNESDAY

2/17/2021 - Student Rosary Group, 7:15 am, Fellowship Hall

2/17/2021 - Mass (8-1), 2nd & 3rd Attending

2/19/2021 - Go Texan Day - Students may wear western attire.

2/19/2021 - NOON DISMISSAL

2/22/2021 - Internet Safety Week (ISW)

2/24/2021 - Student Rosary Group, 7:15 am, Fellowship Hall

2/24/2021 - Mass (8-2), 2nd & 3rd Attending

2/24/2021 - Diversity Awareness Speaker (Virtual) - 8:15 am

2/24/2021 - ISW: Crime Stoppers Presentation (MS Only)

2/25/2021 - GALA: Middle School Breakfast Break (SOLD OUT)

2/25/2021 - GALA: Pizza with the Principals, 3rd-8th (SOLD OUT)

2/25/2021 - GALA: Pizza with the Principals, K-2nd (SOLD OUT)

2/26/2021 - Snooze for Students - Students who join our team may arrive at 9 a.m. and wear pajama pants or comfy clothes. Join our team at: https://runsignup.com/staopcs

2/26/2021 - $5 Free Dress for Steps for Students. Students who do not join our Snooze for Students team may bring $5 to support the team and wear pajama pants or comfy clothes to school! For more information about Snooze for Students visit: https://runsignup.com/staopcs

02/27/2021 - Family Movie Night, 6:30 PM

You can still enroll in the optional Waldo photo delivery service where you'll get all YOUR student's photos texted to your phone!

How to enroll:

Click here or text STAOPCS21 to 735-343 and follow the prompts.

You can also scroll through and view all the photos on our Waldo Photos free web gallery here: https://waldo.photos/galleries. Enter the join code: STAOPCS21

(281) 296-0300

7901 Bay Branch Dr.

The Woodlands, TX 77382

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