Parent Bulletin
May 13, 2021
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We are so blessed to have super parent volunteers at St. Louise! Last week's Walk-a-Thon and the recent Auction are two examples of parents stepping up to help, or else we would never have been able to hold these fun and important events.
The Walk-a-Thon was not only supported by volunteers such as chairperson Jim Britt, but all the effort that parents (and students) put into gathering donations helped us have an unbelievably successful fund raiser. The Parents' Club was hoping to raise $38,000 but you came through by bringing in $57,031 in donations! (Thanks to that one donor who gave $1 - every little bit helps!)
Although all the students were "winners" in this event, see the article below about the specific prize-winning students and grade levels.
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In the fall, I mentioned that we would like parents to set a minimum goal of volunteering at least 20 hours, since it would be more difficult to earn the typical 40 hours this school year due to the many canceled CYO teams, school and parish events, and extra-curricular programs. Plus, teachers did not use parents in the classroom much this year out of precaution. (But all that changes in 2021-22! We hope for a return to typical in the fall!)
We appreciate the volunteering school parents have been able to do this year - from helping with the Auction, to joining Saturday Spruce-Ups, to coaching spring sports! Please make sure you log in at least 20 volunteer hours HERE by June.
For those families who will not be able to log in at least 20 hours of volunteering, the fee for unworked hours this year is $20.00. So, for example, if one family recorded 0 volunteer hours, the school expects them to pay $400 by June. Whereas, if someone logged in 10 hours, the expectation is to pay $200.
Please go HERE if you will need to pay a fee in lieu of fulfilling your volunteer hour commitment. We would appreciate the fee being paid the first week of June at the latest.
Some available volunteer positions for the final weeks of the school year include:
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Saturday Spruce Up - June 5 from 8-11AM, volunteers are needed to week and spread bark; please contact J.T. Taasan with any questions.
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Our Auction Team is looking for some fun people to breathe some new life into our procurement planning. Please reach out to Julianne Read to jump on board!
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New Family Mentor - We would love current school families to greet and mentor newly enrolled 2021-22 families on the ins & outs of being a St. Louise parent; please let Mindy Morgan and Tracy Brown know if you can be a mentor - a volunteer job that you can mostly do on your own time from home and will involve a summer playdate with the new student and family.
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Field Day - this annual event will take place on June 15, and Mr. Evans will need lots of help all day
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Finally, besides your yearly commitment to give volunteer hours, school families also commit to supporting the Annual Fund, the Auction, and Charger Cards.
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If you pledged to the Annual Fund, but haven't gotten around to sending in your check or credit card donation, please give HERE now. Please contact Julianne Read if you have questions.
- All families completed their Nov-20 and/or Apr-21 Auction procurements already, but for returning families, we will soon give you information for procuring/donating your November-2021 Auction donation (for the 21-22 school year) over the summer.
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Charger Cards is considered fulfilled if you have either chosen to "opt out" and pay the $250 fee or if you bring in a minimum of $125 in rebates/profit from your yearlong Charger Card purchases. To pay the fee, please submit a check or cash (no credit cards accepted for this fee) to "St. Louise Charger Cards." If you didn't opt out and will be bringing in at least $125 in rebates/profit, please make sure you take advantage of these final weeks to purchase as many Charger Cards as needed. Please contact Marsha, Tiffany, and Erica in the Charger Cards office if you need help in determining how far you are away from fulfilling your commitment.
Thanks again for the time, expertise, and financial support you give to St. Louise!
Blessings on your day,
MR. FITZ
p.s.
We have had some "close calls" with potential COVID-cases at school in the past weeks due to school families having an ill family member (e.g. a parent) but still sending the kids to school, only to then find out a day or two later that the family member tested positive for COVID. Fortunately, in these instances, the children did not later test positive.
PLEASE...if a family member wakes up with some COVID-symptoms, keep the kids home as a precaution! It saves the school from hours of hassle and can potentially save an entire grade level from having to later self-quarantine. Thank you!
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CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS
Today
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May Crowning and Rosary all-school liturgy at 2:05; grades 2-5 will attend in-person and other grades will watch livestream
Monday, May 17 thru Friday, May 28
- MAP Testing continues for grades 2-5
Thursday, May 20
- Sweet-Treat Sale at lunchtime
Tuesday, May 25
- Free Dress ONLY for certain Walk-a-Thon winners (see article below)
- Pizza Lunch for Walk-a-Thon winning grade K & 6 classes
Wednesday, May 26
Monday, May 31 - NO SCHOOL
- Memorial Day Holiday - honoring the heroic sacrifice of those who died serving our country
- Kids' Club closed
Tuesday, June 1
- School Commission meeting, 6:30PM
Thursday, June 3
- Parents' Club meeting, 6:30PM
- Science Showcase in parish hall; parents invited to tour from 1:00-2:15.
Saturday, June 5
- Saturday Spruce-Up, 8-11AM
CHECK OUT OUR COMPLETE SCHOOL CALENDAR HERE
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Inspiration & Insights from Father Gary |
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Our pastor, Father Gary Zender, is writing a series of articles for our Parent Bulletins that help to explain to ALL St. Louise parents - Catholic and non-Catholic - the who / what / why / how of Catholicism. We urge all St. Louise parents to read Father's article this week...and next week... as he will be giving us great information and wonderful insights to ponder this spring!
Dear St. Louise School Families,
Last week I gave you the basis for the sacramental theology of the Catholic Faith. This week I will explore briefly the seven sacraments of the Church.
As humans, we are steeped in rituals and symbolism, and our expression of faith is no different. In scripture, the number seven became important for two reasons. First, it became the symbol of completion and perfection as narrated in the creation story where God rests on the seventh day once it was all done. Second, this seven-day narrative helped them establish a liturgical calendar so they could figure out a day for worship.
As Catholics, we believe Jesus is the climax of creation and established a new form of worship and on a new day, Sunday, the day of the resurrection. Over time, as the Church grew in her understanding of the different ways Jesus is present to us through the sacraments, it was narrowed down to seven, in keeping with the symbolism of completion and perfection.
Today we separate the sacraments into different categories: Initiation, Healing, and Service.
In the Sacraments of Initiation, Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist, Christ is present to us by transforming our very selves to be like Christ. In Baptism we became Christians, temples of the Holy Spirit. In Confirmation, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit and given courage to live out the fullness of our faith. In the Eucharist, which as Catholics we believe to be the real presence of Christ, the Body and Blood of the Lord continually feeds and transforms us into Christ's own body. These three Sacraments are what initiate, unite, and make us part of the Church.
In the Sacraments of Healing - Anointing of the Sick and Confession - Christ is present to us by providing us with spiritual and sometimes physical healing. Anointing of the Sick is given to those old enough to reason if they have a serious health condition, before or after surgery, and/or near the time of death. It can be repeated if the person’s condition worsens or if they recover and they become seriously ill again. Through it, Christ gives strength and comfort. Confession, also called Reconciliation or Penance, is a way in which Christ heals our souls from the wounds caused by sin. God forgives anytime we pray for mercy. For instance, the Penitential Act at the beginning of Mass forgives our venial sins. However, Catholics are required to confess to a priest their mortal sins, those sins that are so grave that they separate us from God, others, and ourselves and put us in danger of losing the gift of salvation. Both of these sacraments heal and restore us.
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Finally, in the Sacraments of Service, which are Holy Orders and Matrimony, Christ is present through our way of life for the good of the community which brings about unity and communion. In Holy Orders, a person can be of service for the good of the community by serving as a deacon, priest, or bishop, each with specific tasks but all towards the same mission of Christ. Through them, Christ is present in their service of preaching, teaching, and offering the sacrifice of the Mass. They help give spiritual life to a community.
In the Sacrament of Matrimony, the married couple becomes an image of God. Christ, who manifests to us God as a unity of persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, shares a love that is life-giving and committed and makes that love available for us through the covenant. In a marriage, Christ unites two people as one and their committed love also brings forth life in many ways, through children (biological or adopted), through their careers, and through their involvement in public life, which is why we say that the family is the building block of society; it is at the service of others.
Holding Marriage as a sacred reflection of God is also the reason why the Church holds such strict guidelines that are difficult for some people to understand. For example, that the sacrament must be administered inside a Church, that it can only be with a man or a woman, and why it cannot be broken through divorce.
A brief word on divorce. The Church does not recognize a civil divorce. Sadly, divorce does happen among Catholics, and so there is a separate process called annulment. In this process, the Church determines if there was something that prevented this couple from forming a true bond that would make their marriage invalid from the very beginning. One important example of what makes marriage valid is that the couple must be open to the procreation of children. Obviously, this does not happen in every case when a couple suffers the pain of infertility or is beyond the age of bearing children.
I invite you to go deeper.
You can get a deeper understanding of how the Church views marriage here, and about divorce and annulments here. For our Catholic families, I invite you to stay close to the Sacraments. They are ways in which Christ stays present in our lives, from the moment of our birth, to our death.
Blessings to all!
Fr. Gary Zender
p.s.
Next week's article will discuss the Catholic understanding of the human person.
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Are you new to the Catholic Church or interested in learning more about how to become Catholic? St. Louise Catholic Church is here to help!
RCIA is an acronym we use to describe the process of becoming Catholic. RCIA stands for Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. It is a journey through which seekers of faith are initiated into the Catholic Church through a process of investigation, prayer, conversion and ritual. Who is RCIA for?
- Non-Catholics who want to find out more about the Catholic faith;
- Those who have not been baptized and want to become Catholic;
- Those who were baptized in a protestant church and wish to become Catholic;
- Those who were baptized Catholics as infants but did not complete formation and the sacraments of Confirmation or First Eucharist.
If you have questions, we would love to walk with you. Please reach out to Katie O’Neill in the parish office at katie@stlouise.org or 425-214-5477.
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Walk-a-Thon Is Huge Success! |
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The Walk-a-Thon had a goal of raising $38,000, which the Parents' Club uses to pay for student enrichment assemblies and curriculum additions, to provide Christmas gifts to the teachers, as well as to sponsor parent education classes and family social events (that will be resurrected next school year!). Thanks to school families' hard work and supporters' generosity, we actually raised $57,031! Wow! Way to go, Chargers!
As a reminder, below were the various prize categories for individual students and grade levels who were the tops at running or fund raising. The names are announced below and the prizes will be distributed next week or the following week, depending on the category.
CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK-YOU TO...
MOST LAPS OVERALL
The two students in the entire school who tied for running the most laps were two 6th grade boys - Zak Litovkin and Blake Wilken. Each ran 62 laps - or 1 lap per minute! Each speedster will receive a $100 Charger Card!
MOST MONEY RAISED OVERALL
The one student in the entire school who raised the most money in donations was kindergarten student Olivia Osorio! Olivia and family brought in an amazing $2.410 in donations! Wow! Olivia will receive a $100 Charger Card!
MOST LAPS FOR A GRADE LEVEL
The one grade level with the most laps walked/ran (based on a per student proportion due to varying class sizes) was the 6th grade. They averaged 31 laps walked/ran per student! The 6th graders win a pizza party, which will be held on Tuesday, May 25. No need to pack a lunch on the 25th, 6th grade famlies!
MOST MONEY RAISED FOR A GRADE LEVEL
The one grade level with the most money raised (based on a per student proportion due to varying class sizes) was the Kindergarten, averaging $345 raised per student! Rewarding their super work, the kindergarteners will enjoy a pizza party on Tuesday, May 25. No need to pack a lunch on the 25th, kindergarten famlies!
MOST LAPS PER GRADE LEVEL -&- MOST MONEY RAISED PER GRADE LEVEL
The one student in each grade level who ran the most laps in that level and the one student in each grade level who raised the most money in that level will each win a Prize Pack: a Free Dress Day; a special ice cream dessert with their fellow top students; and a $40 Amazon Charger Card.
The following ran the most laps in their respective grade levels:
- PreK - Cora Maloney (24 laps)
- Kdg - Sidak Dogra and Margot Dautricourt (each 21 laps)
- 1st - Alex Isaksen (28)
- 2nd - Nora Graeen (27)
- 3rd - Gavin Green (44)
- 4th - Leonardo Flores and Alex Wilken (each 55)
- 5th - Jax Herber (58)
- 6th - Zak Litovkin and Blake Wilken (each 62)
- 7th - Ellison Brown (51)
- 8th - Ben Sharp (41)
The following raised the most donations in their respective grade levels:
- PreK - Rollie Engel ($460 raised)
- Kdg - Olivia Osorio ($2,410)
- 1st - Xander Wiseman-Scott ($630)
- 2nd - Josh Bumatay ($921)
- 3rd - Leah Magnotti ($1,545)
- 4th - Ysa Eala ($465)
- 5th - Jax Herber ($365)
- 6th - Katelyn Rabon ($550)
- 7th - Pia Munar ($508)
- 8th - Matthew Brennan ($370)
All of these 23 students on these 2 lists above will get their ice cream and Charger Cards next week. Their free dress day is to be taken on Tuesday, May 25.
GOLDEN CHARGER CLUB
Individuals who collected $250 or more in donations win a Prize Pack: a Free Dress Day; a special ice cream dessert with their fellow Golden Charger Club members; and a gift card to Flying Circus (now called Defy). There were so many Golden Charger Club winners that we didn't have time to list them all for the publication of this Bulletin! We'll list the Golden Charger winners in next week's bulletin. These winners will get their ice cream desserts and gift cards next week. Their free dress day is to be taken on Tuesday, May 25.
Finally, per your Parent Contract, each school family was to procure minimum donations in the amounts of:
· $95 for 1-student families;
· $190 for 2-or-more-students families.
If you were not able to procure your minimum commitment, please make up the difference by going HERE and donating the balance. Please have your minimum Walk-a-Thon commitment completed by the beginning of June.
If you have Walk-a-Thon questions, please contact chairperson, Jim Britt.
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Starting this Monday and continuing through next week, a sewer pipe repair project will take place in the south parking lot just as you enter from 156th Avenue. (The construction areas is to the immediate right of the church in this photo.) The project involves digging up of the concrete sidewalk and the asphalt drive in that area, so carpool traffic will be affected.
The south lot will still be available for cars to drive through (and for 7th grade vehicles to park for afternoon pickup), but the sidewalk directly south of the parish hall will be closed off. Thus, students walking towards 156th Avenue (such as 8th graders walking off campus) will need to walk through the central hallway of the original school building and exit onto the 156th sidewalk that is northeast of the church.
Drivers - please pay close attention and slow down as you drive into the parking lot next week!
Come to think of it... drivers, can you please ALWAYS slow down when entering and driving through all areas of the parking lot, not just during construction!?! We have had some speedy vehicles drive through the lot some days and to avoid a tragedy, we need all cars to drive very slowly and for drivers to not be on cell phones. Thank you!
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We are so excited that CYO Athletics are back! Here are the remaining schedules:
Grades 4-8 have Track meets at Highland Middle School from 5:00 - 7:00PM on these Thursdays: May 13, May 20, May 27, June 3.
Kickball games are played right here on the St. Louise soccer field for grades 4/5 (at 2:30PM) and grades 6/7/8 (at 4:00PM) with this Sunday being the final games of the season.
Our grade K-1 Soccer teams have a schedule of Saturday games you can view HERE.
Our grade 3 Girls' Soccer Saturday games may be found HERE:
Our grade 2 & 3 Boy's Soccer schedules for Saturdays are HERE:
Go, Chargers!
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Time to Register for Before-School and After-School Childcare for the Upcoming School Year |
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Registration for our Kids’ Club childcare program for the 2021-22 school year is open now.
Kids’ Club is our before and/or after-school onsite program for students in grades K-8 attending St. Louise School. At Kids’ Club, our goal is to ensure a smooth transition between the school day and the before-school and after-school program. Activities are designed to spark academic interests, recreation, physical fitness and nurture social-emotional growth. We also provide the time, the place, and the assistance to ensure your children have enough time to complete their homework.
There are so many advantages to being part of an after-school program such as Kids' Club. A report by the U.S. Department of Education shows that students in after-school programs have fewer behavioral problems, more self-confidence, and can handle conflicts better than students who are not involved with after-school programs. Our Kids' Club family is strong and engaged, and we welcome the opportunity to share it with you!
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Only One Month Left to Purchase Charger Cards In-Person
Believe it or not, there are just 5 more Fridays when school is in session and the sales-window will be open for in-person sales of Charger Cards.
Remember, unless you "opted out" and paid the fee, you are expected to bring in a profit/rebate of at least $125 through your many Charger Cards purchases throughout the school year. We thank you in advance for fulfilling this commitment by June!
In-person sales are 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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Thursday's Theology: A Free Resource of Movies, Books, and Programs |
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Are you seeking new ways to enrich your faith life and that of your children? Check out FORMED, an online resource offered free to all members of St. Louise School and Parish. FORMED is a beloved resource for many Christians, with thousands of movies, programs, audio, and books available for on-demand streaming, and luckily for all of us, St. Louise Parish has a subscription that makes it free for all our families!
FORMED is an easy-to-use website that provides many options. There are 3-5 minute daily Scripture reflections, interviews covering a range of current faith topics, well-produced videos which offer inspiration for those searching for spiritual meaning in their lives, and enrichment for those looking to deepen their relationship with God. There is also a library of e-books offered through FORMED, and many resources are available in Spanish.
To explore this "rich" yet "free" resource, follow the instructions below.
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Go to formed.org/signup
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Type in our parish's zip code - 98007 - and select our parish - St. Louise
- Register with your name and email address
- Check your email account for a link to begin using FORMED
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