St. Mary’s School, January 2014

After the holidays, we finally resumed classes on January 9. I don’t believe I have ever returned from a Christmas break more rested or to a group of students more ready to get back to work. Counting weekends, (and, yes, I was counting) we had a generous 16-day break. In addition to those days, we had an unexpected three extra days due to the extreme cold and snowy conditions present during the opening days of 2014. It is funny how things happen. Many of the area schools were scheduled to resume classes on Thursday, January 2. When we planned our calendar, we scheduled some school days when other area schools were not in session, so that we could begin our new year on Monday and not deal with a two day school week. So, want to guess what day of the week January 9 was? You got it—Thursday! We will make up one of the calamity days on January 20.

If you had happened to visit our school last Wednesday, you might have thought we’d all overslept and hadn’t had time to change out of our pajamas. Actually, it was Pajama Day, sponsored by the student council. In order to be out of dress code and wear pajamas, students were asked to either bring a donation for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation or a nonperishable food for the food pantry located at the Grace Resurrection Center. The council has been quite active this year, sponsoring special days in order to raise money for worthy causes. The council sponsored “Pink Day” to raise money for the Darke County Cancer Association. The students collected $101.57. In November students were invited to participate in “Crazy Hair Day” and $69.72 was raised for the Make a Wish Foundation. In December the proceeds from “Favorite Team Day”, during which staff and students wore their favorite sports team attire, went to buy Christmas gifts for two people chosen from St. Mary’s Parish Giving Tree. Students who wished to participate in these special days had the option to bring a cash donation for the month’s charity or nonperishable food to be given to the food pantry. Finally the student council generously donated door mats for the front and side entrances.

The city spelling bee is next Monday, January 20. Originally scheduled for January 7, it was postponed due to-- what else! –the weather. Our representatives this year are both from the fifth grade. They are Isabelle Rammel and Landen Kreusch. We are very proud of both of them and wish them the best of luck.

The meeting for parents of those children who will be receiving First Holy Communion was held last Wednesday and the second quarter ended on Friday. It is a little disconcerting to think that on Monday, the second half of the school year begins.

The last week in January is Catholic Schools Week. This is an annual national celebration of Catholic Schools. This year the theme of Catholic Schools Week is “Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service”. Our celebration opens with the weekend Masses. Students will be participating at each Mass. There will be refreshments served after all the Masses and all are invited to come over to the school to join in the celebration. Mayor Bowers will be at school on January 27 to present the school with a special proclamation, proclaiming Catholic Schools Week in Greenville. Many special activities are planned for the week. Among the activities are special prayer services and service opportunities. I have often spoken of our buddy program in which older and younger students are paired together. During Catholic School Week there are several fun activities planned for the older and younger buddies to enjoy together. On Monday and Thursday of that week, parents, grandparents, and other family members are invited to eat lunch with the students. As has been our tradition, the week will end with the dance for the older students and a movie and popcorn for the younger students on Friday afternoon.

I know that many of you are already beginning to “think spring”, and I have to admit I am about ready to retire my “I heart snow days” button. However, take some time to appreciate the winter beauty that God has put all around us.