Dear Parents: ST. MARY CATHOLIC SCHOOL From the Desk of Mrs. Miscavish The Pink Note December 13, 2017 Office 586.468.4570 www.stmarymtclemens.com Fax 586-464-0718 This will be the last Pink Note until after the first of the year, but there is not too much going on at this point to talk about, school life is winding down for Christmas vacation. As we end the year, thank you for all your help this December making our NJHS, Student Council, and our service to others so successful. Our SNOWPILE ends today on a very high note 532 gifts were collected as of this morning! That is well over our goal of 400! A special Thank you to the Thompson family and the Oakland University Police Department for being a part of our toy drive this year. Our Candy Grams are selling like hot cakes so please make sure your child participates in whatever way they would like! Please remember too you are more than welcome to send one to your child. Last day to purchase your Candy Gram is this Friday, December 15 th. Please check your inbox one more time today for the form. Next Wednesday we will be having a Christmas Jeans Day. Our students are encouraged to wear Christmas attire or simply Red & Green with their jeans whichever works for you! The proceeds for this Jeans Day will go to our former beloved teacher, Sr. Marie Benzing s tutoring program, Centro de San José, in Southwest Detroit. Sr. Marie and her tutors are very appreciative every Christmas that we are able to help their community. Next Wednesday, 0ur 1 st 8 th graders will be attending Mass at St. Peter not our usual day, but the last day before break and a nice way to begin the morning in prayer together. At this Mass, we will have a very special visitor, Fr. Steve Pullis, who is the new Director of Evangelization & Catechesis for the Archdiocese of Detroit. The Office of Catholic Schools is in this department and this means, that Fr. Pullis is the person who the Superintendent of Catholic Schools reports directly to. We are very pleased that he will be joining us that morning; after Mass, Fr. Pullis will be touring St. Mary. All parents, as always, are invited to join us for this special Mass. Just a reminder, SMS Backpacks after school this Friday is closed! Please make sure you have already made arrangements for your children. The school office will be closed at 3:45 sharp on this day. This Saturday our Children s Choir will be singing at 4:00 Mass. After Mass, our Dynamic Parish Ministry group will be sponsoring a Family Movie Night and showing on the big screen, everyone s Christmas favorite, Elf! During the evening the group will also be making Christmas cards for seniors. For our 7 th 8 th graders who are looking for Confirmation service hours, this evening can earn you 1 hour! Dinner is included, another great reason to attend! Please RSVP by calling or texting, 586-354-3690 to let them know how many members of your family will be attending. The Dynamic Ministry group has sponsored a few events this year and all have been very successful. Why not slow your Christmas craziness down this Saturday, bring your family to Mass to celebrate the Third Sunday of Advent, and then enjoy some quality family time together in the Fr. Welch Hall. Feel free to bring your favorite pillow & blanket for the movie! Looking farther ahead, please do not forget that you may turn in your Daddy Daughter Dance registration prior to Christmas vacation. This is always a good event to take care of early, every year someone forgets and unfortunately at the 11 th hour we can no longer take registrations. Also Save the Date on your calendar for February 3rd for the St. Mary Athletic Booster Club Dinner Dance being held at the Mirage. Watch for more details to come after the first of the year.
Some important times to remember this Christmas at St. Peter: Communal Penance Services: This is a nice opportunity for our school and parish families to attend Reconciliation. Your children have already gone to Reconciliation this school year, have you? Saturday, December 16 at 2:30 PM Monday, December 18 at 7:00 PM Christmas Mass Schedule: With the holidays falling on Sunday & Monday this year, the liturgical calendar is tricky. To clarify, please see the schedule below: Fourth Sunday of Advent (Sunday Mass): Saturday, December 23-4:00 pm Mass Sunday, December 24 10:00 am Mass ONLY Nativity of our Lord (Christmas Mass): Sunday, December 24 th : 5:00 pm, 7:00pm, & Midnight (Our Children s Choir will be singing @ 5:00 Mass!) Monday, December 25 th : 10:00 am & 12:00 pm Mass Next week is a short week, but there are a number of events going on that you will not want your child to miss. We have our Cyber Safety Assemblies on Monday, Chess & Art Club take place next week, our 5 8th grade Spelling Bee is being held on Tuesday, Christmas festivities throughout the short week in classrooms, and we will end it all with our annual Christmas Sing Along @ 2:15 on Wednesday with Mr. John Dickson, our parish Music Director. This is always a great event and all are welcome to attend. Students will dismiss directly following this event! I leave you today with a Christmas prayer for us all: Lord, We worship You during this Christmas season. You are our wonderful Counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. We choose to put You at the center of our family life as we celebrate Your birth. Keep us from distractions and help us to invite You into all our family activities. Give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation that we might know You better. Thank you for being Immanuel, God with us. Open our eyes to realize this each day as we interact with others. Help us to be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as You forgave us. Show us creative ways to love and care for those outside our home. Teach us to do acts of kindness to those who are in need at this time of year. As we celebrate the reason for the season, may we be filled with the wonder of Mary, the obedience of Joseph, the joy of the angels, the eagerness of the shepherds, the determination of the Magi, and the peace of the Christ child. Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit bless us and all those we love. Amen
On behalf of Fr. Mike, the Staff of St. Mary & St. Peter, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Enjoy your time together this Christmas with those you love the most! "God bless us, every one!" ~Charles Dickens May grace and blessings be in your path, Maureen Miscavish NEW SIBLING REGISTRATION INFORMATION Attention St. Mary School families who plan on enrolling a 3 or 4 year-old, or an older child who is not currently attending St. Mary for the 2018/19 school year, we need you to call the school office and speak to Mrs. Lisey or email her at glisey@stmarymtclemens.com to place them on the enrollment list. Registration packets will be sent home on January 17 and it is imperative that we include paperwork for that child in your packet. Please let us know ASAP and by January 9 at the latest. We will need the following information on that new student: Family name, child s name, child s birth date, and grade level in the fall. Please do not forget, almost every year someone does and then a class fills and we are unable to enroll a current family s child. STUDENT COUNCIL CANDY GRAM For $1.00 you and your children can surprise a fellow student, sibling or staff member with a Candy Gram. Order forms can be picked up in the school office and were sent to your inbox. All orders due by Dec. 15th. CAFETERIA NEWS The Cafeteria is in need of volunteers for December 14, 15, 19, & 20. If you are able to help, please login to www.signupgenius.com using the password 2union to sign-up. Lunch time hours are 10:55-1:00. Walk-ins welcomed. SPORTS NEWS Grades 1-4 Indoor Soccer It is registration time for the Winter Session for Indoor Soccer grades 1-4. Games begins Friday, January 5 for grades 1-2 and January 8 for grades 3-4. Completed registration forms need to be turned in by December 15. Spring Sports Registration Its hard to believe but spring CYO baseball and softball are just around the corner! Early bird registration begins now by downloading and completing the forms from our school's website. Students in grades 5-8 may now play CYO ball for St. Mary School as well as play for another non school. Get your sports registrations in by January 16, 2018! Registration forms will also be emailed to the families in grades 5-8 before Christmas break.
St. Mary Catholic School provides strong academics within a faith-based community to prepare students for higher learning and to become moral, productive, God-loving leaders in society. St. Mary School Daddy Daughter Dance Sunday, February 11 2-6 pm at The Mirage $40 per couple ($15 each additional daughter) The Daddy Daughter Dance Registration form has been emailed. Please return the form with payment in an envelope marked Daddy Daughter Dance to the school office. *Tickets must be purchased by January 19 th. Baby It s Cold Outside! Students should be dressed for the great outdoors every day. Please remember, students must have a note from their physician in order to stay indoors for any recess or to drive back from Mass. We will not be publishing a Pink Note on December 20 th or January 3 rd Time for a Box Tops for Education Challenge The grade with the most Box Tops turned in by Friday, January 5 th will receive a treat. Be sure to include the student & teacher s name. Please do not send in expired Box Tops! Save the Date December 20 ~ 8:00 Mass @ St. Peter for Grades 1 8 December 20 ~ 2:15 Christmas Sing Along December 21 January 2 ~ Christmas Break January 3 ~ School Resumes January 15 ~ No School Staff PD January 19 ~ End of 2 nd Quarter January 26 ~ No School Staff PD January 28 ~ Open House for New Families February 2 ~ Mass & Honors February 2 ~ Carnival February 3 ~ Booster Club Dinner Dance February 11 ~ Daddy Daughter Dance February 15 & 16 ~ Half day Parent / Teacher Conferences February 19 & 20 ~ Winter Break March 22 ~ Spring Concert March 23 ~ No School Parent Volunteers All volunteers must complete the Protecting God s Children class and submit a Background Check form to be a volunteer in the school or on a field trip. Please turn in a copy of your PGC certificate and completed background form to the school office. Protecting God s Children is a one time class. We encourage all parents to sign up and take it so that you will be all set when your child has that field trip or event that you would like to be part of. To register for the Protecting God s Children class, go to the www.virtusonline.org A few upcoming classes in our area include: St. John Vianney (Shelby Twp.), January 6 @ 9:00 AM St. Louis (Clinton Twp.) on January 22, 2018 @ 6:00 PM St. Lawrence (Utica) Jan. 23, 2018 at 6:00 PM
School Closings Due to Inclement Weather We will be listed on all major television stations as: St. Mary Mt. Clemens A text message will also be sent out to all families. BEING GREEN This year we are continuing our Green School efforts with collecting your old strings of Christmas lights. To save energy and money this Christmas, replace your old incandescent Christmas lights with LED lights. Then drop off your old lights at our recycling center across from Mrs. Chalk s preschool room. Weekly Highlights Thursday, Dec. 14 Gr. 4 Crocker House NJHS Tutoring Team B 3:10-4:00 Newspaper Club 3:10-4:00 Friday, Dec. 15 Mass Gr. 1-8 at St. Peter Candy Grams due Gr. 2 DNR Gr. 8 Cranbrook No after school Backpacks/Latchkey Saturday, Dec. 16 Children s Choir sing at St. Peter 4:00 Mass Dynamic Parish Family Movie & Service Project Sunday, Dec. 17 Third Sunday of Advent Monday, Dec. 18 No Mass Kdg. 8 Cyber Safety Assembly Gr. 4 Chess Club 3:10 4:00 Tuesday, Dec. 19 3yr. Pre AM Christmas Party 10:00 3yr. Pre PM Christmas Party 2:00 Spelling Bee 1:30 in Gym Gr. 6, 7, 8 Art Club 3:10 4:00 Gr. 5 8 Chess Club 3:10 4:00 Wednesday, Dec. 20 Mass at St. Peter Church with guest Concelebrant Fr. Steve Pullis Jeans Day $1.00 for Centro de San José 4yr. Pre Christmas Party 10:00 AM Little Mountaineers 1:00-2:30 Sing-a-long at SMS 2:15 SMS Backpack/Latchkey available until 6:00 PM Thursday, Dec. 21 No School Christmas Break Begins Saturday, Dec. 23rd & 24th Fourth Sunday of Advent Mass - Saturday @ 4:00 Sunday @ 10:00 Only Christmas Mass on Christmas Eve Children s Choir Sing at 5:00 Mass 7:00 pm & Midnight Monday, Dec. 25 Merry Christmas Mass @ 10:00 & 12:00 Thursday, Jan.1 Happy New Year! Wednesday, Jan. 3 School Resumes Mass at Union Gr. 1-4 Little Mountaineers Make-up Day Thursday, Jan. 4 Advanced Reader Book Club 3:10 4:00 Newspaper Club 3:10 4:00 Tutoring Team C 3:10 4:00 Friday, Jan. 5 Mass Gr. 1-8 at St. Peter Box Tops Due Monday, Jan. 8 Mass at Union Gr. 5-8 Student Council Meeting 3:10 4:00 Tuesday, Jan. 9 Children s Choir 3:10 4:00 Wednesday, Jan. 10 Mass at Union Gr. 1-4 Gr. 6 DIA Little Mountaineers 1-2:30 NJHS Meeting3:10 4:00 Coming Home Pink Note Box Tops Winter Collection Sheet E-mailed Home Daddy Daughter Dance Candy Gram Order Form