In this week’s newsletter there is the Christmas program information, Green and Red DAY tomorrow, health updates, Allied Arts, Archery, Boys’ Basketball, Christmas Mass Choir Survey, winners from the VFW contest, Christmas Bazaar updates, preschool employment opportunity, Playground Angels for December and January, Lost and Found reminders, Catholic Daughters Education Contest, Growing Great Kids Auction, the saint of the week and much more! Thank you for reading.
“I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)
Christmas Program on Thursday night, December 15th
We are so excited to bring back the Christmas program in the church this year! Since it’s been a while, we want to provide a few reminders and updates:
- Students wear their “Christmas best” except for eighth graders who are in costume for the play. Please follow the Event Dress Code in the Uniform Policy on the school’s website for modesty guidelines.
- Seating in the church will be limited. To make more room for guests, students will be in their classrooms during the performance until it is their time to sing/perform. Please have them to their classrooms by 6:40 pm. 5th and 6th graders should go to the St. Cecelia Room for Orchestra and the gym for Choir.
- Doors to the Gathering Space will be open early, but the doors to the church will remain closed until 6:30 pm. Please be mindful when entering the church that we have 130 families who will be looking for seats, so reserve only what you need. You don’t need to reserve a spot for your Assumption student- he/she will be with the class in the classroom.
- Parking is reserved in front of the church for the seats purchased at the auction. The first two pews on each side are also reserved- first pew on either side for seats purchased in 2022, and the second row for those purchased 2021 and 2020.
- Students will all be back in the church for the final song so please don’t leave early. They will return to their classrooms and should be picked up by their parents from the classroom. There is no reception in the gym, so families can leave as soon as they’ve picked up their children.
- All performances are in the front of the altar, facing the main “nave” of the church. You are welcome to sit on the north or south transepts, but students will be facing the main part of the church.
Green and Red Day on Thursday!
This Thursday, December 15th, will be our annual Green and Red free dress day.
Please remember to follow the school policy accordingly.
Veterans of Foreign War Auxiliary- Essay Contest Winners
Congratulations to the VFW winners for the “Patriot’s Pen” essay contest. Stella Wolf, Shiloh Acord, and Hailey Abbey all won first place in their age levels, and George Streeter won second place. After winning at the local auxiliary level, Hailey and Shiloh also went on to win the district level as well. We are so proud of you all!
Health Update
As many of you know firsthand, cases of respiratory illnesses, which were already running high this Fall, have spiked since Thanksgiving and are worrying public health officials in our county and across the state. It’s part of a “tri-demic” of Influenza, COVID, and RSV, a common upper respiratory infection that is causing more serious illness in small children this season.
Continued staffing shortages and limited availability of some medications, particularly those for children, threaten to overwhelm our already strained healthcare system. As a school, we feel a responsibility to our families to share the health department’s recommendations for limiting the spread of these viruses and having a healthy Christmas Break:
- Practice good hand hygiene.
- Stay home if you’re sick and keep sick kids home.
- Cough into your elbow.
- Get vaccinated against COVID-19 and influenza.
- Wear a mask in crowded indoor spaces.
- Use good ventilation or air filtration at home.
We’ve just been informed that the Learn to Return program for schools has released a Triplex test that detects COVID-19 and two strains of the Flu in one sample. We’ve ordered these free tests to be able to help our families identify illnesses in the event kids are sent home sick from school. They’ll be available for our use upon return from break in January.
Please feel free to contact Mrs. Dennis with any questions or concerns (ddennis@assumption.school). Thank you and have a magical, healthy, Christmas!
ALLIED ARTS FESTIVAL HAPPENING NOW!
We are all set with our art exhibit for the Allied Arts Festival. Our students have a selection of their favorite photos and artist statements on display – beginning the night after Thanksgiving and extending it until Christmas Eve. Here is a link to the festival information.
Holiday Festival of the Arts – Allied Arts
We are only a few months away from our Growing Great Kids Auction and Gala. Thank you to all the families and businesses that have already donated.
We are looking for volunteers for some auction positions. Please use the link below for a list and descriptions of roles that need to be filled. If you have already signed up for a position on the first day of school, no need to sign-up again.
ACS Growing Great Kids Auction Sign-Up
Just a reminder that procurement of items and sponsorships for our auction continues. Please visit the auction page on our school website for forms. https://school.assumption.org/auction/
Auction Timeline
Gala Tickets Go on Sale early January 2023
$200 Family Obligation due January 27th, 2023
Co-curricular Programs
Winter Ride Updates
Please return all forms and here is a link to use for registration and payments to Mt. Baker Ski area.
If your child is ice skating, send in a check for $20 to the school office, written out to Assumption School.
Assumption Winter Ride Registration
Boys Basketball Season
This year the boys have one team for Middle School, and they have been working hard at practice. Their games start soon. Home games are in bold. Please come and support our team! Families are most welcome.
Here is the schedule for the season:
December 14: 4:00pm Away @ Meridian Middle School
January 5: 4:00 PM Away @ Nooksack Valley Middle School
January 9: 4:00 PM Away @ Lummi Nation Middle School
January 11: 4:00 PM Home VS Lynden Middle School
January 19: 4:00 PM Home VS Blaine
January 23: 4:45 PM Away @ Mount Baker Junior High School
January 25: 4:00 PM Home VS Vista Middle School
PTC News
ACS 2022 Christmas Bazaar Highlights
A big thanks for all who helped with the Christmas Bazaar this year and who attended! We could not have done it without you.
$4,093.50 profit back to the PTC!
- Bake Sale- $993.50 (Donated baked goods from ACS parents)
- Book Sale- $592 (Donated books from the community)
- Raffle- $278 (Donated items from vendors)
- Over 1000 attended with most traffic after masses- *10am at 375!
- Over 30 volunteers provided baked goods
- Over 40 volunteers to help with prep and day of event
- Leftover books donated back to library and Goodwill
- Survey Monkey sent to vendors to receive feedback for next year’s event
Save the Date- Christmas Bazaar 2023- December 3rd!
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES – Continue to check the school volunteer website for volunteer opportunities. I know it’s cold outside, but we still need to keep the children safe, and we need our Playground Angels!
More Playground Angels Needed
Consider taking just one recess if you are able.
Thank you for your help in keeping recess fun and safe!
Looking for a Preschool Assistant Teacher to start in January
Our new preschool assistant teacher, Veronica Flores, is not able to continue working in the preschool past January 17 so we are looking to hire her replacement. Mrs. Flores has been a wonderful addition to that program and we are sad to see her go. She is working on a Master’s degree in counseling and because of the intense workload, she needs to step back from working to focus on her studies. The part-time job is posted to the school’s website so, if you know of anyone who may be interested, we’ll be interviewing for the position in the first week of January.
Missoula Children’s Theater
Missoula Children’s Theaterwill be back at Assumption this spring! Mark your calendars for the week of May 1st, 2023. We are looking for a volunteer to assist the theater company in organizing the events that week as well as two host families for the guests to stay with during that week. If you are interested, please contact Tia Entrikin at duttontia@gmail.com
Other Important News from School
Variety Show is Coming in January
Flyers were sent home last week in the Wednesday envelopes. We need your talents to shine for the show. Remember it is open to all students and registration forms are due January 9, 2023. If you have any questions, please call, or email the school office or Mrs. Whelan awhelan@assumption.school Thank you.
January 2nd is not a school holiday
Please note in the calendar that although January 2nd is a federal holiday observed, this is a regular school day for Assumption students. Many places (and other schools) will be closed on this day, but when we created our calendar last spring, we decided to leave that as a school day to end on the same date in June.
JOIN OUR CHRISTMAS YOUTH CHOIR!
Our School Choir is singing for the 5:00 p.m. Mass on Christmas Eve, December 24th.
Membership is open to students in Grades 4-8. NO AUDITION. ALL ARE WELCOME!
REHEARSAL SCHEDULE
Thursday, December 22nd from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the church
[It will be a long rehearsal, so there will be breaks and snacks provided! BYO snacks if your child has specific food allergies/restrictions.]
Saturday, December 24th, the choir will meet at 3:30 p.m. in the church.
Please email Dr. Mabalot or see the flyer in today’s Wednesday envelope so he can plan appropriately.
Catholic Daughters Education Contest 2022-23
This is an annual tradition that the National Catholic Daughters of America presents to students in grades 4-12 in three different divisions. The students at Assumption have a long history of participating with our local court, St. Aloysius #243, here in Whatcom County. Many students have won prizes at the state level also.
This year the theme is “We walk by faith, not by sight” Corinthians 2:5,7 or “When do I have to lean on my faith more than sight?”
Students can participate through essays, poetry, art, or computer art on this theme. Students in grades 6-12 can also choose music or photography in addition to the other genres. All entries need to be turned in by January 27, 2023, for judging at the local level. First place winners are then sent on to the state level. First place winners from State are then sent on to the National Catholic Daughters Contest to be judged in the spring. Rules and Entry forms were sent home or given out in class. Students are welcome to work on these at home. More forms in the main school office.
At each level are certificates and monetary awards, but it is amazing to see the students display their talents while reflecting on the theme from the Bible each year. Thank you.
If you have any questions, please contact the local CDA Regent, Michele King.
Lost and Found Reminders
Please check the lost and found items in the first-floor hallway before Christmas Break. Remember to put names inside the sweaters and sweatshirts so that staff can return them more easily. Check to make sure that your child has the right name on their sweaters and/or jackets. Finally, the office will be putting items not claimed into the Used Uniform bins or donate other items before we close for winter break.
Thank you.
Walking in Holiness with the Saints
We hope that you will enjoy learning about how saints are a great example of holiness, strength, and courage one day at a time. Below is a description of a saint but his/her name is withheld. See if you can guess who the saint is and get your name put in for a prize drawing. See Mrs. King in the office if you have a guess.
Last week: St. Bernadette
Congratulations to Evelyn White!
New Saint: None this week
Who is this saint? ________________
Christmas Prayer
starting on the Feast of Saint Andrew November 30 until December 24th
Hail and Blessed be the hour and moment
In which the Son of God was born
of the Most Pure Virgin Mary, at Midnight,
in Bethlehem, in piercing Cold.
In the Hour vouchsafe, I beseech thee,
O my God, to hear my prayer and Grant my Desires,
(here mention your request)
Through the merits of OUR SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST,
and of HIS BLESSED MOTHER, Amen.
Care and Concern Ministry
In Thanksgiving for all the blessings we have received as a community and as families here at Assumption Catholic School. May the peace and love of Christ be with all of us throughout the year. Have a safe and joyful time with friends and family during the school break.
Upcoming calendar items:
December 15th – Green and Red Day!
December 15th – Christmas Program 7pm
December 16th – Early Release Day (A)
December 16th – PreKindergarten Christmas Program 11am
December 19th to December 30th – Christmas Break
January 2nd – School is open
January 16th – No School this Monday
January 27th – Last Day of the Semester
