The Messenger - September 29, 2017

THE MESSENGER September 29, 2017 staopcs.org

International Day in Classrooms

The human heart plans the way, but the LORD directs the steps. –Proverbs 16:9

MESSAGE FROM ADMINISTRATION Dear School Families, Mark your calendars for all of our October events! We are especially excited about Homecoming week and our 1st Homecoming Football game on Wednesday, Oct. 4th—join us!

We are headed into a busy part of the year with the holidays already on the way. We will be reciting our daily decade of the Rosary each morning during the month of October. There is a great sense of peace felt during our prayer time together. Thank you to the families reciting rosaries at home this month for world peace. We hope you can join us for our annual Living Rosary on Tuesday, October 17th.

Our Discipleship message for the week relates to our October Character Trait, which is Responsibility. As a community we have responsibilities to each other. We need to be there for each other, support and protect each other, help each other, celebrate with each other and above all lead each other closer to Christ. Our shared values and expectations help us to do that. We have expectations for how we do things at STAOP when it comes to things like our behavior at arrival, dismissal, in common areas, in the office, cafeteria, playground, athletic fields, locker rooms and church. Without those expectations we would have chaos all around.

Our expectations call us to conduct ourselves in a Christ–like manner, whether inside or outside school, or at school sponsored activities and events. We have been learning about and working on these expectations since the first day of school. Living these each and every day is what makes us STAOPCS. We appreciate the partnership we have with our parents who support the expectations and efforts helping our students grow in the character trait of responsibility.

October is also our kick–off to the Fund for St. Anthony—our biggest fundraising initiative of the year! The tuition your family pays each year covers operating expenses (salaries, supplies, and facility maintenance), but contributions to the Fund for St. Anthony make our school exceptional and unique by providing technology upgrades, learning support and memorable events.

Please check your mailboxes for more information!

May the coming weeks of fall bring God's blessings to you!

Sincerely in Christ,

Reneé B. Nunez

Susan Leddy

Kendall Shamas

Principal

Assistant Principal

Assistant Principal

FOLLOW US @STAOPCS ON:

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS What is Homecoming at STAOPCS? Homecoming is a fun celebration that we are hosting for the first time for current students and alumni in celebration of our new athletic fields! “Be Our Guest” for this fun week—more information on Page 6.

What is $1 T–shirt & Jean Day? On $1 T–shirt & Jean Days students may wear their school spirit t–shirt (current year is preferred) with jeans, jean capris, long jean shorts, or uniform bottoms and must follow uniform policy for shoes. The money that is raised is donated to various charitable initiatives—this month we supported our Parish Honduras Mission!

positive and include input from parents, students and teachers. These conferences are required by the Archdiocese and must be attended by a parent and the student. Fall conferences are being held on October 19th and 20th.

How do I register for Fall Conferences?

Registration for Fall Conferences is done through PTC Wizard (http://staopcs.ptcwizard.com). Registration will open on October 5th at 9 a.m. Parents may setup a log–in and password before registration opens.

Do you have used uniforms available?

Yes! We have a Used Uniform storage area just off the main area of our school office. Parents are welcome to How does STAOPCS conduct conferences? come look through used uniforms during regular office Formal Conferences are held twice a year at the end of first hours—donations are appreciated and accepted by the and third quarters. The conferences are meant to be Front Desk.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2017 CALENDAR Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

2

3

4

5

6

Rosary, 8:30 a.m.

Mass (8-1), 9 a.m.

Pep Rally, 10:45 a.m.

Homecoming Game, 4:30 p.m.

PTC Wizard Opens, 9 a.m.

Rosary (en Espanol), 2:30 p.m.

HOMECOMING/SPIRIT WEEK—SEE PG. 6 9

10

NO SCHOOL– Staff Development

11

12

13

Mass (5A), 9 a.m.

Rosary (en Espanol), 2:30 p.m.

Box Tops Due

Fall Pictures

$5 Free Dress for Student Council Early Childhood Pumpkin Day PTC Wizard Closes, 12 p.m.

16

17

18

19

20

Rosary, 8:30 a.m.

Living Rosary, 8:15 a.m.

Mass (5B), 9 a.m.

EARLY RELEASE (12:00 p.m.)

EARLY RELEASE (12:00 p.m.)

Fall Conferences

Fall Conferences

ALL–SCHOOL NEWS SPIRIT DAY—THIS SUNDAY! Sunday, October 1st LouLou’s Beignets 7 a.m.—4 p.m. *Bring a flyer—they went home in Green Folders today!

Or you can find it online at: bit.ly/LouLouSTAOPCS FAMILY OPEN HOUSE WINNERS! Thanks again to all of you who came out to our Open House last night! Congratulations to the Marcotte Family for winning the door prize!

Guessing Game: There were 1,214 shiny minies in each jar! And we had three winners who guessed 1,200!

Congratulations to the Vacek, Hibbeler and Yepiz Families for winning a family movie pack!

NURSE’S NOTES For the Week of 9–22–17 to 9–28–17: 09–24–17

4B

Strep Throat/Scarlet Fever

PRAYER INTENTIONS Let us pray for you! Next time you visit the front office stop by our new Prayer Intentions station. We will have a prayer intentions book where you can write down any intentions you want us to pray for. You are also free to offer a prayer pearl that will be part of the offertory every school Mass.

MIDDLE SCHOOL BASKETBALL The Basketball season is just around the corner and we need to know how many players we have!

To play basketball this year please send in your commitment form located in Resources in ParentsWeb to Coach Quickel by Friday, October 6th!

LOST & FOUND Please remind your students to check the lost and found tables for any missing items. On October 6th all unclaimed items will be donated or discarded.

PADUAN PARENTS VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK & OPPORTUNITIES The Volunteer Handbook (2017–2018) is now available on our website, along with Paduan Parent position descriptions and an Organizational Chart for Paduan Parents. Please visit staopcs.org/volunteer–opportunities. The Volunteer Handbook is also available on ParentsWeb in Resources.

All current sign–up genius links and volunteer opportunities are listed on our website at: staopcs.org/current–volunteer– opportunities CARING HEARTS—PRIEST MEALS Join other school families and parishioners in helping to provide meals for our priests!

Caring Hearts—Meal Preparation for Priests PICTURE DAY PARENT VOLUNTEERS Help teachers and students on Picture Day! October 11th – Picture Day Assistance PADUAN PARENT COLLECTION Be sure to check green folders for a letter from our Paduan Parent Coordinators about a one–time collection for Christmas & end–of–the–year teacher & staff giving. Please turn in donations by Oct. 6th! Thank you to everyone who has already contributed to this collection!

LOGGING PADUAN POINTS Our goal is 100% volunteer participation from our families during the school year. Working together we can make it happen! *2017–18 Paduan Points Required: 20 points per family.

Volunteer hours* can be logged in ParentsWeb by following these simple steps: 1) Log in to ParentsWeb. 2) Select “Family Information” from the ParentsWeb navigation list.

3) Select the name of the parent who has volunteered, then select “Service Hours ” (link next to Parent Contact Info).

4) Select “Add Service Hours”.

5) Select the Date of service. Select Description from drop down list. Enter Total Hours or points assigned to your duty – a list of volunteer positions and points assigned to them are listed online at: http://staopcs.org/volunteer– opportunities The Note & Verified By Field sections are optional and can be used for further detail about volunteer service. Select “Save”. Service hours summary will appear after saving.

ALL–SCHOOL NEWS 2017–2018 YEARBOOKS For the 2017–18 school year, yearbooks will only sold online at WWW.BALFOUR.COM. Yearbooks will be sold for $40 till December 31, 2017, and will be $45 till April 30, 2018. Yearbook ads can also be purchased and created at WWW.BALFOUR.COM. You will need to purchase and create your ad by April 30, 2018. If you are unable to create the ad in time, please contact Mr. Mattern at cmattern@staopcs.org for other options. Yearbook ads will be priced: 1/8 ($35), 1/4 ($50), 1/2 ($75), Full ($150). Ads will be purchased on a first come/first served basis.

PICTURE TAKING Mr. Mattern needs help with picture taking. If you are ever at a sporting event or school activity, please contact Mr. Mattern at cmattern@staopcs.org and he will invite you to add them to his DropBox account.

FALL CONFERENCES REGISTRATION Registration for Fall Conferences is done through PTC Wizard (http://staopcs.ptcwizard.com).  Registration will open on October 5th at 9 a.m.  Parents may setup a log–in and password before registration opens.

BOX TOPS  Box Tops are due by October 13th!  The Grade with the highest number of box tops collections this year will receive a FREE DRESS PASS!

1ST QUARTER STEWARDSHIP PROJECT It is very apparent that the effects of Hurricane Harvey continue to disrupt our region. Many families are still displaced from their permanent homes, and struggling through the process to rebuild their lives. We do not want to abandon those in need during this critical time so we are continuing to support Harvey Relief for our 1st quarter stewardship project.   



HARVEY RELIEF Non–perishable foods will be accepted for the St. Anthony's Bread Food Pantry.

Students may place food on carts located in the front office when they arrive at school.

Gift cards to local retailers, grocery stores, and major hardware stores are also welcome—please turn into the front desk.

Additionally you can support the St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School Harvey Relief Fund at: bit.ly/staopcs_harvey. All funds will be allocated specifically to help families affected in the STAOPCS community with tuition, fees, and before and after care so they can rebuild their lives.

Food & Gift Card collection will take place October 1—13th.

Thank you for helping us to focus on OTHERS in our theme of JOY: Jesus, Others, Yourself—and thank you for your support of these families in need.

**All students are invited to participate in Homecoming week!** MONDAY, OCTOBER 2ND | UNDER THE SEA  All students are encouraged to wear their blue uniform polo shirt with their uniform bottoms.  Pep Rally @ 10:45 a.m.  All STAOPCS students who wear blue to the volleyball game will receive a free popcorn!

JV @ 4:30 p.m.; Varsity @ 5:15 p.m.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3 | DISNEY TOURIST DAY  All students are encouraged to wear Disney–themed shirts, hats, glasses and socks with their uniform bottoms today!  All STAOPCS students who wear their Disney tourist outfit to the soccer game @ 5:00 p.m. will receive a free snow cone.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4 | JERSEY DAY  All students will wear their official school uniform and attend all–school mass today. STAOPCS fall athletes participating in cross country, football, soccer or volleyball at STAOPCS are invited to wear their STAOPCS sport jersey over their official school uniform and receive a special blessing at mass today.  HOMECOMING FOOTBALL GAME @ 5:00 P.M. There will be fun, food and games until 6:30 p.m.! Cheer camp girls will join the Angels in cheering from the stands and performing at half–time. The STAOPCS band will also perform! You can grab some dinner and dessert from the food trucks on campus and join our Student Council as they host fun activities like face painting and gaming in our "fun zone!" All Alumni who attend will be recognized!  As a special added treat...Wednesday is a NO HOMEWORK night!!!

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5 | SUPERHERO DAY  All students are encouraged to wear a superhero t–shirt with their uniform bottoms today!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6 | DREAMS DO COME TRUE

 All students are encouraged to wear their 2017– 2018 JOY t–shirt and jeans today along with their favorite pair of tennis shoes!

2017–2018 COMMUNITY PARTNERS New for 2017–2018, our Community Partners have committed to supporting our mission and our students.

Please consider patronizing our Community Partners this year!

P LATINUM —H ALLOWEEN S CIENCE D AY : 1 S PONSORSHIP A VAILABLE P LATINUM —E ARTH D AY

P LATINUM —F UN F IELD D AY

G OLD

S ILVER Wheeler Pediatric Dentistry

B RONZE Animal Hospital of The Woodlands Encompass Lending Group

Jo Anne Johnson & Associates Mathnasium of The Woodlands

TO BECOME A COMMUNITY PARTNER CONTACT: ADVANCEMENT@STAOPCS.ORG

AROUND STAOPCS

Our students had the “Courage to be Kind” all week for Bullying Awareness!

They had fun on International Day in classrooms!

We hope all of our families enjoyed our Open House on Thursday!

We sure had fun!

AROUND OUR PARISH Pet Blessing October 7th | 11:00 AM | In the Piazza We will commemorate the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi with our Annual Pet Blessing! All pets invited to come (rain or shine). Pets and owners will receive a blessing. Pets are sprinkled with holy water and they will receive a special treat. In consideration of our pet owners, the blessing and distribution will take no more than 30 minutes. We hope you will attend!

BENEFITTING CATHOLIC DAUGHTERS OF AMERICAS | SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2017 | 6 PM – 9:30 PM