As we fully enter the Advent season, it seems there is so much to do. Parties, shopping, family events! Yikes! It is easy to get swept up in the pre-Christmas madness. We definitely feel the pressure at the school, knowing we have so much to accomplish with the kids and only 11.5 more days until the big Christmas break. We all need to take a breath and recall the meaning of this season: Jesus. As we think about gift giving, for example, let us reflect on the following:

"The constant command of the Bible is this: what you have received as a gift, give as a gift—and you will find the original gift multiplied and enhanced. One realizes this truth when one enters willingly into the loop of grace, giving away that which one is receiving." - https://adventreflections.com/

I try to think of us as vessels. If we hold on to the gifts that God gives, nothing flows out. We are selfish and cling tightly to our gifts. If, however, we allow those gifts to freely flow to others, God will keep replenishing us. It is my hope that you find the joy of giving during this special season. Have a wonderful week!

Blessings,

Katie Dempsey

Principal

This Week:

• Thursday, Dec. 5th - Parent Service Committee meeting at 8 am in the conference room on the 1st floor. All are invited.
• Friday, Dec. 6th - Fulcrum Applications DUE!! St. Nicholas Day! Student Award Assembly at 1:45 in the auditorium. Please join us!!

Next Week:

• Monday, Dec. 9th - All school mass at 9am (hosted by 7th grade). This mass will be in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe and will feature a flower procession at the start of the mass and a special Aztec dance immediately following mass. Please BRING A FLOWER for the procession.

• If your child is sick (with a fever), please wait 24 hours to send them to school. A fever which is brought down temporarily by a fever reducer such as Tylenol still counts as a fever.
• Please check the Lost and Found. We have a number of coats and a TON of lunch boxes/bags. UNCLAIMED JACKETS WILL BE DONATED TO THE HOMELESS SHELTER IF THEY ARE STILL AT THE SCHOOL ON DEC. 20TH.

$100 Auction Family Commitments are due February 7, 2020!

As noted on the Financial Agreement, each Holy Rosary family is required to contribute to the annual Auction (formerly Crab Feed). We will accept donations equal to or greater than $100 in value in the form of cash or check, gift cards to local restaurants, businesses, sporting events, or places of interest. Families may also provide vouchers for goods and services such as catering, lawn maintenance, baked goods, etc. We can provide donation forms, if you prefer to solicit your items from a local business.

If the item or payment is not received by February 7, families will be invoiced $150.

***Items are subject to procurement committee approval.***

It is important to note that we will not be accepting previously used items as part of our event; this process allows us to make better use of our resources to ensure our event is a success. We thank you in advance for your cooperation and continued support.

Robinson Crusoe, January 6th – 11th

The school is excited to announce that, once again, we have the Missoula Children’s Theater coming to our school to work with the students (K-8th) on a production of Robinson Crusoe. This is an exciting tale about a castaway on a tropical island and his many adventures!

This will be an intensive week long production (like last year). Two professional actors will be coaching the students and will provide workshops during the week for the entire school. The cost to participate in the play will be $50. Permission forms will be sent out in December and due before we leave for the holiday break. So, look at your calendars, talk with your kids and we hope you can join us!

If you are interested in participating.

• Practices will be from 3pm-5pm and 5:15pm -7:15pm, January 6th – January 10th. Not all students will be needed at both daily practices. When your student will rehearse will depend on what role he/she has been cast in.
• All students who want to participate will need to attend the Monday (Jan. 6th) audition from 3pm-5pm
• At 5pm on Monday, students will be assigned the role and receive their rehearsal schedule for the remainder of the week. Flexibility is needed as we won’t know this information until 5pm on Monday.
• ALL CAST rehearsals will be on Friday from 3pm – 7pm.
• Performances will be on Friday evening, January 10th at 6:30pm and Saturday, January 11th at 3pm. Students will need to arrive by 1:30pm for the Saturday performance.

Volunteer opportunities.

• 1 parent/day is needed to help during the practices to make sure the students are in the correct location, take attendance and support the staff as needed.
• 1 parent/day to provide dinner snacks. Each student will need to pack their own sack dinner however, we learned last year that these kids are HUNGRY and appreciate having some snacks to help supplement their sack dinners. Ideas include cheese and crackers, meat tray, fruit, vegetables, etc…
• Volunteer sign ups will go out in December.

Please contact Melissa Curtis, evolutiondance@nventure.com or 253-495-4423 (call or text) to volunteer or if you have any questions.