For Heaven's Sake
Our Lady Queen of Heaven School - November 2020
From the Principal's Desk
Dear OLQHS families,
When we planned for the school year this past summer, we knew we would encounter many challenges. We never dreamed these challenges would include hurricane disaster and recovery from two back-to-back storms. My heart aches for our community. There is a long road ahead for many of us and for our city as a whole. Yet, in the midst of tragedy and disaster, we remain hopeful - because of our faith and our trust in the Lord our God. As we reflect on our lives and all that has changed, we are mindful of the theme we selected for this school year, that God’s grace is constant and we must “Embrace His grace,” each step of the way.
We, at OLQHS, are beyond blessed. Blessed to have buildings that withstood the storms. Blessed with faculty and staff who vigilantly returned to work, even in the wake of their own loss. Blessed to have you, our dedicated OLQHS parents, and most of all, blessed to have our students. The return of laughter and joy on campus is the greatest gift - it gives us all great hope for the year ahead.
We thank you for your patience and your trust in us as we found our way through unexpected closures and re-openings. We are grateful for your help in getting our school back up and running just a couple weeks ago. As we move forward through this year, there may continue to be adjustments to schedules, car line, COVID procedures, and everything else that 2020 will throw at us! Again, we thank you for your patience as we strive to provide the best social, emotional, spiritual and educational support for our students.
Some of our school activities are beginning to resume - school masses, student council elections, 2nd and 8th grade buddies, etc. Although things are not as we knew them last year and activities are limited - we are grateful for each experience we are able to give our students. We look forward to the day when you, as parents and grandparents, can safely join us on campus again for these activities. Until then, please continue to pray for our school, staff, students and community that we may keep the focus on embracing God’s grace in our lives and giving Him praise for our many blessings.
Peace,
Trevor Donnelly
Important Dates
Wednesday, November 4:
- All School T-Shirt Day
Wednesday, November 11:
- T-shirt Day for November B-Days
Thursday, November 12:
- Mass - grades 1-4
- No outside guests are allowed for Mass
Friday, November 13:
- Mass - grades 5-8
- No outside guests are allowed for Mass
Wednesday, November 18:
- Student T-shirt Day
Friday, November 20:
- Report Cards
Monday, November 23:
- Mass - grades 1 - 4
- No outside guests are allowed for Mass
Tuesday, November 24:
- Mass - grades 5-8
- No outside guests are allowed for Mass
- Noon Dismissal
November 25 - 29:
- Thanksgiving Holiday
Calendar Changes
Yearbook Orders for 2020-2021
Order your 2020-2021 OLQH yearbook today!
Access Order Forms -> Click http://www.olqhs.org/student-life/yearbook.cfm or pick up a copy in both school offices.
Order deadline: March 20, 2021.
More information will be given out about the ads at a later date.
The cost of each yearbook is $40.00 (optional mailing fee $8.00)
FACTS account can be charged for this purchase or you may use cash or check.
Yearbook Image Share
The OLQHS yearbook needs YOU!
Download the Balfour Image Share app to upload all your pictures to be possibly presented in this school year’s yearbook.
Login using our school’s
Project number: 102811 and the Passcode: barons
Document the title of the photos and names involved. With so many life changing events happening to our area, this is a great opportunity to see everyone’s perspective and document our school’s journey throughout the year. Here are some topics for photos to help you get started:
Online schooling amidst the Hurricane Laura Recovery
Hurricane Laura Recovery
Starting of school with Covid 19 precautions
Extracurricular activities
Family / Community events
Church
Friends
Creative ways of functioning day to day
School functions and activities
Sports
Prayer time
Our OLQHS students and families in action.
There are so many pictures out there and this is the place we can put them all to help document such historical events and perseverance of our viable community and school.
Any questions or concerns with the app or uploading pictures, email to Sra. Smith at msmith@olqhs.org. Yearbook on in 2021!
Thank you - Baron Sponsors!
Thank you to all who signed up to be a Baron Sponsor for the 2020-2021 school year! We appreciate your generous support of our school!
Silver Level
In Memory of Dale Billeaudeaux
Lake Charles Orthodontics - Dr. Jude Fairchild & Dr. Alan Perry
Morgan Stanley
George J. Trappey IV, M.D. - Center for Orthopaedics
Bronze Level
Avail
Children's Clinic of SWLA
Crawford Orthodontics
Lake Area Marine
Lake Area Pediatric Dental Specialists
Bobby and Connie Miller - P2P Directional Drilling
Dr. Thad Primeaux and Dr. Brandi Kelly Primeaux
Thank You - Good Earth
Thinking of You
Each year, the PTC asks parents to cook and bring a pot luck lunch to the OLQHS teachers four times a year. These days are called "Thinking of You." This year, with the restrictions due to COVID and people's limited ability to cook due to hurricane damage - we thought we would try something a little different.
The PTC will still provide teachers with a lunch 4 times a year, but we will have that lunch brought in by a local food provider. This way, there will be individual servings and we are not asking our parents to prepare meals.
If you are a parent and would like to make a donation to pay for a teacher's lunch on one of these "Thinking of You" days, please click HERE. This donation is optional!
Thank you for your support of our faculty and staff!
Operation Christmas Child
Collection Week November 16-20
As way to live out our motto of BE CHRIST FOR ALL, OLQHS will again participate in a yearly program that stretches across the world and reaches many people in need. Since 1993, OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD has been sending packed Christmas Shoeboxes to needy children all over the world. This program is sponsored by SAMARITAN’S PURSE. I am sure many of you have seen the SAMARITAN’S PURSE 18 wheelers set up on Sale Road. They currently have multiple teams of volunteers stationed in our area to help with the hurricane relief effort. This program was first brought to our school 16 years ago with our Cub Scouts. This grew into a school-wide program 4 years later. Over these 12 years, OLQHS has donated almost 8000 packed shoeboxes!! THAT IS AWESOME!!
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION CAREFULLY.
This year, a few things will be different. We do not want anyone to feel obligated to pack a box in this difficult time. And, we understand that some of you may be uncomfortable packing a box due to COVID concerns. Below is our protocol for this year’s OCC Christmas Shoebox Drive at OLQHS.
Boxes WILL NOT be sent home to be packed. If you and your child want to pack a box, they can get one from their homeroom teacher to bring home, pack and bring back. This will start at the end of this week.
Additional boxes are available upon request.
Each box will have a self-stick label that may be used if you want to TRACK YOUR BOX. All that you need to do is go online, type in the code, pay the $9 shipping charge and then use that label on your box. When your box is delivered, you will receive an email telling you which country your box went to.
Each box will also have the usual brochure that may be used as a label and an envelope for the shipping.
The brochure also explains HOW TO PACK A SHOEBOX.
Each box will also have a prayer bookmark for you and your family.
Each box will have an ALL ABOUT ME sheet that you and your child can fill out so that the child that receives the box can get an idea of who sent it. (This is optional.)
If you are uncomfortable packing a box due to COVID concerns, you can PACK A BOX ONLINE and even tell them that it comes from OLQHS so that it is added to our total. Just follow this link or type it in your browser to go to our OLQHS BUILD A BOX ONLINE Page. https://build-a-shoebox.samaritanspurse.org/view/f9e9bd6b-294f-4111-a832-cb5deeefa35b
You can also click on the OCC web site to view amazing videos of the impact these boxes have on the lives of the children.
All students that return a packed shoebox or that pack a shoebox online will receive an I PACKED A SHOEBOX sticker.
COLLECTION WEEK THIS YEAR IS NOVEMBER 16-20. NO BOXES WILL BE ACCEPTED AT SCHOOL AFTER NOVEMBER 20. (Packed boxes CAN be brought to THE DWELLING PLACE Church through November 23.)
As a gift to you, OCC has created a FREE APP called THE GREATEST JOURNEY. This app is meant to help teach children about the Bible. Information is on the web site.
Christmas Food Basket Drive
December 2020
In an effort to help the needy of our parish, we will collect canned goods and dry goods to be used to pack Christmas Food Baskets. This project is in conjunction with the St. Vincent dePaul Society. We would appreciate all of the support and help you can give in order to enrich the holiday season for these members of our community. Remember the call of the Gospel which reminds us to share freely with the poor what we have been freely given. More information will be released soon detailing when in December to bring these goods. Examples of items to bring for the food drive are: potted meat, peanut butter, dried beans, rice, pasta products, instant potatoes, Vienna sausage, sugar, flour, canned tuna, canned soup, macaroni & cheese, pork & beans, grits, oatmeal, canned or powdered milk, kool-aid mixes, canned vegetables, canned tomato products, canned fruit, and baby food.
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOU CONTINUOUS GENEROSITY AT THIS TIME. REMEMBER THAT ANY GIFT IS A BLESSING AND IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!
Yours in Christ,
Colette Tanner
“For it is in GIVING that we RECEIVE…”
-St. Francis of Assisi
shop and help OLQHS!
Community Coffee Cash Program
The Community Cash For Schools® program supports participating schools that collect Proofs of Purchase from Community® products. These product Proofs of Purchase can be redeemed for cash that each school can spend to improve their school and fund the things they need. Schools can choose to allocate the money toward new textbooks, computers or even events. For decades, Community Cash for Schools has helped participating schools generate millions of dollars within the program.
Box Tops
Amazon Smile
Did you know shopping on Amazon can help OLQHS? If you go through the Amazon Smile site: https://smile.amazon.com/ When you shop on AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price of eligible products to the charitable organization of your choice - you just have to select Our Lady Queen of Heaven School - so easy!
Classroom Fun
Pre - K
Kindergarten
1st Grade
2nd Grade & 8th Grade Buddies
Our 2nd graders just met their 8th grade buddies! We are so excited to see these friendships form this year!
3rd Grade
5th Grade
They also had their annual Halloween fun! They created their STEM monster! 5th graders always look forward to this hands on group activity of creating their own monster with specific characteristics. And they had their pumpkin decorating contest.
Fifth graders have also been busy learning how to put words in alphabetical order and using a dictionary quickly – it’s not as easy as you think! We started AR testing now that we have internet at school. Can you believe that we already have students who have reached 100 points and read 1,000,000 words??!! YES!! Congratulations to Carl Morillo for earning 100 points and Jonathan Braud for earning over 100 points and reading 1,000,000 words! Both boys will receive special rewards from Mrs. Bushnell at the end of the nine weeks, along with other students as they reach these AR milestones.
We also had our reading fluency test earlier this year to see how many words we can read in one minute. Congratulations to the following students for reading over 200 words per minute: Adyson Swire (203), Adam Hebert (204), Brayden Macavei (205), and the fastest 5th grade reader, Jack Credeur, who read 207 words in 60 seconds! How many words can YOU read in one minute?
6th Grade
6th graders are having fun with math and science and enjoying this fall weather! They completed a decimal operations scavenger hunt in the courtyard and created pumpkin catapults! They are also LOVING being in the science lab, learning to find density of solids and liquids.
7th & 8th Grade
7th and 8th graders are SO excited to finally have internet and their chrome books! Pictured to the right...students having fun with quizlet live!
The 7th and 8th graders have also been busy helping the community. Many helped to clean Consolata Cemetery after Hurricane Delta and most recently, they helped to set out candles at Consolata for All Soul's Day.
Mrs. Trahan’s 7th and 8th Grade Math Classes:
7th grade math students have been working hard learning their positive and negative integer rules. 7th grade advanced math students are reviewing their graphing skills to discover what the hidden Halloween emoji might be.
8th grade advanced Pre-Algebra students found their way through their exponent rule Halloween maze! Algebra 1 students have been working hard learning about functions and relations.
Who knew math could be so fun!?!
8th Grade
Our 8th graders had their induction Mass on Friday, October 23rd. We are so proud of this class and cannot wait to see the amazing things they accomplish this year!
The Art World
We’re calling this year Art on a Cart! Mrs. Castillo is going room to room so that our students can make art and stretch their creative brain in a safe environment.
Kindergarten students created Line Pumpkins. They used oil pastels and watercolor to create these beautiful pumpkins
First graders also created pumpkins with oil pastels but they focused on blending their oil pastels for a more realistic look.
Second grade students used simple shapes and lines to draw an Autumn Scarecrow. They all added their own personalities to these cute pieces – they were then challenged to create every color they needed from only red, yellow and blue tempera paint!
Third graders talked about landscapes, the horizon line and relative size (things are smaller the farther away they are) then they drew their own landscape drawing and painted them with water colors.
Fourth grade students learned how to draw a tree using their hand as a template. They added leaves and other details. Inside each leaf they were challenged to write something that gives them strength during hard times – family, friends, prayer, pets, pizza and French fries were just some of the answers!
The 8th grade Fine Arts Survey class got their creative juices flowing by creating Hands of Imagination. They had to illustrate their hand with five items they would want at the tips of their fingers. Phone chargers, lip gloss, an eraser, chicken nuggets and straws were a few of their funny ideas. They are now studying the Elements and Principles of Art by drawing and painting examples of each.
Mrs. Castillo will continue Mrs. Foshee’s project of uploading student artwork to Artsonia. If you are new to OLQHS or have a Kindergartner, be on the lookout for a permission slip coming home soon!
Spanish 1
Spanish 1 also had some fun observing Dia de Los Muertos and honoring their ancestors by making galletas de calaveritas.
Student Council 2020-2021
Congratulations to our Student Council members for this year!
Commissioner General: Kyndal Goodwin
Assistant Commissioner General: Charlie Trappey
Commissioner of Records and Correspondence: Emily Queenan
Commissioner of Finance: Lily Buckles
Commissioner of School Spirit: Millie Thompson
Commissioner of Special Affairs: Kullen Miller
Commissioners-At-Large: Finn Gage, Grace Jester, Katie Billedeaux, Brylee Williams, Christian Williams, Grant Habetz and Brit Vick
Totus Tuus Youth Group begins next Tuesday, November 10th for Middle School! We've waited a long time for this moment. I hope all 6th, 7th, and 8th grade kiddos are excited to come.
We'll play some sweet games and have snacks. Then we'll hear a lesson about living out charity in our daily lives.
All middle schoolers welcome! 3:30-5:30pm. Not all schools dismiss at the same time, so arrive whenever it is convenient. For now we will be in the Family Life Center Activity Room instead of the youth house.
Please wear a mask - social distancing will be observed and hand sanitizer will be used.
If you have questions, contact hannah.guth@lcdiocese.org
- Hannah Guth, Youth Director OLQH
Our Lady Queen of Heaven School
3908 Creole Street
Lake Charles, LA 70605
(337) 477-7349 - Main Office
(337) 564-5376 - Middle School
asbestos statement
Each year parents must be informed that the school has complied with all national standards regarding asbestos on campus. Certain vinyl floors and the panels that are below the quad windows will have to be handled appropriately if ever replaced. Our report indicates that existing asbestos is in good condition and we have the highest rating given. You are welcome to examine the asbestos file in the office if desired.