St. Mary's Catholic School
Weekly Snapshot Newsletter - October 29 - November 2
Happy Halloween, All Saints, and All Souls Day to our St. Mary's Families!
Interested in the Catholic Origins of the Celebration of Halloween?
We’ve all heard the allegations: Halloween is a pagan rite dating back to some pre-Christian festival among the Celtic Druids that escaped church suppression, or worse, if you let your children join in on Halloween festivities you are connecting them with something unchristian or even demonic.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The origins of Halloween are, in fact, very Christian. Halloween falls on October 31 because of a pope, and its observances are the result of medieval Catholic piety.
Of course, there is a lot more to the story!
How important it is to remember the real origins of All Hallows Eve, along with the two greater and more important Catholic festivals that follow it - All Saints Day on November 1 and All Souls Day on November 2! Read the rest of the article at the link below to find out more!
https://www.ucatholic.com/blog/the-catholic-origins-of-halloween/
On Halloween there will be a costume contest, a Haunted House, and more! Brought to you by your student council - watch social media for updates!
This Thursday was our school's HEADSTRONG Mental Health Summit. It was a GREAT opportunity to begin to #endthestigma and #starttheconversation around Mental Health!
We began with an opening prayer, followed by a smudging ceremony.
Students gathered in a circle around the gym, preparing for the smudge.
Each student was able to participate as they were comfortable.
Our keynote speaker, Evangeline Zak, had an amazing and inspiring story of overcoming addiction, trauma, and mental health issues!
All of our guest speakers gathered for a Question and Answer period!
Some of our guest speakers in action during the breakout sessions. These speakers were from the organization Come2Life
Two of our awesome grade 7's dressed up to lead our dance party mental health break!
The Cha-Cha slide by all students in grades 7 - 10 was a thing to behold!
Prizes were handed out to a few of the dancers!
At the end of the day, students shared what they had learned! Ask your son or daughter how they will #endthestigma around Mental Health!
Poinsettia Fundraiser for High School Basketball
This Winter we are selling beautiful, locally grown Poinsettias to help raise money for our high school basketball teams.
By purchasing a beautiful Poinsettia this Winter, not only will you be spreading holiday cheer, you will also be supporting an amazing cause!
We hope that you will see something you like below and help support our cause. We couldn't do it without you!
Please ensure that if you are ordering online that you have a student athlete who is able to collect the funds from you, either by cash or by cheques made payable to St. Mary's Catholic School. The deadline to order is Monday, November 19; any unpaid orders will not be placed.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact one of our student athletes, email jacquelines@eics.ab.ca or call 780-632-3934 to speak with Mark Kobelsky.
Thank you so much for your support!
Here is the link to our fundraising website: https://smcs.growingsmilesfundraising.com/home
St. Mary's Catholic High School Sr Boys and Girls Basketball Teams
Volunteer opportunity for students!
Catholic Education Sunday, November 4th
What a great opportunity to give thanks at mass for the gift of Catholic Education and to work to protect and further it! We will be celebrating and observing this day at both St. Martin of Tours and Holy Trinity Parish this weekend.
Please click the following link to read the letter issued by our Alberta Bishops on the importance of this great day: https://www.acsta.ab.ca/images/pdfs/catholic-education-sunday/2018-09-19_alberta-nwt_catholic_bishops_letter_on_catholic_ed._sunday.pdf
Important Notice for Parents and Guardians - Safe Arrival / School Messenger
Time to update PowerSchool info - Yearly Consents and Demographic Info
Hey Grades 7-9 - Check out the AFTER HOURS program! You can still sign up! Forms are at the office.
Parent meeting on October 30th at 7pm in the Library!
ELAA Post Secondary Event
ELAA (Educational Liaison Association of Alberta) endeavors to connect students with post-secondary opportunities available in Alberta through the coordinated activities of our members (Alberta universities, colleges, polytechnics, as well as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Forces) with visits to as many high schools as possible.
Hosting school:
Vegreville Composite High School
Date:
Friday, November 23, 2018
Time:
9:00-11:00 am
St Mary's will be bringing our students over as guests to this great event which switches between our two Vegreville high schools from year to year.
Important dates / Looking ahead:
October 30th - Grad Parent Meeting at 7PM in the Library
November 4th - Catholic Education Sunday
November 7 & 8th - Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews (each evening - email will be sent out with the link to sign up later this week and will be in the following newsletter)
November 9th - Remembrance Day Ceremony @10:00 AM
November 9th - St. Mary's Awards Night @7PM
November 11th - Remembrance Day (Observed)
November 12 - 16th November Break - No School
November 21st - Picture Retake Day with Lifetouch
Contact
Website: https://stmy.eics.ab.ca/
Location: St Mary's Catholic School, Vegreville, AB, Canada
Phone: (780)632-3934
Twitter: @stmarys_veg