The Defender
November 18, 2022
Important Upcoming Dates
- November 22 All School Faith Family Thanksgiving Feast
- November 23-25 Thanksgiving Break
- December 6 No Mass-Red and White out of uniform
- December 6 St. Nick Parties 2:45 PM
- December 7 No Mass-Penance Service (3rd - 8th)
- December 8 All School Mass 8:15 AM
- December 8 All School Rosary 2:30 PM
A Message from Mrs. Tate
What a week! Thank you for your support as the temperatures dropped and the snow fell! We appreciate you sending kids with hats, gloves and coats for recess and outdoor activities. They need the fresh air and the time to RUN…even when it’s chilly. Your child’s classroom teacher may have already shared this, but here are our winter recess guidelines:
- Outdoor recess with restriction… Outside air temperature and/or wind chill is 20 degrees or greater and there is no falling precipitation. (This is usually a regular recess, although teachers could bring in early if they want…)
- Limited outdoor recess…Outside air temperature and/or wind chill is between 10 and 19 degrees.
- Indoor recess… Outside air temperature and/or wind chill is lower than 10 degrees.
We will not have a newsletter next week due to the Thanksgiving holiday, so we have included some December and Advent items in this week’s edition to help you plan ahead. Thank you to our VSL leadership team for helping us prepare the packet for 2022 Christmas activities. This time of year can get very busy, and we thought a December calendar of events might be a good visual for your family to follow. The packet was sent home in every student’s backpack and is linked in the newsletter below. Please take a look at it; there is an important letter from Fr. Brian, as well.
As we continue to improve communication between home, we appreciate your partnership and participation in the communication process. The weekly newsletter will continue to be our number one way to disseminate information to our community. We will continue to send it via email on Fridays around 4:00 p.m. Please note that if you miss the email or it gets buried in your inbox, it is always posted on our website on the front page about 2/3 of the way down the page. Just scroll down on the front page, and you’ll see links to all the previous weekly newsletters.
Last week, we included a short survey for anyone who is interested in After School Care at SMA. We want to support our families who need this service, and to be able to provide the service, we must have families committed to signing up. If you missed the survey last week, please scroll down and take it this week. It is three questions and takes about 20 seconds.
Finally, I want to share my sincere gratitude to our SMA community for welcoming me with open arms this year. It’s been a long time since I’ve been “new” anywhere, and you have all made the transition a beautiful, faithful blessing for me and my family. From welcoming the kids to school in the morning to sitting with them at Mass, I have already experienced more blessings than I ever imagined. Our school is something to behold, and I’m so glad the Holy Spirit led me to “yes” last December. I wish you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving holiday; I can’t wait to celebrate the Advent season with you all!
“For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving; for then it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.” (1 Timothy 4:4-5)
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Diana Tate
Please Practice Safety During Drop-Off!
Students should ride in the back seat of cars and get out on the driver's side of the vehicle whenever possible! Although there may be instances where all seats are taken, the back seat is the safest place for children. We ask children to get out of the car curbside to avoid any possible accidents. Crossing traffic in front of or behind your car is NOT SAFE. Please help us keep all kids safe during morning drop-off. Thank you!
SMA After School Care Interest
We understand after school care is a need for some families, yet we have struggled to find appropriate staffing for the program in the past couple of years. We need your input before investing hours of interviewing and hiring to ensure that the program is something that can be sustained at SMA. Please click here to indicate your interest and commitment level.
2022 Christmas Packet
Sign up today to be a Guardian Angel
A Guardian Angel volunteer has the unique opportunity to serve the school during the time children are in Mass or attending other religious activities within the church. This is a person who volunteers to be in the Narthex during these times to keep an extra eye on the doors of the church looking for suspicious behavior.
Please consider signing up for as multiple shifts. The children love to see familiar faces! Thank you for volunteering your time to ensure our children are safe!
Grades 5-8 Mass is on Tuesday. Kindergarten- 4th grade Mass is Wednesday. All school Mass is Friday.
Living the Liturgical Calendar
SMA Social needs your photos
As we get further into the school year and begin to have projects and parties at school, snap some pictures and send to VSL so we can post on Facebook and Instagram. We would love to feature more of our kids smiling faces to help tell our SMA story!
CYO Help Needed
Drop-Off and Pick-Up Procedures
Dennis Uniform
SMA School Activities
Parish Acivities
American Heritage Girls Poinsettia Fundraiser
St. Michael the Archangel American Heritage Girls Troop will offer poinsettia plants for the holiday. All proceeds support the girls at the Honduras Mission Orphanage.
Purchase a poinsettia for yourself and/or donate one to SMA's "Friendly Visitors" ministry to be delivered to the sick, homebound & bereaved of our parish. Suggested donation is $15.
Order now and pick up on Saturday, Nov 26 from 3:30-5:00 PM in the Parish Hall, or at your convenience by Nov 29.
Click here to order: https://stmichaelcp.shelbynextchms.com/external/form/924c7909-7b6e-433e-94a2-84780b55a21c
Companions in Faith Volunteer Opportunity at OLU School
Have some free time during the school day? We are looking for volunteers to work with teachers and students at Our Lady of Unity School for the 2022-2023 school year. Volunteers are needed from 9 a.m. to noon or 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. but we can accommodate almost any schedule. The day of the week is flexible and as well as the frequency of your volunteer visits. You must be VIRTUS trained to volunteer but no teaching expertise is needed, just a willing heart to work with students.
If you would like more information or would like to volunteer, please visit http://companionsinfaith.weebly.com/volunteer-at-our-lady-of-unity-school.html or e-mail Ann Ekis at ann.ekis@yahoo.com