Principle's Column

With the arrival of the first Sunday in Advent, you can feel the change in the atmosphere at school. Our Catholic identity becomes even more visible as we wait and hope for the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. We are looking forward to watching our Pre K – 4 ^th grade students reinforce the importance and joy of this birth with their Christmas show on Friday night, December 15, at 7:00 p.m. Please join us as our children give us a reason to celebrate the season.

The 8 ^th grade had another service opportunity at Applebee’s Restaurant this past Monday, by painting their windows for the holiday season. I am so impressed when I watch them paint these windows. Each window has a particular theme, and the students work together to make the scene come to life. It is not easy to transfer ideas from paper to a large window, but they make it happen every time, and the results are awesome. Thanks so much to our art teacher, Mrs. Bowers, for her vision and organization. Please make sure you stop by to see the talent and creativity of our students. You will be impressed!

On Wednesday our Kindergarten, 1 ^st, and 2 ^nd grades had a field trip to the AMC movie theater to see The Star. As the students returned, they could not stop telling me how much they loved the movie—and the adults loved it too! Thank you to Mrs. Sheppard for organizing this trip. We can never see or hear about the birth of our Savior too many times, and it was obvious the children received the message.

St. Nicholas Day, December 6 ^th, is always an exciting day in our school. St. Nicholas had a message for the children to continue to be kind, generous, and do good things, and then he asked everyone to put their shoes in the hallway. What a surprise to find a candy cane in those shoes!

I had some additional help with my Principal duties this past Thursday, thanks to 4 ^th grader Lena Sharibone. Lena was a “Knight to Remember Gift of Time” winner, and she had a very busy day, from morning announcements, to visiting classrooms, to helping out with lunch in the cafeteria. We had a wonderful day, and maybe I have found someone to replace me when I retire!

The PTA held “Breakfast with Santa” on Saturday morning to close out our week. They had a wonderful turnout, and Santa was very busy chatting with the children about their Christmas lists. The breakfast was delicious, and a terrific time was had by all. Thank you to our hardworking PTA and the 7 ^th grade helpers for an event that really puts us in the spirit of Christmas!

What a joyful week it has been, and as we move closer to Christmas, I look forward to the continued joy, enthusiasm, and energy of our children. What better way to get into the spirit of the season than being part of a Catholic school?