January 12, 2010

Dear Parents,
    
     Sunday we celebrated the baptism of Jesus at the 9:00am Family Mass. Thank you to Mr. Joseph, Miss Maguire and especially our third grade students who sang beautifully to enliven the liturgy. We are so very proud of our third graders! We appreciated meeting each of you while sharing coffee and donuts after Mass.

     To bring you up to date on our faculty and staff, Mr.Martinez will not be here for awhile as he will be having surgery. We will continue to keep him in our prayers. Mr. Ivan Vasquez will be replacing Mr. Martinez while he has surgery and recovers. Mrs. Adourian our school librarian is also in the hospital; please keep her in your prayers. As you know Mrs. Dorrit Sederstrom will be moving to Brazil, as her husband’s company gave him a promotion. This was quite a surprise for all of us. Ms. Briana Berlin will be taking Mrs. Sederstrom’s place in second grade. Ms. Solarri will be continuing her education and therefore will not be able to return. It is amazing all that happened to our community over the holidays. We pray for everyone’s good health during this new year. 
    
     Have a great day, a terrific week and a super 2010! May this year be the very best for all of you and your families!
   
Sr. Judy

SERVICE HOURS/FUNDRAISING REMINDER:  All families need to volunteer a minimum of 30 hours and fundraise a minimum of $500 per family (plus an additional $40 per child if they wish to go on the Knott’s Berry Farm year-end trip.)  All hours and fundraising requirements MUST be completed by April 30th.  There are four months remaining with the following major opportunities available:  Run for Bucks, Hawaiian Raffle, Book Faire, and Carnival.  Please check your family envelope for upcoming opportunities. Don’t leave your obligation to the end -  April 30th will be here before you know it! If you ever have any questions pertaining to school requirements, the Policy Manual can be found on-line at http://www.stjeromewestchester.org/school/

MARDI GRAS TICKETS ON SALE: $25 each in advance, $30 at the door. Come and see our brand new parish hall!

PORTALS TO SCIENCE is here once again.  The next training is Friday January 22nd from 7:30-8:30am. If you are interested in participating please email Carrie McClune at caltergott@chla.usc.edu.
The classes are scheduled for January 26th and 27th.  Please see below for the exact times.  This is a great project and an excellent way to get involved in your child's education!
Session 2 (January)                                                   
Parent Training  Session         7:30 am Friday 1/22                        
Instruction                              (1/26 and 1/27)                            
            Grade 4           Tues 1-2 pm                                       
            Grade 5           Tues 2-3 pm                                       
            Grade 6           Tues 11:30-12:30 pm                         
            Grade 2           Wed 2-3 pm                                       
            Grade 3           Wed 9:30-10:30 am   
 
SPECIAL SCRIP: The first special scrip order form for 2010 is being sent home today in the family envelope.  All orders forms and checks are due back in the main office by Tuesday, January 19, 2010.  NO LATE ORDERS WILL BE ACCEPTED!  If you will be placing an order, please fill out the form, make your check payable to SJSS and drop it off at the main office ATTN: Krista D'Angelo.  If you have any questions please call Krista D'Angelo (310) 293-4405 or Lisa Harris (323) 291-6136.  Thank you and Happy New Year!

Thank you to the Third Graders for their attendance to the 9am mass this past Sunday.  They did a great job with the readings and the choir singing.  The class raised $286.75 from the Coffee and Donut sale.  The money will be used towards their class field trip.  A special thanks goes out to everyone who was present to support the class.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T:  A friendly reminder as we move into a new year—chairpersons, members of the school support organization, and executive board are all volunteers. They donate their time above and beyond the 30 hours required of each family to help make this school a better place for all our children and to provide volunteer opportunities to everyone. They are not employees of the school, and most work full time in another capacity. Please be respectful of one another and treat others as your wish to be treated. We are grateful to all of you for what you do to make our school the best that it can be.

Calendar of Events
January 13     11:15 am School Mass    Grade 3
January 18     Martin Luther King Holiday NO SCHOOL
January 26     Graduation Pictures with Bartollo
                        6:30 pm MANDATORY Parent Teacher Meeting in the church
January 30     High School Placement Test