eGazette - January 28, 2009

February 2009 Calendar

February_2009.pdf

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one."
-Mother Theresa

"Everyone can be great because everyone can serve."
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

Welcome Catholic Schools Week '09; Celebrate Service!

We are in the middle of celebrating one of the busiest weeks in our school year! Here's the update on what we've been up to!:

- Beautiful Opening Mass: Our week began with a liturgy where we welcomed Catholic Schools Week and gave thanks for who we are. We also promoted the need to resolve our facilities loan and invited our parishioners to an open house to view our facility improvements. Thank you staff, school council, student council and family club for your help on this day!

- Jr. High Dance: In addition to having a fantastic time dancing the Friday night away, our 7th graders organized a canned food drive. They collected over 150 cans of food at the door of the dance, filling a barrel for St. Vincent de Paul and Napa food bank. Great job, 7th grade!

- Crab Feed: In addition to having a fantastic time dancing Saturday night away, our parents and parishioners raised nearly $8,000 for our athletics program! Thank you, chair Laurie Daw, chef Aaron Keefer, our Parish Men's Club and our many, many parent volunteers!

School-Wide Service Project: Thank you to Mrs. Ford and Sister Joyce! Here is a report from Mrs. Ford :

We made way over 150 lunches. The lunch bags included a water bottle, PB & J sandwich, a granola bar, and a pair of socks. We also sent mandarin oranges and extra sandwiches and socks. Sister Joyce and I delivered the lunches to the Hope Center before lunch today. We were greeted by very grateful gentlemen. They were happy to see all the goodies (two cars full) and quickly lend a hand to bring everything inside the Center. The gentlemen were quite happy with the mandarin oranges. After sharing hugs with the center coordinator, Cindy, Sister and I came back to school. As we were driving away, I could hear: "Hey, would you like a lunch?" to which many gathered around... The center coordinator, Cindy, asked us to relay to you "many, many thanks". She, as well as everyone there, is grateful for the help we provided. Keep them all in your prayers and never forget all the blessings you were given.

Kindergarten Visit to the Post Office: Here is a report from Mrs. Kiernan:

St. John the Baptist Catholic School Kindergarten enjoyed a nice walk to the downtown Napa Post Office to celebrate CSW Community Day. It was our yearly visit to the Post Office to thank them for being a part of our community. Sam turned to Mrs. Boyce after we gave the workers their sweet treats and said, "I think we made them happy!" Yes, Sam, I think we did. Everyone, including the customers, had huge smiles on their faces. Until next year...keep smiling and continue to say thank you!!!

Spuds with Buds: Hundreds turned out for this beloved event: students, parents, grandparents, friends! Thank you 6th grade students and parents and Mr. and Mrs. Wooly for an incredible job! It was delicious! Check out the decorated spuds now residing in 6th grade!

But wait... there's more! Still to come: We're going to learn how to fold a flag, create valentines for Veterans, learn about vocations in service and thank our volunteers with a special goodie during "morning drop-off"! Don't forget to send a friend to our Community Open House Thursday night from 6-8pm! Right now I'm on my way to Faith Family Buddy Bingo...thanks to Mrs. Picard, all our teachers, student council and family club for organizing this fun afternoon! Save my spot!

There is no doubt that our community is alive! We're going to need a vacation after all this!

Enjoy a faith-filled Catholic Schools Week!

In peace,
Nancy Jordan
Principal

Returning students registration will be February 11 through February 27, 2009.

Registration packets going home in the 2/11/09 Wednesday Envelope.

New students enrollment begins March 2, 2009.

Stephanie Saunders
224-8388 x 101

Happy Catholic Schools Week!

The Family Club Board kicked off the week, along with the School Council, by hosting hospitality on Sunday morning. In honor of Student Appreciation Day we passed out BINGO prizes, candy and popsicles, and we will be on hand, along with Room Coordinators, Thursday evening for the New Family Open House.

Valentine's Day is coming! Take a look at the CANDY-GRAM forms, located in today's Wednesday envelope, and send a treat to someone special. Act quickly and get your order forms turned in soon, if you can. Looking for volunteer hours? We will be scrambling to get them ready for delivery by working after Mass on Wednesday, February 11th, upstairs in the Art Room.

A big round of applause to Laurie Daw and her team for an incredible Crab Feed! We would like to thank the Room Coordinators for their hard work coordinating the desserts, and to the many families who donated such an array of delicious treats! Through your efforts, the dessert auction alone raised a record breaking $1,175.00!

We would also like to thank Elisa McClure for coordinating a very successful 7th grade dance this past Friday night, as well as the many parents who helped chaperone and clean up the dance floor!

Don't forget to mark your calendar for the next Dine & Donate at Filippi's Pizza, scheduled for Tuesday, February 24th! Be on the lookout for a flyer in the next Wednesday envelope.

The next Family Club meeting will be Friday, March 6th at 8:30 a.m., in the Art Room. Please join us for a morning of coffee, conversation, and fun!

The Family Club

See attached.
09_5_6th_BBall_Sched.pdf

We are happy to announce that Suzanne Gibbs has joined our staff as Extended Care staff member. Mrs. Gibbs will be working with Eileen Dehzad in the afternoons. As you know, Mrs. Gibbs is also our art teacher. Welcome, Mrs. Gibbs!

We have learned Spanish greetings and colors. Our next step will be to learn numbers. Check your child's homework page on our school's website next week for a worksheet to help you practice the Spanish pronunciation of numbers at home.

Senora Kalten

Hello Parents

A quick update from the Art Room and Art Program.

Thank you for sharing your kids with us here at St John, watching them in the process of creation and learning is a treat for me. The Art Room is beginning to look more like an Art Room there are paintings hanging on the drying wall; and even a little unwanted paint on the walls (don't worry the teacher did the first oops!).

The theme for January was "Color." Your children learned how to take primary colors and magically make secondary colors and tertiary colors. Ask them what a color wheel is, a paint pallet, and why we use a sponge in class at each desk.

Next month, February, we will learn more about mixing paint, but this time we will be looking for "Value."

We are still searching for better "paint quality" paper at a reasonable price and I have a few angels who said they'd try to help me work on this, thanks. To the many parents who have helped in the classroom thank you.

Suzanne Gibbs

One Heart at a Time - Auction Gala
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Meritage Resort Napa - 5:30 p.m.

Mark your Calendars!
The Annual Gala is our School's largest fundraising event. Last year, net proceeds were $97,000. This year's goal is $100,000. Gala funds enhance important programs and activities for our students, including co-curricular classes in technology, art, and Spanish; the garden program; curriculum support fro Grades K-8; scholarship funding, and much more!

How can you help?
Attend the Gala
Your attendance is one of the best ways to help support the Gala. Mark your calendars and extend invitations to families and friends as you gather for the holidays. It is a fantastic opportunity to share our school community with Grandparents and friends who are interested in a St. John the Baptist education.

Be a Sponsor
Sponsorship opportunities range from $300 - $2,000 and include promotional opportunities, ticket and table purchases. Sponsorship Appeal letters to you our school families, alumni and the business community are going out this week. Additional forms are available on the Gala Bulletin Board.

Be a Donor?
We need your help for Live and Silent Auction items. How can you help? In your yellow envelope this week you will find a donation form and information with some ideas and suggestions. The possibilities are endless. Additional forms are available on the Gala Bulletin Board.

Think outside the box - Last year we had a wonderful "Mama Mia" Ladies Night, a Cabo Vacation, incredible wines and class projects all reflecting our unique school community. The parings of donations, time and talent create endless options. Every donation helps and no donation is too small.

The participation of all - is key to our Gala success. Thank you in advance for your time and help.

If you have any questions, please contact Elise Negueloua at (707) 294-2378 or via email at anegueloua@aol.com

Back by Popular Demand!

The Wine Closet Drawing!

In celebration of St. John the Baptist Catholic School's 97 year history we are once again hosting a drawing for 97 bottles of wine!

The winning ticket will be drawn at our gala, One Heart at a Time,
April 25, 2009

Please help make our Wine Closet Drawing a success by
donating your favorite wine(s). These wines will be combined to make up our spectacular... Wine Closet Drawing

Wine may be dropped off through March 31st at the school office. Please leave your name when you drop off your wine(s) so we may properly acknowledge your donation.

Contact the school office for more information 224-8388 or Katie Batt at ktbatt@yahoo.com

Thank You!

Hi there,

Did you know that one basketball is 650 points? A jump rope set is 1150 points. St. John the Baptist Catholic School currently has 5300 points in its bank with the Labels for Education program. We have collected approximately 1000 points since the start of the school year. Keep sending in those UPC codes off the Campbell's Soup products and help us beef up our account balance so we can redeem those points for much needed school equipment!

Our next submission deadline for box tops is the end of February. 10 cents here, 10 cents there. It all adds up. St. John the Baptist Catholic School received a check for $621.00 for all the box tops collected since our last submission deadline. We currently have submitted $90.00 worth of box tops since the end of October. Help us maximize what the school can get for the kids. Keep clipping and sending in those box tops! Send in those box tops by January 30th. The class that collects the most box tops for the month of January will receive a sweet treat from the box top program.

Click on the following links to see how you can help our school.

http://www.boxtops4education.com/

http://www.labelsforeducation.com/

Lee Tatsuguchi
Rebecca Griffin

We have students and parents ready to start running. So, let's get going!

For the month of February, we will meet at Alston Park's second entrance - North of the main entrance on Tuesdays from 3:30 to 4:30. We will walk (and work up to a run) of the trails in that immediate area. Grades K-8 are welcome, but due to the open nature of the park, we request that students in grades K-4 have at least one adult for every two children attending.

Please fill out the participation forms attached to this newsletter and turn in to the School Office by this FRIDAY, January 30th. These forms are for the "pre-season". Once the official forms for Track and Field Day 2009 are available, we will distribute them for Track and Field Day registration and fees.

For our "Pre-Season" we will meet on Tuesdays in February: The 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th. Our running days and location will likely change after basketball season, so, stay tuned for the Spring Schedule to take us through March, April and May.

Remember to mark your calendars for the Sunday, May 17th Track and Field Day in Santa Rosa. Thank you to those who are interested in helping with Track & Field. We look forward to hearing from even more as Track and Field day draws near. For more information, please contact Paula Vlaming at 363-1046 or paula@focus501.com.


Track_and_Field_Participation_Form.pdf

The Justin-Siena High School Winter Open House will be held in the school's Peter & Vernice Gasser Library on Thursday, January 29th from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. Presentations by Admissions Director David Holquin and academic, athletic and arts department heads are scheduled. Families of 7th and 8th graders are encouraged to attend, as well as families interested in transferring to Justin-Siena. The school is located at 4026 Maher St., Napa. Please feel free to call David Holquin, 707-255-0950 ext. 641 with any questions about the Open House and to register for the presentation. Information is also available on the website:www.justin-siena.org.

See flyer attached.
Dyslexia_2-09.pdf