eGazette - January 27, 2010

February 2010 School Calendar

See attached.
February_2010_Calendar.pdf

Dear St. John the Baptist Catholic School Families,

We welcome the New Year with much to be thankful for. I'm proud to share the following great news:

- 60% of our '09 graduates made the first quarter honor roll at Justin-Siena.

- 100% of our '09 graduates made the honor roll at Napa High School. (Three made the 4.0 and above honor roll!)

- Our 5th-8th grade students won in 7 out of 12 categories in the Daughters of the American Revolution essay contest.

- Two of our Jr. High basketball teams made it to the championship game for our Catholic Schools League.

- Our students, with the support of our Staff, Family Club and Kohls department store, purchased over $2,000 in presents and food to provide Christmas to 27 families in need over the holiday season.

In addition to our student accomplishments, I offer my most sincere appreciation to all those who made last Saturday's Crab Feed a tremendous success. Laurie Daw, chair-extraordinaire, once again managed to wow us with a sold-out event that was packed with mouth-watering crab, delicious tri-tip, and buttery pasta. Supporting Laurie, was a team of organized professionals including Damian Lee, our Parish Men's Club, Our Family Club, Chef Marvin Paul, Chef Aaron Keefer, Development Committee members Lisa Paul, Judy Franzino, Paula Vlaming, Kellie Prittie, Artist Marisa Bartolotti and literally a hundred other parents, grandparents and parishioners. THANK YOU! The spirit was alive in our Parish Hall!

But we're not going to rest yet. Next up: CSW! By now, you've heard the buzz about Catholic Schools Week. This week affords us the fantastic and unique opportunity to proclaim who we are as a faith-based school. We are allowed and encouraged to shine the light of Christ for all to see! You, your children and the entire community of Napa will experience many activities that celebrate 98 years of academic excellence! Remember, you are invited to actively participate! Click on link below for a detailed list of all CSW activities.

- On Sunday, 1/31, we invite all school families to attend the 10am Family Mass, followed by a current family, parishioner and alumni Open House in the School from 11am to 12pm. See what your child has accomplished! Special blessings will be offered for Sister Joyce Poeschl to celebrate her 50th year Jubilee as a Dominican Sister and Mrs. Boyce on her 30th year of ministry to St. John the Baptist Catholic School. Please invite friends, family and alumni to attend! Students should wear their uniforms.

- On Monday, 2/1, we launch a new event to serve our community. Our schools students feed the Napa Food Bank with a "Bucket Brigade"! In a student, parent and staff food chain, we will transport non-perishables from St. Johns to the Seminary/First St. fire station. We will line Main and First streets, passing our donations one faith-filled person at a time. The food collected will be transported to the Napa Food Bank in recognition that folks are in need throughout the year, not just during the holidays. Join us on the route! Please send in non-perishable food items asap!

- On Friday, 2/5, we thank you, our parent volunteers, with "Drop-off Donuts". As you drop-off your child for school, the school staff will hand you a donut to appreciate all that you do!

In closing, perhaps you know of a family searching for a safe, faith-filled educational program for their children. Please click on the below link to find an invitation to our upcoming community Open House, Thursday, 2/11. Your word of recommendation is better than any newspaper advertisement.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday!

With One Voice... We'll Pass the Word Along.

In Peace,
Nancy Jordan, Principal


2010_Open_House_Invitation.pdf
Catholic_Schools_Week_2010.pdf

January has already been a busy month, past the holiday season, and now we are headed into Catholic Schools Week, and then towards Valentine's Day.

This past Saturday night was amazing, thanks to the planning of Laurie Daw, Aaron Keefer, Marvin Paul, Damien Lee and their extraordinary Crab Feed team... I think we would all agree, that incredible Caesar Salad recipe needs to be shared! Family Club assisted with the decorations for the big event, with hardworking assistance from Bonny and Dennis Johnson, Jody Andino and MaryAnn Eggan. We also need to send out a special thank you to the Room Coordinators and the many families that provided us all with an array of fantastic desserts, to Marisa Bartalotti for her devotion to ever-so-special classroom projects, and to all of the families who generously contributed to this event!

Gosh, more thank you's... We started off the month by treating our teachers and staff to a luncheon from Small World Restaurant; a thank you to Gina Laird for organizing the feast and to Angie Troppy for the delicious desserts, also enjoyed during the School Council meeting. By the way, Angie, we are anxiously awaiting those recipes!

Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and Family Club will assist Cupid again this year by sending Candy-Grams... You will have the opportunity to send your child, another student, or staff member a special treat on Friday, February 12th. You will find special flyers with a new look in today's Wednesday Envelope - you will get to personally fill out your Candy-Grams. Please return them with your Wednesday Envelope or to the school office by Monday, Feb. 8, so that your Family Club parents can start preparing them on February 9! We are hoping this new system will ease some of the work involved in preparing for the delivery. If you need additional forms, they can be found in the school office.

Speaking of preparing Candy-Grams, please join us for our first Family Club meeting of 2010 on Tuesday, February 9th, where we will also begin preparing Candy-Grams... Last year, we had over 600 to prepare, so it's a big job! Be a "sweetheart" and join other Family Club parents to help make Candy-Gram-making "short and sweet". Please join us, and remember, everyone is invited to attend a Family Club meeting, and we especially encourage those of you who are new to our community to join us for coffee and chit-chat! It"s a great time to share your thoughts and ideas with us!

The Family Club Board

Listen to Principal Nancy Jordan on the "Kellie in the Morning" KVYN/KVON radio program in Napa on Thursday, January 28, 7:15 - 7:30 am to discuss St. Johns participation in Catholic Schools week with the upcoming Bucket Brigade - students, faculty and volunteer parents passing non-perishable foods from the school to the downtown fire station. The interview will be broadcast live at 99.3 FM, 1440 AM and streaming at kvyn.com and kvon.com.

SAVE THE DATE!

Track & Field Day is tentatively scheduled for Sunday, May 16, 2010... and we believe it will be held at Justin-Siena High School this year!

Track & Field Day, organized by the Santa Rosa Diocese, includes running and field events for Kindergarten through 8th Grade students. We encourage all students to participate as it is a fun introduction to track and field for all grade and skill levels.

We will begin practicing in March. PARENTS - PLEASE JOIN US FOR A BRIEF PARENT MEETING on THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4th at 2:30 pm in the school yard. All parents interested in learning more about the event and/or assisting with Track & Field should attend. We have many enthusiastic students this year and look forward to parent support to help make this a fun experience for all.

For more information, or if you cannot attend the meeting but would like to help, please contact Paula Vlaming at 707-363-1046 or paula@focus501.com.

Please remind your child that when they go to Extended Care Program that they are still on the school grounds and they need to follow the same rules and regulations that are stipulated in the School Hand book. We have the same responsibilities as your childrens' school teachers to fill out any misbehavior conduct forms that may affect your childrens' curriculum at school.

Thank you for your attention!

Nubia Kunst and Eileen Dehzad
Extended Care Program

Parent Participation Volunteers Needed

Our parish is going to start serving Coffee and Donuts after Sunday 10am Masses. Volunteers are needed for a very simple task: pick up donuts, set up and turn on the coffee pot before Mass. Serve coffee and donuts after Mass, and a quick, easy tidy up. This will take less than 2 hours, including Mass! A great way to serve our parish, meet new acquaintances, and commit participation hours. It is expected that dates will fill in quickly. To sign up, contact Lee Nordlund on 707-477-1403 (lnordlund@sbcglobal.net)

We are at the end of January...so keep on sending those box tops to school. We are making progress towards our overall goal.
Websites that help our school with box tops are:

www.thebigclip.com
www.boxtops4education.com

Both of these sites either have contests for extra box tops, recipes, and links to shopping online which will benefit our school.

Your Box-Top Coordinators,
Lee Tatsuguchi
Rebecca Griffin