NEW! Thank You! Many thanks to all of our faculty and staff who delayed their Thanksgiving break last week and stayed after school on Tuesday to participate in a virtual safety training. We know that you were eager to get started on cooking the Thanksgiving feast, but absolutely appreciate that our students’ safety is a top priority for all!
NEW! Re-enrollment Opens Tomorrow – In response to interest from current parents, we have decided to open our 2023-2024 enrollment window for CURRENT students a month early! An email with information and a link to the enrollment packet will be sent tomorrow, December 1st, to the parent listed as the “primary” contact for each student. The deadline for enrollment will remain January 15 and a $150 registration fee will be required upon submitting the packet. Completing the enrollment packet guarantees your student will have a seat for the 2023-2024 school year. Students who are not enrolled by January 15 may lose their seat to a new student.
Note: The enrollment email is sent to only ONE parent to avoid duplication of enrollment packets in the Renweb system. If you have questions, please contact Enrollment Coordinator, Lorrice Bedard, at [email protected].
Upper Campus First Quarter HONOR ROLL - Congratulations to the 120 upper campus scholars who earned a spot on the Honor Roll HERE for 1st quarter! We are very proud of your hard work and dedication to your studies!
NEW! Hot Lunch Ordering and Cost Increase - Ordering for January Hot Lunch will open tomorrow, December 1st, and run through December 15 on Boonli.com. Due to increased cost, our caterer, Celebrations, is increasing hot lunch prices at both campuses by 50¢ per meal. Lunches at the lower campus will be $4.00 and lunches at the upper campus will be $5.00 starting January 1st.
THIS WEEK! Christmas Tree Lighting and Blessing of the Bambinelli: Gather the whole family for our Christmas Tree Lighting THIS Friday, December 2 at 6:00 PM in front of the lower campus building! This event is a beautiful tradition in the Saint Chris community and includes the blessing and lighting of our school Christmas tree, the story of the promise of the Messiah and the birth of Jesus told in short bible readings, and the singing of traditional Christmas carols. And new this year, families are invited to bring their bambinelli…the baby Jesus from their home nativity…for a special blessing….just like at the Vatican! All are invited!
December and January Calendar Notes -- Looking ahead to December and January, we have a few schedule notes for your calendar:
- Our last day of school before Christmas vacation will be Tuesday, December 20.
- Our first day back to school after Christmas vacation will be Tuesday, January 3.
- There will by NO After Care on Thursday, January 5 so teachers can enjoy their Christmas party!
- We will have NO school on Monday, January 16 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr Day.
DEADLINE THIS WEEK! Spirit Shirt Orders - GO WILDCATS! Our Wildcat Spirit Shirt vendor is taking orders for both short and long sleeve shirts! These shirts are not part of the official uniform but may be worn on Spirit Days (including Spirit Day during our January Catholic Schools Week!), on free dress days, to sports or other events, or whenever your student (or you!) want to show a little Saint Chris pride.
Short sleeved shirts are $9.50 and long sleeved shirts are $12.95. Both are navy blue with white writing. Youth and adult sizes are available! Orders are due by Friday, December 2. All shirts will be delivered to the school and sent home with students after the deadline.
Order your spirit shirts HERE!
NEW! Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary Mass – The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8 celebrates the immaculate conception of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her sinless life. It is a holy day of obligation in the Catholic church. Both campuses will hold mass at 9:45 AM and parents are welcome to attend either mass. Please enter through the front door of each school to sign in.
NEW! Second Quarter Progress Reports - Students on both campuses will receive Progress Reports this Friday, December 2. Upper campus progress reports will be emailed to parents, while lower campus progress reports will be sent home on paper with students.
NEW! Pajama Drive to benefit The Pass Along Project – The Pass Along Project collects and distributes clothing bundles to children who enter the foster system. We will be collecting pajamas for these children who often arrive at a foster home with nothing. Please click HERE for specific instructions! Families on both campuses are urged to participate!
Auction Theme and Website – Exciting news….we have selected our Auction theme for our March 25, 2023 event… “Roll Out the Red Carpet for Saint Chris”! The night will include silent and live auctions, raffles, drinks, and a delicious sit-down dinner. Attire of all kinds is welcome…feel free to dress to the theme or not!
More details about the Auction will be coming soon, but we are accepting donations, sponsorships, advertising, and ticket sales now on the Auction website HERE! Check it out!
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Christmas Show - All families are invited!
THE GREATEST MESSAGE:
An ALTERNativity Story
presented by the Saint Christopher Academy Drama Club
featuring the Saint Christopher Academy Band, Chorus, and Strings Ensemble
with special music by the Lower Campus students!
Wednesday, December 14 at 6:30 PM in the Upper Campus Gym/Auditorium
Join us as we use God's gifts of music, drama, and song to share the Gospel through the traditional Christmas story with a modern flair!
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DEADLINE EXTENDED! Ski Club Registration for BOTH Campuses – It’s that time again! Ski Club sign-up time! Winter is fast approaching and we will be starting our ski program in January this year. We will be going to Crotched Mountain. This year, Ski Club will be a 7-week program, running from 4:00 - 8:00 PM on Fridays starting January 13! There will be 5 weeks of lessons and 2 weeks of free skiing. Cost is $289, or $149 for season pass holders. All sign-ups are made through the Crotched website directly HERE. Deadline to register is now December 14th.
NEW! Please make sure you have registered with Crotched Mountain (if needed) AND filled out the Ski Club Selection Form HERE no later than December 14. Please complete the form for each student in your family. This form confirms your student’s Ski Club participation in lessons, rentals, bus, etc. and is REQUIRED for all Ski Club participants.
NEW! Camps Fatima and Bernadette - Andrew Thibault, Director of the Diocesan Summer Camps, came to visit both campuses earlier this week and talk with our students about Camp Fatima (for boys) and Camp Bernadette (for girls) and the many exciting activities and opportunities they offer. Our students LOVED it! Mr. Thibault did share, however, that the campus are almost full for the summer….so if you are interested in sending your child, please check out the camp website HERE and the video the students saw HERE as soon as possible!
SCRIP for Christmas! – Did you know that you can purchase gift cards to most popular retailers and restaurants quickly and easily online through the Shop with Scrip Program…AND benefit St. Chris at the same time? Click HERE, create an account using our school code 751C7D6L13155, order gift cards from a long list of retailers and restaurants and the gift cards will be shipped directly to the school. You’ll usually receive your gift cards in under a week, and the school receives anywhere from 1.25% to 14% of your gift card purchase! Christmas is a perfect time to give the program a try, with gift card options like Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks, Target, and Barnes and Noble! SCRIP also has an app for your phone that makes ordering and managing gift cards soooo easy! Check out RaiseRight by ShopWithScrip!
Applications for 2023-2024 - Do you have a younger child who will be ready for PreK or Kindergarten next year or another older child who you’d like to attend Saint Chris? Do you know a family who would like to join the Saint Chris community next year? We are now accepting applications for new students for the 2023-2024 school year! PreK applications are coming in quickly and spaces are being assigned on a rolling basis, so veteran families with a PreK student for the fall are encouraged to apply ASAP. Veteran families can complete a new student application through their Family Portal. New families should start the process HERE.
Hot Lunch Volunteers - Thank you to our fabulous Hot Lunch volunteers! The schedule for the next week is:
Thursday, December 1
LC: Haddy Marte, Tina Bruno, Karla Chamoun
UC: Nadra Bell, Marnie Gordon
Friday, December 2
LC: Jenna Richardson, Erin Varsalone, Natalie Boldeia
UC: Nadra Bell, Emily Uong
Monday, December 5
LC: Sadie Presenti, Susan Morton, Sarah Currid, Allison Cimon
UC: Elizabeth Cyran, Carol Cyran
Tuesday, December 6
LC: Sadie Presenti, Karla Chamoun, Marnie Gordon, Irene Owuor
UC: Sue-Ellen Maher, Kathy Maynard
Wednesday, December 7
LC: Sadie Presenti, Greidy Medrano, Courtney Duran
UC: Becky Kosterman, Teresa Carlton
Popcorn Poppers: Our fabulous popcorn poppers for the week are Melissa Michels and Louis Cardinale.
NEW! Advent and Christmas Schedule at St. Christopher Parish – Families are invited to join St. Christopher Parish during Advent and Christmas. Please see the schedule below!
- Eucharistic Adoration and Confessions – Mondays of Advent ~ 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm
- Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary – Holy Day of Obligation, Thursday, December 8th. Parish masses at 7:30 am and 7:00 pm with Rosary at 6:30 pm.
- Consecration of New Altar with Bishop Peter Libasci – Sunday, December 11th at the 10:00 am Mass.
- Christmas Eve – Saturday, December 24th at 4:00 pm in Church and Church Hall and Midnight Mass at 12:00 am.
- Christmas Day - Sunday, December 25th at 9:30 am. (Please note there are no 8 and 10 am Masses on Sunday, December 25)
- Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Vigil – Saturday, December 31st at 4:00 pm
- Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God – Sunday, January 1st ~ 8:00 am and 10:00 am
- Epiphany Sunday Vigil – Saturday, January 7th at 4:00 pm
- Epiphany Sunday – Sunday, January 8th at 8:00 am and 10:00 am
