NEW! Thank you! - This week’s thank you goes to Danielle Schuh and Grace Bunke for stepping in to co-cordinate our lower campus School Store! Yesterday’s opening day was a great success and the kids are thrilled! As a reminder, grades PreK to 2 shop on Tuesdays, while grades 3 to 5 shop on Thursdays!
Deadline THIS FRIDAY! Ski Club - Registration for this year’s Ski Club ends THIS Friday, December 1st! Information about Ski Club can be found on the school website HERE. IMPORTANT: All students must be registered for Ski Club using the form HERE by THIS Friday, December 1st!
Ticket sales for Crotched Mountain are open. Instructions for ordering are HERE. All Ski Club participants (except those with EPIC passes) must purchase their Ski passes through the online system in addition to registering with Saint Chris through the link above.
THIS WEEK! Christmas Tree Lighting and Blessing of the Bambellini: Gather the whole family for our Christmas Tree Lighting THIS Friday, December 1 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. Families are also invited to bring their bambellini…the baby Jesus from their home nativity…for a special blessing….just like at the Vatican! All are invited!
Upper Campus Honor Roll - Congratulations to our upper campus scholars who achieved Honor Roll for the 1st quarter! Please view the list of students HERE!
Re-enrollment Reminder - Don’t forget to re-enroll your student/s for the 2024-2025 school year! All students must be enrolled by January 15 in order to guarantee a seat for the next school year. The enrollment packet can be found in the Family Portal of the “primary” parent under Enrollment/Reenrollment. Thank you for your prompt attention to this!
NEW! Upper Campus Math Tutoring with BG Students - The last day for math tutoring with BG students on Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:30 to 4:30 will be Wednesday December 6th. That will be the last day for the rest of December. BG students will be preparing to take finals and starting their winter break after that day.
UPDATED! Christmas Concert - Mark your calendar for December 13 at 6:30 PM in the upper campus gym for our annual Christmas Show! This year’s show will feature student singers from grades PreK to 5, as well as the lower campus chorus and Performance Choir and the upper campus band and chorus. Students should plan to arrive between 6:00 and 6:15 PM, dressed in festive, school appropriate, red and green. To alleviate parking issues, Bishop Guertin will once again be providing shuttle service from the lower campus back parking lot directly to the front doors of the upper campus...please take advantage of this awesome service and save yourself the headache of trying to find a parking space at the UC!
NEW! Lower Campus Winter Apparel Reminder - Winter weather is here, so it’s time to remind everyone about wearing appropriate outerwear for the colder months! Our lower campus students WILL be going out to recess and After Care as long as the temperature is above 20 degrees and it is not raining, so they should be wearing winter coats, hats, and gloves when the weather is cold. Boots should also be worn when it is cold and especially when it is snowy….please remember to have students bring their regular school shoes in their backpack too as they are not allowed to wear boots in school. We know that students often resist wearing winter clothes, but we are counting on parents to help us keep our kids warm and healthy!
NEW! Second Quarter Progress Reports - Parents of all students will receive emailed Progress Reports this Friday, December 1.
NEXT MONDAY! Parish Appreciation Christmas Cookies -- Tis the season of giving! Please help us share our Christmas joy with the pastors and parish staff of our Deanery! Bake your favorite Christmas goodies (or bring your favorite Christmas candy!) and deliver them to the front desk on either campus on Monday, December 4th by 9:00 AM. We will use everyone's delicious treats to create giving plates of cookies and candies for delivery to each of the 12 parishes in our Deanery in appreciation of their support of Catholic schools. We are still in need of a few more cookie and candy donations! Please sign up using the SignUp Genius HERE and thank you for your contribution to this wonderful project!
Parish Christmas Cookies Delivery - We also need parent volunteers to deliver the cookie plates to the parishes on the morning of Tuesday, December 5! A couple parishes are still open for delivery help! Please see the SignUp Genius HERE!
NEW! Upcoming Upper Campus Campus Ministry Events - All events are open to students in grade 6 to 8! Please contact Ms. Thompson at [email protected] for a permission slip or have your student pick one up from her classroom.
Saint Chris's Kitchen: Christmas cookie decorating event next Monday, December 4th from 3-4:45 pm in the upper campus kitchen. Cost is $5 for supplies.
Warm Clothing Drive: Outgrown your winter pants? Have some sweatshirts, coats, hats, and mittens in your closet that you no longer need? We are hosting a warm clothing drive from now until Wednesday, December 20th. All gently used warm clothing donations are appreciated!
Journeying to Bethlehem with Mary: Advent is the season in which we prepare for the coming of the King of kings, and there is no one better to help us prepare for the birth of Jesus than Mary. She who held her Lord within her womb shows us how to hold Him in our heart. So, each Tuesday from December 5th to the 19th, Regina Caeli Girls' Group will meet in Mrs. Bedard's room after school from 2:45-3:45pm to examine God's Word through the eyes of Our Lady and share some faith, fellowship, and food. Come, Lord Jesus, come!
UPDATED! Pajama Drive to benefit The Pass Along Project – We are happy to be participating in a Pajama Drive for The Pass Along Project again this year. 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 until December 15! We will have a large box for donations at both the Christmas Tree Lighting AND the Christmas Concert!
NEW! Spirit Shirt Ordering - At the request of a number of parents, Maverick Stitch and Screen has reopened orders for our Wildcat Spirit Shirts HERE!
UPDATED! Lower Campus Chess, Checkers and Cribbage Club - The lower campus Chess, Checkers, and Cribbage Club is going strong! Students are learning and perfecting their skills and having a great time! Many of the students are particularly excited to learn the game of cribbage in addition to chess, and Mrs. Morrell has volunteered to teach them this fun math-oriented game. Therefore, we will be alternating chess and cribbage weeks for the foreseeable future. The schedule for the next two months will be:
Cribbage:
December 4
December 18
January 22
January 25
Chess:
December 11
January 8
January 29
It’s not too late to join the club! It meets on Monday morning at 7:30 AM. Students should enter through the Before Care entrance and check in with the teacher on duty before proceeding to Mrs. Hickey’s classroom for the club.
NEW! Upper Campus Chess Club - We are thrilled that we can now also offer Chess Club at the upper campus! The club will meet on Monday morning every other week from 7:00 - 7:30 in the music room. Students should enter school through the cafeteria doors. The first meeting will take place on Monday, December 4!
Christmas Free Dress - Our classrooms will be fun and festive over the last two days of school with TWO Christmas free dress days! On Tuesday, December 19, all students on both campuses are welcome to wear their favorite red, green, and white free dress. On Wednesday, December 20, all students should wear their favorite school-appropriate pajamas for a special Polar Express day! For both days, all students should keep in mind our free dress guidelines outlined in the parent-student handbook!
NEW! Hot Lunch Ordering for January - Ordering for January’s Hot Lunch will open on Friday, December 1st and run through midnight on the 15th on Boonli.com. Please be sure to place your order early in case of technological difficulties. You will receive an email confirmation once your order has been placed….if you do not receive that email, your order has not yet been placed and your child will not receive Hot Lunch for the month. Thank you!
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 Wednesday, December 20.
- Our first day back to school after Christmas vacation will be Wednesday, January 3.
- There will by NO After Care on Thursday, January 4 so teachers can enjoy their Christmas party!
- We will have NO school on Monday, January 15 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr Day.
NEW! Academy Annual Appeal - Our Saint Christopher Academy Annual Appeal is underway! Letters explaining the appeal were mailed to current families, staff and faculty, alumni, alumni parents, and community friends before Thanksgiving…please let us know if you did not receive the letter or if you would like the information mailed to a grandparent, friend, or other potential supporter! The Annual Appeal is the second of our three school-wide fundraisers and all funds STAY at Saint Chris to directly benefit our students. Donations to the Annual Appeal can be made by sending a check into school, or by donating online HERE. Our goal for this year’s Annual Appeal is $80,000…we look forward to periodically updating parents on our progress through the Wednesday News! Please join us in reaching this important goal!
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Auction Sponsor! Thank you to these fabulous businesses who have committed to an Auction sponsorship:
Presenting Sponsor
Gold Sponsor
Bronze Sponsor
Kevin Brown '99 - the Knights of Columbus Insurance
NEW! Auction Committee Meeting - Our next Auction Committee meeting will take place on Wednesday, December 6 at 7:00 PM in room 303 at the upper campus!
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Hot Lunch Volunteers - Thank you to our fabulous Hot Lunch volunteers! The schedule for the next week is:
Thursday, November 30
LC: Athena Chisholm, Melissa Richardson, Crystal Romero, Mia Shepard
UC: Lucilene Foppa, NEED A VOLUNTEER
Friday, December 1
LC: Erin Sarette, Jen Liba, Cassy Vachon, Stephen Carroll
UC: Nadra Bell, Karla Hall
Monday, December 4
LC: Robin DeGrandis, Erik Smith, James Rappaport, Tyler Ramrath
UC: Carrie Ayers, Marge Decato
Tuesday, December 5
LC: Lucilene Foppa, Andrew Ciardelli, Tina Bruno, Andrea Rugg
UC: Teresa Carlton, NEED A VOLUNTEER
Wednesday, December 6
LC: Danielle Schuh, Stacy Driessen, Kristie Healey, Krista Prymak
UC: Sasha Shaplyko, Nadra Bell
Popcorn Poppers: Our popcorn poppers for this week are:
LC: Andrea Rugg, Amy Milinazzo, Emily Rodriguez
UC: Tara Canaway, Melissa Szymansky, Daliana Spencer
Upcoming School Masses - All parents are invited to attend our weekly school masses! Parents must enter through the front door of each campus facility, sign in, and receive a nametag to attend. All masses are at 9:45 AM on both campuses unless otherwise noted. The schedule for the next month is:
UPDATED! November 30 - Upper campus Mass - CANCELED
December 8 - Immaculate Conception (Holy Day of Obligation) - both campuses
December 13 - Lower campus Mass
December 18 - Lower campus prayer service
December 18 - Upper campus Mass
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, select “Join a Program,” and create an account using our school code 751C7D6L13155. Gift cards are available from a long list of retailers and restaurants and all 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!
SAINT CHRISTOPHER PARISH NEWS
NEW! Advent Message from Fr. David - Please click HERE to read a wonderful reflection by Fr. David on how to spend the Advent season preparing for the birth of Jesus!
NEW! Parish Advent and Christmas Schedule: School families are cordially invited to attend any of the upcoming Advent and Christmas season masses and activities:
COMMUNITY NEWS
NEW! Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena - St. Aloysius of Gonzaga parish is hosting a Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, starting on December 3rd and ending with the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Dec. 12th. Envelopes to sponsor the novena are available at the entrance of the church. Click HERE to obtain a detailed schedule for this Novena.
NEW! Eagle Scout Project Thank You - Ian Leonardi extends his thanks to all those who contributed to his Eagle Scout book collection project! He collected 87 books!
NEW! Cub Scout Pack 19 - Saint Chris students in grades kindergarten through 5 are invited to join Cub Scout Pack 19 which is located at the nearby First Baptist Church at 121 Manchester St.! For more information, see the flyer HERE!
Confirmation Prep at Immaculate Conception Parish - If your child is baptized, has received First Reconciliation, is in (at least) Grade 3, and has been enrolled in his/her 2nd year of Faith Formation (or attending Catholic School), he/she is eligible to receive Confirmation/First Eucharist in the Spring of 2024 at Immaculate Conception Parish in Nashua. Registration deadline is January 1, 2024. To register, please go to www.iccnashuanh.org.
Happy Hearts Day Care - Happy Hearts Daycare, located across the street from the lower campus at 12 Cushing Ave., has a few openings for extended care. The hours are 6:30 to 8:30 AM and 3:00 to 5:30 PM. They accommodate students on snow days, two hour delay, early release, no school days (except for the major holidays) and even if there is a power outage :) They also provide care on the Christmas, February and April vacation weeks. If interested, please call...603-321-9320.