January 23, 2019

January 25 After Care in 1st Grade

January 26 – February 1 National Catholic Schools Week/St. Chris Spirit Week

January 27 Parish/School Mass and Coffee Hour – 10:00 AM – Church

January 27 Open House for Prospective Families – 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM – Lobby

January 28 Brown Bags Distributed for Corpus Christi Service Project

January 28 Auction Committee Meeting – 7:00 PM – Margarita’s

January 29-30 Many Gifts, One Nation: Day of Giving to Catholic Schools – Online

January 31 Catholic Schools Week/St. Chris Spirit Week Mass – 9:15 AM – 5M/2J preparing

February 1 Hot Lunch ordering begins on Boonli.com

February 1 Faith Outreach Committee Meeting – 9:00 AM – Library

February 1 Corpus Christi Brown Bags Due

February 5 Staff Meeting – 7:30 AM – 5M

February 11 Auction Committee Meeting – 7:00 PM – Margarita’s

February 14 Red, White, and Pink Valentine’s Day Free Dress

February 15 Hot Lunch ordering ends at midnight on Boonli.com

February 18 NO SCHOOL – Presidents Day

February 19 Yearbook Group Photos

February 20 Paper Wednesday News

February 23 – March 3 NO SCHOOL – February Vacation

March 4 School Resumes

 

NEW! Thank You – This week….and every week…we give special thanks to our Building Manager John Levesque for all of his shoveling, plowing, salting, and general snow and ice clean up! When the weather is bad, John spends hours and hours…often all night long…keeping the sidewalks and parking lots clear and safe. Next time you see John around the halls of school, be sure to say thank you!  

UPDATED! Annual Fund– We are so thankful for all those who have chosen to support our students through the Annual Fund! As of today, we have raised $20,581 towards our $34,000 goal! All of these gifts, along with any made before April 1st , will be included in our Honor Roll of Donors published in our summer News and Notes publication!

Every gift to the Annual Fund is important, no matter how large or small! All gifts remain here at St. Chris and directly benefit our students. In addition to providing advanced academics, updated technology, and exciting extracurriculars, the Annual Fund assists in covering the cost of educating students that is not funded by tuition. In other words, EVERY family receives financial aid through the Annual Fund!

Please support us in our mission to provide an excellent Catholic elementary education to all students by donating today! Thank you!

Donating to the Annual Fund is easy! You may make your donation using any of the following methods:

  • Return the remittance envelope included in your Annual Fund letter along with a check, cash, or credit card number.
  • Send a check or cash in to school in an envelope marked “Annual Fund”.
  • Call Business Manager Murrayann Abucewicz at 882-7442, ext. 113, to have your credit card charged manually.
  • Or donate online through Paypal HERE.

However you choose to donate, please know that we are MOST grateful! 

THIS WEEK! After Care in 1st Grade – Due to a parish event, After Care will be held in 1st grade on Friday, January 25. Please go to the Before Care drop-off door by the 1st grade to pick up your child!

DUE THIS WEEK! 3rd and 4th Grade Recorders – Our 3rd and 4th grade students will be starting to learn recorder in February! Those students who do not already have a recorder and book will need to order them through the school by January 25. Please download the order form HERE and return it with payment to the school. Thank you, from Mrs. Skelly!

NEW! Hot Lunch OrderingHard to believe, but it’s almost time to order March’s Hot Lunch! As usual, ordering will be open from February 1 through midnight on February 15 and no late orders can be accepted. Log into Boonli.com HERE

NEW! Valentine’s Free Dress – How sweet our school will be on Thursday, February 14th with our annual Valentine’s Free Dress day! All students are invited to wear red, white, and pink that day! Please be sure that students follow our free dress rules!

NEW! Yearbook Group PhotosLifetouch will be here on Tuesday, March 19 to take photos of all of our school groups (Chess Club, Ski Club, Altar Servers, etc.). Students should wear their regular school uniforms that day. Group photos will not be retaken if a student is missing that day.

NEW! February No School DatesMark your calendar! We will have Monday, February 18, off from school for Presidents Day and February vacation will run from February 23 through March 3!

Winter School Delays and Cancellations – In the case of inclement weather, school cancellations or delays will be posted on the website, on our Facebook page, on radio station WZID 95.7 FM and also on TV channel 9 (WMUR). Parents will also receive text messages on their cell phones, voice messages on home phones, and emails through our Notify system. 

Please note that our Notify system is not foolproof….power and internet outages may interfere with delivery of the text messages, robocalls, and voice messages. We will post the information on the school website and Facebook, as well as contacting WMUR, as soon as we are able. Please also know that we do not post school delays or closings until we receive confirmation from the appropriate administrator in the Nashua public schools, which may delay notification in some cases. Thank you for your understanding!

St. Christopher School follows the Nashua Public School System for all cancellations and delayed openings. Therefore, delayed openings are 2 hours. When there is a delayed opening, there is no school for the AM Pre-K. Before Care will take place starting at 9:00 AM and morning enrichment activities will begin 2 hours later than normally scheduled. Please note that there will be NO Band or Fiddle Squad on delayed openings. Doors are open for regular drop-off at 10:30 AM and school starts at 10:50 AM for all grades Full Day Kindergarten through 6.    

NEW! Junior Great Books -  Love to read? Be sure to register for Junior Great Books!  Junior Great Books is a ten week, before school “book club” for each grade level.  Eager readers (students and/or parents) are welcome!! Complete the form HERE and join the fun!

 

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Auction News -- Our 15th Annual St. Christopher School Auction will be here before you know it! The “St. Chris Rocks” Auction will take place on Saturday, March 23 at Sky Meadow Country Club…and we need your help! Please consider getting involved in any of the following ways:

Item Donations: Item donations are at the heart of the evening’s action! We need over 200 items to make the night a success! We are looking for both “small” items like restaurant gift cards or popular electronics for our Silent Auction, and “large” items like vacation rentals or concert/sports tickets for our Live Auction. Looking for some ideas? Check out this list HERE!

Donations this week include:

TOM BRADY Autographed Football in Display Case!

One-of-a-kind St. Christopher School Blankets

Red Sox tickets…2nd row, directly behind home plate, with parking pass!

10 Public Skate passes at Conway Arena

And more! Check out the list HERE!

 

Business Participation: We love to have local and national businesses participate in the Auction through item donations, program advertisements, and sponsorships! This is a great opportunity for businesses to reach over 200 potential patrons! Chat with your boss, ask your barber, talk with your dry cleaner, reach out to your dog groomer….almost any local business is happy to participate! If you need an Auction information packet to pass along to a local business, you can download the Auction packet on the school website HERE or contact Marta at [email protected] for a printed copy.  Thank you!

Businesses can get involved through:

Item Donations –Businesses are welcome to send along business cards, brochures, or other information for display with any item they may donate.

Sponsorships -- Sponsorships run from $250 to $5,000 and include many perks, like Auction tickets and at-event promotions.

Thank you to these current sponsors:

St. Joseph Hospital – Bronze Sponsor

Catholic Medical Center – Copper Sponsor

NEW! Center for Physical Therapy and Exercise – Copper Sponsor

Advertising -- Program advertising runs from $50 to $250. Every Auction attendee receives a program for the evening. Because the program describes EVERY Live Auction item in detail, these are guaranteed to be read by everyone!

 

Auction Committee Meetings: Our Auction planning is in high gear! Many hands make light work…please consider joining us at our next Auction Committee meeting on Monday, January 28 at 7:00 PM at Margarita’s!

Ticket Purchases: Our invitations won’t go out until early February, but you can get a jump on things and purchase your tickets now! When purchasing your ticket, you can choose you meal and indicate anyone who you’d like to sit with! Click HERE to purchase your ticket online. Tables of 10 or 12 can be also reserved ahead of time by sending a list of attendees to Marta at [email protected] or Ellen Valade at [email protected]

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Financial Aid Applications for 2019-2020 – As always, our goal is to make a St. Christopher education affordable for any family! To that end, applications for Financial Aid for the 2019-2020 school year are open and will run through March 15 and all families in need are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.  All oldest and only students will be sent home with a packet of information regarding the Financial Aid process today. The packet can also be accessed HERE. Please read the information carefully. All families interested in financial aid MUST follow the packet instructions or aid will not be given. If you have any questions, please contact either Mrs. Clarke at [email protected] or Business Manager Murrayann Abucewicz at [email protected].  

 

2019-2020 Registration – Parents of students currently in grades 2 through 5 were sent an email with a link to the registration form for the 2019-2020 school year several weeks ago. A reminder email was sent today to anyone who has not yet registered.

The online registration form must be completed and submitted for these students by January 31, along with a $160 registration fee to be paid online at the time of registration. Please know that students whose registrations are returned after that date will not be guaranteed a seat for next year.

Please note: Early registration keeps tuition low! Each year, the Diocese requires that we create our budget for the next school year based on the number of completed registrations we have as of January 31. The more registrations we have, the less we must charge for tuition to meet our budget! Therefore, by registering early, you are actively saving yourself money…hooray!

  

THIS WEEK! From Nashua Catholic to 6th Grade Parents: Nashua Catholic Junior High has accelerated the winter acceptance and registration process.  Getting the best start for each class has us planning earlier each year!  NC acceptances for your 6th graders to 7th grade were sent early in January.  As an incentive to registering early, each student registered with a fee paid by January 25th will receive four of our very coveted NC Out of Uniform Passes, one for each quarter on designated days!  The students look forward to out of uniform days with great excitement.  This incentive will give a bit of joy throughout the year! Have questions?  Reach out to our Admissions Office today at [email protected] or 603-882-7011. 

THIS SUNDAY! School/Parish Mass and Coffee Hour Please join our school and parish family THIS Sunday, January 27 at the 10:00 AM mass, followed by a Coffee Hour immediately after! This is a great time to reconnect with friends after the busy holiday season! All students who attend mass in uniform will receive a Free Dress pass for Tuesday, February 5.

NEW! Catholic Schools Week Buddy Mass Please join us for next week’s Catholic Schools Week mass on Thursday, January 31 at 9:15 AM. This is our annual buddy mass, so students will be sitting with their buddies! 5M and 2J are preparing the mass.

 

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THIS SUNDAY and NEXT WEEK! Open Houses for Prospective Families – Spread the word! We will be holding two Open Houses for prospective families NEXT WEEK and we’d love to fill the halls with new friends! The first Open House will take place THIS Sunday, January 27 from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM, immediately following our Parish/School Mass and Coffee Hour. The second Open House will take place on Tuesday, January 29 from 9:30-11:00 AM. Please share with friends and family! With your help, we can keep the halls of St. Chris full of happy children!

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Diocesan Excellence in Education Awards: The successes of our Catholic schools and their students would not be possible without the selfless support of committed educators, administrators, clergy, and lay partners in the community. This year, the Diocese of Manchester is holding its second annual Recognizing Excellence Awards Gala at the Grappone Conference Center in Concord on Thursday, June 20, 2019. All are invited to attend this exciting event to officially honor the School Leader of the Year, Clergy Member of the Year, Community Partner of the Year and most especially our Teacher of the Year.

 

Nominations from the St. Christopher community are now being accepted. To nominate someone you think deserves to receive this special recognition for this year, please read the award descriptions HERE.

 

The deadline for nominations is March 1, 2019. If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Catholic Schools Office at (603) 663-0140.

NEW! Youth Ministry News:

Junior Group News – Our next regular TG/JG meeting will be this Sunday, Jan. 27 from 6:00 – 8:00 PM in the Pennell Center. Mark your calendars for our upcoming February events: Video Game Night (February 1, 7:00 – 9:00 PM) and trail cleanup at Squam Lake (February 17, 7:00 AM – 3:00 PM). All 6th-12th graders are welcome to join us.

Kid Group Servce Kid Group will meet in the church hall instead of the Pennell Center on January 26th to help serve the parish’s Italian Dinner night. See you there at 5:00 PM! Pickup time is still 7:00 PM, though parents and siblings are welcome to stay and eat.

For any questions, email Emily Murphy at [email protected].

Got craft yarn? A friend of the school is looking for surplus craft yarn for her mother-in-law who crochets charity projects in the winter to keep busy. This grandmother is the lovely lady who donated all of the hand crocheted items that the kids received in their classroom stockings on the day before vacation! If you have yarn to donate, please send it in to school to Marta Nissen’s attention. Thanks!

Hot Lunch Schedules – Thank you to everyone who stepped up to volunteer for the Hot Lunch program! Your help is MUCH appreciated. Volunteers for the next week are below:

Thursday, January 24

Kathleen Kenosian

Tania Isenberger

Danielle Pray

 

Friday, January 25

Melissa Sprague

Tracey Bradshaw

Kate Aquino

 

Monday, January 28

George Torosian

Marilyn Hogan

Caroly Cyran

Theresa Yasevich

 

Tuesday, January 29

Emily Uong

Joe Lamere

Jennifer Fisher

 

Wednesday, January 30

Beth Dargin

Ginny Dargin

Jessica MacDonald

Eswar Sabapathy