Thunder News Flash – February 8, 2020

On February 6th, Chris McKinnon informed the Regional Education Committee (REC) of St. James & St. Ann’s School that he is no longer able to fulfill his role as REC Chairperson, and is resigning from this position and membership in the REC effective immediately.  We thank Chris for his service and dedication to the REC of St. James & St. Ann’s School since June of 2018 and wish him well in the future.

With the support of Fr. Ashley and the CISVA Superintendent’s Office our current Vice-Chairperson, Tasha Mijinke, will take over the role of Chairperson for the remainder of this school year.

Please click here to see the latest update from Fraser Health regarding the novel Coronavirus which schools have been asked to distribute to parents.

Come and pray the rosary with us on Fridays at 8:30am in the school Library.  It only takes 20 minutes, but the benefits last much longer.  Help us pray for our schools, children, teachers, school staff and school families.  Everyone is welcome and there are toys for your little ones to enjoy while we pray.

Catholic Schools Week will be celebrated from February 9th – 16th by all of the Catholic schools in the Vancouver Archdiocese.  We have a number of activities planned to help us celebrate:

• Community Coffee – Monday, February 10th – please extend a special invitation to any parents that you know who might not typically attend our Monday morning coffee to come and join us.  Please also extend an invitation to parishioners at the morning Mass as well, so they can see what an amazing school they support 
• Love Thy Neighbour Day – Wednesday, February 12th – once a year across the globe we celebrate a special Pink Shirt/Anti-Bullying Day.  However, this year Pink Shirt day happens to fall on Ash Wednesday, so since every day should be anti-bullying day, we are going to move our celebration to Wednesday, February 12th.  Inspired by Catholic Schools Week, we are calling our day Love Thy Neighbour Day!  Since this is also the day that most classes will be celebrating Valentine’s Day, we are encouraging students to wear not only pink shirts, but any other colours that are Valentine’s colours – pink, purple or white as well.  While we don’t normally ask students to bring a donation for our dress down days, please see below for why this is an even more special day.  We will start our day with Hymn Sing at 8:45 and parents are welcome to attend – we will have a special focus on what it means to love our neighbours
• Jeans Day to Support the RCAV Charities – Wednesday February 12th – to further celebrate what it means to be a part of the Catholic community in the Archdiocese of Vancouver, we will also be having our annual Jeans Day to support the charities that the Archdiocese supports on Wednesday, February 12th.  So, in combination with our Love Thy Neighbour/Valentine’s Dress Down Day, we are also asking the students to wear jeans and bring a loonie or toonie to help support these charities which include the Men’s Hostel, the Prison Ministry, Refugee Sponsorship, and The Door is Open.  Each year the Catholic Schools of the Vancouver Archdiocese are asked to hold a special fundraiser to help support these charities, and what better way to understand our connection to all Catholic schools across the Archdiocese than to hold this fundraiser during Catholic Schools Week.  So whether your child participates in just the Valentine’s dress down, or just the Jeans Day, or both, please contribute to help support the charities of the RCAV

As well as these special activities, the students will also be learning about Catholic schools and participating in activities related to this in their classrooms throughout the week.

The next Work Bee is taking place at the school today, Saturday, February 8th from 9:00am – 2:00pm.  While there is a slight chance of rain in the forecast, we hope there will be both inside and outside work that can be done.  If you are scheduled to be at this Work Bee, we look forward to having you there.  Thank you for all of your hard work.

The annual Knights of Columbus Free Throw Competition will take place on Monday, February 10th in our school gym from 3:00 – 4:30pm.  This fun competition is for girls and boys in Grades 5 – 7.  Come out, have some fun, and show off your skills!

Just a reminder that the school will be closed on the following days in February:

• February 13th and 14th – the staff will be attending the Catholic Educators’ Conference in Vancouver
• February 17th – the school is closed for the Family Day holiday

Come and watch Frozen II on our big 16×9 Movie Screen on Friday, February 21st in the school gym.  Doors and Concession open at 5:30pm and the movie starts at 6:00pm.

$5 per person or $25 per family.  An info package will be sent home this coming week with all the details, including how you could win the VIP couch seating area!

For a movie review from a Christian perspective please click here or click here.

Please note the movie is rated G in Canada.

Thank you to our Sponsor:  Westlynn Meats & Seafood!

Sponsorship opportunities are still available.  Please click here for more info.

For more information, please click here.  Orders can also be done online by clicking here.