Thunder News Flash – October 3, 2020

October is a month when we usually focus on giving thanks for our many blessings.  This year in particular it is important to focus on the good things in our lives, as it is so easy to only see the negative aspects of living through a pandemic.  As we begin to connect our theme this year to Jesus’ miracles, two miracles in particular remind us of the bounty that was provided to Jesus’ followers, and are an excellent connection with Thanksgiving.  These are the miraculous catch of fish (Luke 5:3-10) and the feeding of the 5000 (Matthew 14:16-21).  In the first story, we learn what a true act of faith is.  Peter didn’t really believe that he would catch any fish, but he did what Jesus instructed anyway because he loved Him.  What an incredible result occurred because Peter acted on his faith in Jesus.  In the second story, we learn about Jesus’ incredible power as He turned almost no food into enough to feed a crowd, and His mercy as He knew that His followers were hungry and tired.  Let’s use these two miracles to remind us to act like people of faith during these challenging times, and be merciful to those around us who are struggling.

These two incredible stories about Jesus are a beautiful connection to a week-long food drive we will be starting on Monday.  From October 5th – 9th we will be collecting nonperishable food items for the Poor Clares.  The Poor Clares are a community of cloistered religious sisters who live in Mission, BC.  Their life is dedicated to praying for the Church, and all of God’s people.  They provide hope for the many who ask for their prayers, and it would be wonderful if we could be a source of hope by providing much needed food for them and the many charities that they support.  While the Poor Clares are vegetarians, as they do donate much of the food they receive we will happily accept any nonperishable food items that you are able to contribute to this food drive.

When we have food drives or other fundraisers at the school, we often see which class can bring in the most, and they are rewarded with a prize.  But, if this pandemic has taught us anything it is that we are so much stronger when we work as one community.  So, instead we will be working together towards school goals.  Every item brought in will be counted, so a case of soup will count as 12 items.  Our goals and rewards for the school are as follows:

• 500 items = a double recess
• 750 items = a dress down day
• 1000+ items = a choice activity such as a class movie or a games afternoon

We know that this pandemic has affected each of us differently, and for some the financial toll on your family has been great.  So if you can’t participate by bringing in food, every student will still be able to help as we will also be creating a Spiritual Bouquet for the Poor Clares.  Prayer is the most powerful gift that we can give anyone, and as the Poor Clares have dedicated their life to praying for others, we are sure that they will see this as the most beautiful gift of all.

Parents should have received the proof package from their child’s individual school photo sitting this week.  Please note that photos may only be ordered online, and the proof package contains all of the information required to order your child’s photos directly from Lifetouch.   If you decide that you would like retakes, these will be done on October 15th. 

If your child was absent from school during September and you have not already sent a note to the office, you would have received an email on September 30th from Mrs. Dlugan.  These absentee notes are required by our auditors each year for our attendance audit.  Please note the easiest way to sent a note to the office is through our website, and these notes satisfy our auditors if they come from a parent’s email.  The form can be found by clicking here.

Also, if your child has a medical condition that the school needs information about, a Care Plan would have been sent home to you earlier in the year.  If we have not received that completed Care Plan yet, an additional copy of the Care Plan form was sent home with your child on Friday.  Please complete this Care Plan and return it to the school as soon as possible.

Mabel’s Labels is a new fundraiser for St. James & St. Ann’s School, and it will be ongoing throughout the year.  If you were disappointed because you thought you missed out on ordering those amazing labels for your child’s school items, don’t worry, you can order them anytime!  Just go to their website at https://mabelslabels.ca/en_CA/fundraising/support/ or by clicking here and choose St. James & St. Ann’s School from the list.  Then shop and your labels will ship directly to you, and the shipping is FREE!  St. James & St. Ann’s School earns a commission on every order.  Please support our school as every fundraising dollar we raise helps out.

There are three seats available on the Regional Education Committee (REC) for the 2020-2021 school year.  Two of the seats are for parishioners of Sts. Joachim & Ann Parish and the other seat is for parishioners of St. James Parish.  Serving on the REC fulfills your Parent Participation commitment for the year, and is a wonderful way to be involved in the school.  If you are interested, please speak to your Parish priest as soon as possible.

Every year the students in Grades 4 and 7 write a standardized test called the Foundation Skills Assessment.  For the last several years this assessment has been administered in October/November; however, we just received notification that due to the pandemic they have been postponed to January, 2021.  When we receive more information about the exact time period that they will be administered we will give parents plenty of notice that they are taking place.

We will have our first early dismissal day of the school year on Wednesday, October 7th for our staff meeting.  The students will be dismissed at 12:55pm and we will follow our new pick-up procedures.  Students should still bring a snack and lunch with them to school that day.  The Thunder Club is available for those parents who are unable to pick up at 12:55pm, and if your children are picked up by 2:30pm the charge will be the same as the morning drop-in rate.

Please note that a new shortened list of symptoms, and new instructions have come out from the BCCDC for our daily health checks.  The new form lists the following symptoms:

• Fever
• Chills
• Cough or worsening of chronic cough
• Shortness of breath
• Loss of sense of smell or taste
• Diarrhea
• Nausea and vomiting

The new instructions state that if you have one of those symptoms, excluding fever, you should stay home for 24 hours from when the symptom started.  If the symptom improves, you may return to school when you feel well enough.  If the symptom persists or worsens, seek a health assessment.  The instructions further state that if you have two or more of the symptoms, or you have a fever, you should seek a health assessment.

The new form is included in the updated Return to School Plan that was emailed to parents, and can also be found on our school’s website.