Thunder News Flash – June 16, 2018

I have long listened to the podcast Word on Fire by Bishop Barron. It is a great podcast for those looking to enrich their understanding of our faith. One of his more recent podcasts was about the relevance and importance of the Bible. As I was listening to the podcast my mind went back to a memory in my university days. I would like to share that memory with you.

As part of a course on world religions at SFU, we were required to interview a person of faith outside of our religious background. Not really knowing who to interview, I eventually sought out a local Buddhist monk living in Vancouver. During my university days, a lot of doubt crept into my faith and I often found myself confused and even angered by some of the incongruities I saw around me. So in my interview, I was really asking serious questions about Buddhism and even thought about abandoning my own faith. Perhaps the monk sensed this in me as he then turned the questions on to me asking about my faith journey. I opened up and I talked about a lot of the doubt that I was experiencing. At this moment, he explained to me that all the truth I was searching for could be found in the Holy Scriptures of my own faith. He encouraged me to return to my faith and to read the Bible more deeply. He assured me that in studying my own faith more I would grow in my faith and I would find the Truth I was searching for. Needless to say, I was quite shocked that a Buddhist monk was encouraging me to recommit myself to my own Catholic faith. It was such a shock that I decided to listen. I am glad I did. 

As Bishop Barron reminds us, the Bible is absolutely relevant and contains powerful truths when we read it with the correct lens on. I think everything we need to know about how to Care for Everyone (including ourselves) in Our Common Home can be found within Scripture. 

Teaching Assignments 2018-2019

We are pleased to welcome Mrs. Val Foster to our teaching staff for the 2018-2019 school year, and are happy to announce the following teaching assignments:

• Kindergarten – Mrs. Brenda Di Palma
• Grade 1 – Mrs. Christy White (Monday); Mrs. Tara Gaudet (Tuesday – Friday)
• Grade 2 – Mrs. Laura Hunger
• Grade 3 – Mrs. Marie Doyle
• Grade 4 – Mrs. Jane Filiatrault
• Grade 5 – Mrs. Rita Wakely (Monday – Wednesday); Mrs. Val Foster (Thursday – Friday)
• Grade 6 – Mrs. Zuzana Lavrikova
• Grade 7 – Mrs. Christy Dos Santos
• French /Makerspace– Mrs. Trish Stobbe (Tuesday – Thursday)
• P.E. – Mrs. Val Foster (Monday – Wednesday)
• Learning Resource – Miss Sheena Lewis
• Learning Resource – Mrs. Christy White (Tuesday – Wednesday)
• Principal – Mrs. Terri Sask

This upcoming week is Spirit Week! The theme for each day is outlined below:

• Monday: PJ Day
• Tuesday: Bright Summer Colours Day
• Wednesday: World Cup or National Colours Day
• Thursday: Superhero, Villain, or Superhero Alter Ego Day
• Friday: Relax Cause it’s Almost Summer Day – just a dress down day 

Guidelines for Spirit Week:
1. Modesty must be maintained.
2. Nothing inappropriate – the message on their clothing cannot be offensive (for Villain day if students were to wear a Darth Vader shirt or Kylo Ren that is fine but no masks or weapons or anything grotesque)
3. Students are encouraged to participate in Spirit Week and the point of the week is to build unity and to have some fun!

The forecast for this coming week is that the temperature is suppose to climb into the 30s! Please put sunscreen on your children, send them to school with hats and sunglasses, and most importantly please ensure they have water bottles so that they can stay hydrated! Thank you.

This year our Walkathon raised $24,125!!! I want to thank all those who donated their time, talent, and treasure to making the Walkathon a success. This is an excellent start to the St. James & St. Ann’s Legacy Fund.

Thank you very much for all of the donations of school supplies and craft items that have been brought into the school for our Makerspace.  We now have all of these supplies, but would still very much appreciate any donations of tools that you are able to provide us with.

As we begin to change our Library into this new space we are also in need of some help with light renovations.  This will include things like taking shelving off the walls, patching holes and doing some painting; moving cabinets and tables; assembling new cabinets and securing them to the walls, etc.  If you are able to help on June 18th, 19th or 20th from 4:00pm – 8:00pm, please call the school at 604-852-1788 to let us know that you are available.  Please also bring some tools with you to help with the work – drill and screwdriver bits, screwdriver sets, etc.  Together we will be able to transform the Library into an amazing space for creativity and design!

As we approach the end of the school year we kindly ask that parents clear up any outstanding amounts owed to the school. Our fiscal year closes on June 30th so we are asking for your cooperation in this matter. For those parents who use Thunder Club we ask that you settle your account on the last day you use the club. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. 

As we begin to move things around in the Library we need to make space by removing some of our non-fiction books.  Many of the titles will be relocated to the classrooms, however the remaining books will be on sale, by donation, in the hallway outside the Library from June 18th – 20th after school.  We hope both students and parents will take advantage of this book sale – all money collected will go towards our Makerspace.