Thunder News Flash – March 15th, 2025

It is with great pleasure that we announce the hiring of Mrs. Onika Bryson as our full time principal for the 2025 – 2026 school year, for a 1-year term. Mrs. Bryson comes with a wealth of knowledge of the Abbotsford Catholic Community, having worked at St. John Brebeuf in a variety of capacities since 2007, most recently as the vice-principal since 2018. We are very excited to welcome Mrs. Bryson to our St. James and St. Ann’s Community, and look forward to getting to know her better. 

As a result of this administrative change at St. James and St. Ann’s, Mr. Bittante will be leaving the part-time principal’s position at St. James and St. Ann’s at the end of June, and will return to his full-time principal’s position at SJB for the 2025 – 2026 school year.  Mr. Bittante would like to thank the staff, parents, students, and the REC at St. James and St. Ann’s for their warm welcome and support throughout the past year.

School’s out for Spring Break, and with two weeks off, it’s a great time for students to enjoy a little reading!  To encourage reading during Spring Break, consider family reading time, book-themed activities, and creating a reading friendly environment at home. 

Here are some ideas for incorporating reading into your Spring Break activities:

• Dedicated Time:

  Schedule specific times for family reading, whether it’s before bed, during a meal, or during a leisurely afternoon.
• Read Aloud:

  Take turns reading aloud, or choose a book to read together as a family.
• Book Discussions:

  After reading, discuss the book with your children, asking questions about the characters, plot, and themes.
• Create a Cozy Reading Nook:

  Make a comfortable space with soft lighting, pillows, and blankets for reading.

Zumbathon – May 9th, 2025  

Our biggest fundraiser of the year, Zumbathon 2025, is coming up on Friday, May 9, 2025!  Information packages, including pledge sheets, were sent home to each family this past week.  This year will be the second year of a 3 year initiative to raise money for new playground equipment for our school.  A large portion of the money we raise each year will go towards new playground equipment for our school. 

We will have some great prizes that can be won.  Students will earn 1 raffle ticket for every $10 that they personally raise in pledges.  The students can use these raffle tickets to put into the prize raffle of their choice.  If you or your business would like to donate a prize, please contact Kristine Olarte at krienxx@yahoo.com.  Thank you for your consideration! 

 Together we can raise $30,000!

Please Remember –  Hot Lunch orders for April will be open on  Sunday, March 16th.  

Our hot lunch ordering system, Munch a Lunch, is OPEN!   We are accepting orders for April will be open on Sunday, March 16th

If you have an existing account please log in and update your account (ie; student information/Grades) prior to ordering.  If you are a new family to our school, please register an account using the link below.

 HOW TO REGISTER or LOG IN:

 Go to: https://munchalunch.com/schools/stjamesandstanns

1. Click the “Register Here” button (as shown below). The system will guide you through
2. After adding your children, click the green “Order Lunch!” button to order
3. Next time, just click the “Login Here” button to access your account.

NOTE: 

Payments will be made by Electronic Funds Direct Debit from your account on the 15^th of each month.  You will see a “pay now” option at the end of the ordering process, please click pay now to submit your order but please do not submit a cheque.  Payments will be deducted, and account balances will be updated on the 15^th.

HotLunch