Dear Parents, I hope you and your family had a nice Valentine's Day and you are enjoying our long weekend. I was fortunate to go to Albuquerque to watch our Robotics teams compete at state. They did great! One team earned a trophy for their innovation project, and we had another team that finished fourth overall! It was exciting to see our students work together under pressure to complete missions with their robot, and I loved seeing their team innovation projects on display. I am so proud of our students for their dedication to their team and for representing our school so well. Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Idzerda for starting our Robotics program and for teaching our students all the skills this program provides for our students. English Expo This coming Saturday our English Expo students will be competing in Albuquerque as well. This is the first time our school has participated in English Expo and our students are excited. They have been working with Ms. Alysia in the computer lab on Thursdays and Fridays this year and I know they will do great. This competition is made up of individual events, including photographic essay, storytelling, poetry recitation, and Shakespearean Monologue. I can't wait to see how our students do. Parent Meeting Rescheduled I rescheduled our parent meeting for Wednesday, February 26 at 6:00 PM in the Family Center. I apologize for having to postpone the meeting last Wednesday. I hate doing that because I know everyone has such busy schedules. My six-week-old grandson got sick, and I needed to help my daughter. He's better now, thank God. I hope you can attend the meeting. I am required to share financial information, such as our budget, with families each year. We will also talk about tuition for next year and a few changes. Four Corners Federated Republican Women (FCFRW) Essay Contest Our students have been invited to participate in the FCFRW 6th Annual Essay Contest. The topic is "What the American Flag Means to Me". It is open to students aged 6 - 14. Students submit a paragraph of 100 words or less along with the attached form . The deadline to submit is March 12, 2025. The winner receives a flag that flew over the U. S. Capitol with a certificate of authenticity presented at the FCFRW June meeting. The winning paragraph will appear in the June FCFRW newsletter. Dream Vacation Raffle Thank you for continuing to sell your raffle tickets. Money is due February 28, 2025, and Father Tim will draw the winning tickets after the 11:00 Am Mass on Sunday, March 9, 2025. Enrollment for 2025 - 2026 Enrollment for next year is open for current students through Gradelink. We will open enrollment for new families on March 3, 2025. If you are not planning on your student(s) returning to SHCS next year, do you mind sharing your reasons with me? Your perspective and thoughts are very important to me. If there is something I can do differently to help your family stay at SHCS, I will do it! ACE Scholarship Mrs. Carla has added ACE Scholarship information to Gradelink, including income thresholds. The application process opened February 3, 2025. We encourage everyone to apply for this very generous scholarship that covers half of your student's tuition. Night to Remember Planning for our Night to Remember has begun! There are some exciting new activities mixed in with the traditional activities that make our annual event so special. Ashley Seyfarth and Jennifer Strickler have been working hard to make this year's event special and I hope that all our parents will attend. Yes, this is our biggest fundraiser, but it is also a time for everyone who loves SHCS to come together and enjoy an evening of good food, good music, dancing, and friendship. This year's Night to Remember is Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the Farmington Civic Center. Please save this date and join us for a spectacular evening. Parents, thank you for trusting SHCS with your students and remember to join us for morning prayer when you can. I hope you have a wonderful week.

Dear Parents, We had a great first week of February at SHCS. Things calmed down a little bit after a very fun, and very busy, Catholic Schools Week. The rest of this year is going to fly by...I hope you are ready! New (to us) School Bus Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Hamlin for going to Thoreau to pick up our school bus. Coach Katie has gotten a donation to have our name put on the bus, so we will have our own Sacred Heart Catholic School bus! Mrs. Kristin in the church office is working on getting the bus insured and Father Tim is paying for the cost of the insurance. We are so fortunate to have a parish that takes such good care of our school. Once the bus is insured, I hope it will get used often. Third grade has it reserved for Friday, February 21, our first trip in our very own school bus! February First Friday Family Lunch Huge thanks to Ms. Jackson and her second grade class for a fabulous First Friday lunch. The decorations were beautiful, and the entertainment was wonderful. Thanks to Ms. Gapinski for helping with the three songs the second graders sang, and thank you to all the parents and grandparents who were able to attend our lunch. Next up is Mrs. Atencio and her first graders on Friday, March 7. School Dance On Friday night, we had our first school dance in a pretty long time. Someone said the last time our school had a dance was in the 1980s. The majority of our students in grades five through eight were here, and they seemed to have a great time. We had almost as many parents and many of them joined in the fun as well. Justin Anaya, one of our parents, was the DJ and he was amazing. Each grade created a playlist and Justin played their songs; the students danced to them all! You should have seen our gym. It was beautiful. We kept Ms. Jackson's decorations from the family lunch earlier that day and the parents added to them. I was hesitant to have a dance, but our students were very well-behaved, very thankful, and had such a great time I will happily do it again...just not too soon. Thank you to everyone who made this dance possible for our students. Thank you to all of the chaperones as well, including Mrs. Rita, Ms. Vickers, Mrs. Head, Mr. and Mrs. Idzerda, and Mrs. Troxell. Without the persistence of our students and the planning of our parents, this night would not have happened. First Reconciliation On Saturday, we had several of our second graders make their first confession. I am so proud of their hard work, along with their teachers Miss Alex and Ms. Jackson, in preparing for this important sacrament. We had some nervous students but, they did great and I know they felt God's peace after they made their confession. Congratulations to each one of them. Choir Also on Saturday, our choir lead the music at 4:30 PM Mass. We are so blessed to have a group of students who show their faith through song, under the leadership of Ms. Gapinski. I am very proud of our choir. Art This week, some of our Art students will be attending a presentation about recycling by Waste Management. Our Art classes are creating a huge piece of art out of the recycled bottle caps that many of you have been donating. They could still use some ink and purple lids if you happen to have any. Mrs. Isbell has created a fantastic Art program here at SHCS; we are so fortunate to have her as a teacher at our school. School Board Meeting On Tuesday, we will have a School Board meeting at 6:00 PM in the school workroom. I apologize for the late notice; it was just scheduled this past Monday. Everyone is welcome to attend the meeting and listen to the topics discussed. Parent Meeting On Wednesday, February 12, please join me in the Family Center at 6:00 PM for a parent meeting. I will provide you with information regarding tuition for next year (no change for MOST grades,) our budget, next year's calendar, any changes that we know of for next year, and other topics. It is my responsibility as principal to share information about our school with teachers, staff, and parents, and I love talking about our school. Will you please attend the meeting if at all possible? Gym Closure This week, on Thursday and Friday, the gym will be totally closed to allow for the storage closet and PE equipment to be thoroughly cleaned and the closet painted to get rid of the mold that has been there for a while. On Thursday, Coach Katie will meet her PE classes outside if the weather is nice, or in the Family Center if not, and we will have sack lunches from FMS for the students who do not bring their own lunch. On Friday, we will have pizza for everyone in the Family Center. The gym closet project should be finished on Monday, February 17 when we are not at school. Everything should be back to normal on Tuesday, February 18. Before and after school care will be in the Family Center. President's Day Our school will be closed on Monday, February 17, 2025, in observance of Presidents Day. Robotics On Saturday, February 15 our four Robotics teams will be competing at State in Albuquerque. These middle schoolers have been spending many hours preparing. I know each team will do a great job and a trip to Houston for Regionals is a real possibility this year. Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Idzerda for sponsoring this fine group of students and for their parents' support; our robotics teams would not be successful without them. English Expo For the first time, SHCS is sending students to Albuquerque for English Expo. We have eight middle school students who will be competing on Saturday, February 22. Thanks to Ms. Alysia and Mr. Dylan for preparing these students for our first English Expo. Science Fair We currently have six middle school girls who have created projects for Science Fair. The San Juan County Science Fair is March 7 and 8, 2025. All six girls have been preparing under the direction of Dr. Grandjean, and we are excited to see which of the girls will compete. National History Day We also have one middle school student, Ben Franchini, who will be competing at National History Day on Friday, April 11, 2025. From the NHD website: Each year, students around the world discover history through National History Day ® (NHD) by creating historical research projects. Through the process, students develop skills in communication, project management, and historical thinking. Best of luck to all our middle school students who will be competing in Robotics, English Expo, Science Fair, and National History Day! Dream Vacation Raffle Thank you for continuing to sell your raffle tickets. Money is due February 28, 2025. Mr. Brandon Mohon has generously provided the school with a huge order of flyers to distribute at churches, individually, or at local businesses. Please let us know if you would like some flyers to share. Enrollment for 2025 - 2026 Enrollment for next year is open on our website! The web address is https://www.shcsfarmington.org/enrollments . If you are not planning on returning to SHCS next year, do you mind sharing your reasons with me? Your perspective and thoughts are very important to me. If there is something I can do differently to help your family stay at SHCS, I will do it! ACE Scholarship Mrs. Carla has added ACE Scholarship information to Gradelink, including income thresholds. The application process opens tomorrow, Monday, February 3, 2025. We encourage everyone to apply for this very generous scholarship that covers half of your student's tuition. Looking ahead... Parent/Teacher Conferences Parent/Teacher conferences are scheduled for the week of March 10, with no school on Friday, March 14. Spring Break is the next week. Some of our teachers may schedule their conferences outside of this week; they will communicate when they having conferences so you can schedule your child's time. Thank you for taking the time to visit with your student's teacher(s.) Walk and Roll Walk and Roll, where students bring their bike or skates and ride or walk around the block all together before school is Thursday, April 10. Field Day Field Day is Thursday, May 15. 8th Grade Graduation 8th grade graduation is Friday, May 16. Last Day of School We changed the calendar so that the last day of school for the students is Thursday, May 22 at 3:15 PM. We will go to Mass at 2:00 PM, then distribute final report cards, and dismiss students for summer break at 3:15 PM. (I cannot believe we are already talking about the last day of school.) I hope you have a wonderful week. Please join us for morning prayer at 8:00 AM in the gym when you can.

Dear Parents, Catholic Schools Week Oh, what a wonderful Catholic Schools Week we had. We had so many activities and special happenings; there was something for everyone! I cannot say thank you enough to Taylor Whirry and Andrea Martinez for organizing the week. They did a fabulous job of keeping the things we traditionally have, but also introducing new activities. Our teachers and staff were well fed, and we got to see lots of creative outfits on our students. Thank you, Taylor and Andrea, for putting so much thought into planning and for truly making this week special. I want to thank Coach Katie as well because she made sure things ran smoothly at school all week. Thank you, Coach Katie, for providing coffee and donuts for our teachers and staff, and for helping with lunch and the celebration on Friday. One of new things we had this week were guest speakers on Celebrating our Vocations Day right after morning prayer on Thursday. Thanks to Robbie Donald and John Keating, two of our dads, who talked about how they use their faith in their careers and shared stories of how they know God is with them on their jobs. We also had the FPD Chief of Police speak about how she uses her faith in her career as a police officer. Chief Tafoya shared her passion for keeping our community safe and how God is also with her on her job as she makes decisions that affect Farmington. What wonderful role models and sources of inspiration all three were for our students. Our students did a great job of listening to our speakers and asked some very good questions. Another new addition to Catholic Schools Week was our school-wide celebration at noon on Friday. It was so wonderful to see all our school together. Big kids played basketball and kickball with the little kids, and everyone seemed to have a great time just being together. Our week ended as we celebrated our teachers and staff, along with our families. Thank you to everyone who made this week so wonderful. Penny War Congratulations to Mrs. Lange's class for winning our Penny War. Not only did they raise the most money, but they also had the most points. Mrs. Lange and her class will be getting a pizza party and an ice cream party soon. Thank you to everyone who sent pennies, silver coins, bills, and checks, making our Penny War a huge success! We received over $5700 which will be used to meet the financial responsibilities of the school. Your generosity and the students' enthusiasm are both greatly appreciated. Special thanks to Mrs. Carla for keeping up with all the donations and informing us of the amount raised each day. Thanks, also, to the wonderful money counters. We could not have a Penny War without the money counters. Night to Remember We had a great Night to Remember meeting last Wednesday night. Thanks to Ashley Seyfarth and Jenny Strickler for planning and running the meeting, and also co-chairing our event. This year, Night to Remember is Saturday, April 26 at the Civic Center. Ashley and Jenny are keeping the traditional things that make our event so special and adding a few exciting things as well. I will let you know when our next meeting is scheduled; everyone is welcome. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Thank you to everyone who was able to go to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory on Saturday. Dr. Grandjean just texted me and told me we made $805 on the fundraiser yesterday. WOW!!! That is WAY more than any of the other ones we have done this year. Thank you, Dr. Grandjean, for organizing this fundraiser with Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and again, thank you to everyone who was able to buy chocolate yesterday. Enrollment for 2025 - 2026 Enrollment for next year is open on our website! The web address is https://www.shcsfarmington.org/enrollments . Right now, it does not seem to be pre-populating student and family information; Mrs. Carla will get that fixed on Monday. Also, disregard the red statement of closed classes. Mrs. Carla will get that fixed as well. ACE Scholarship Mrs. Carla has added ACE Scholarship information to Gradelink, including income thresholds. The application process opens tomorrow, Monday, February 3, 2025. We encourage everyone who meets the income guidelines to apply for this very generous scholarships that covers half of your student's tuition. We are getting a school bus! The mission school in Thoreau was gifted new buses and they are giving us a 2022 thirty-two passenger bus with only 36,000 miles on it! This gift can open all kinds of opportunities for our school. The bus will be delivered Tuesday. Progress Reports Last week was so busy that we forgot about progress reports! We will send them home this week on Wednesday. February Birthdays Also on Wednesday, we will celebrate February birthdays at 8:00 AM in the gym during morning prayer. Confessions on Thursday Father Tim and Father Jeff will hear confessions this Thursday after morning prayer. First Friday Family Lunch This Friday, February 7, is our February First Friday Family Lunch. This month's lunch is hosted by the second grade. Ms. Jackson's students have made hearts and other decorations. I am certain you will be able to feel the love the minute you walk into our gym. Students in Preschool through first grade eat at 11 AM. Students in grades two through four eat at 11:30 AM, and our students in grades five through eight eat at noon. The lower doors will be open so you can enter there. Middle School Valentine's Dance Our students in grades five through eight will have a dance this Friday night from 6:00 to 9:00 PM in our school gym. We need chaperones...lots and lots of chaperones. Every parent is welcome. We also need desserts like cookies and cupcakes. The kiddos in those four grades are so excited. First Reconciliation On Saturday, February 8, 2025, at 10:00 AM, we have several second graders who will be making their First Reconciliation in the church. Congratulations to each of them and thanks to Miss Alex Burnham for preparing them for this sacrament. Parent Meeting On Wednesday, February 12, please join me in the Family Center at 6:00 PM for a parent meeting. I will provide you with information regarding tuition next year (the same for MOST grades,) our budget, and any changes that we know of for next year. Please join us if you can. February 13 and 14 During the second week of February, we will be shutting down the gym so the storage closet can be thoroughly cleaned and painted, and all the equipment sanitized. On Thursday, February 13, we will have sack lunches and eat in classrooms. On Friday, February 14, we will have pizza for everyone and eat in the Family Center. We will have PE outside if the weather permits, or in the Family Center if not, on Thursday. Mrs. Rita will have before and after school in the Family Center as well on those two days. Robotics On Saturday, February 15 our four Robotics teams will be competing at State in Albuquerque. These middle schoolers have been spending many hours preparing. I know each team will do a great job and a trip to Houston for Regionals is a real possibility this year. Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Idzerda for sponsoring this fine group of students and for their parents' support; our robotics teams would not be successful without them. Presidents Day Our school will be closed on Monday, February 17, 2025, in observance of Presidents Day. English Expo For the first time, SHCS is sending students to Albuquerque for English Expo. We have eight middle school students who will be competing on Saturday, February 22. Thanks to Ms. Alysia and Mr. Dylan for preparing these students for our first English Expo. Science Fair We currently have six middle school girls who have created projects for Science Fair. The San Juan County Science air is March 7 and 8, 2025. All six girls have been preparing under the direction of Dr. Grandjean, and we are excited to see which of the girls will compete. From Mrs. Isbell Thank you so much for the plastic lids for art class. We are rich in lids so we will not need anymore, except for these colors: purple, pink, and orange. Thank you!! Dream Vacation Raffle Thank you for continuing to sell your raffle tickets. Money is due February 28, 2025. Whew! That's a lot for our little school. Thank you for your continued and generous support of Sacred Heart Catholic School. Every single thing you do for us is greatly appreciated. As a parish school, we are blessed to have Father Tim as our leader. As a Catholic school, we are blessed to have teachers and staff who love our Catholic faith and truly love our students, and wonderful families who trust us with their students. We are very, very blessed. I hope you have a great week.

Dear Parents, Big thanks to Mr. Clawson for dressing as a dinosaur at morning prayer on Wednesday to continue our celebration of our huge walkathon success. Next up is Mr. Burnham , dressed like a hot dog, getting squirted with ketchup and mustard. We will have a Night to Remember meeting this Wednesday at 6:00 PM in the school library. Everyone is invited. Your ideas are welcome. I hope you can join us. It's Catholic Schools Week ! Thank you to everyone who was able to bring their student to Mass at Sacred Heart this weekend. It was wonderful to see our students bringing up the gifts. If you were not able to send your family's packet , we would love to have them Monday. We will be making sure each student has a note from their parent because we don't want any sad kiddos on Tuesday. Our Penny War starts Monday. Students will be able to put money in their class' jug, or bomb other classes, each morning after prayer. Prizes will be awarded to the class that raises the most money, and the class that earns the most points. January 27, 2025 - MONDAY: Free Dress Day for students - Students do not have to wear their school uniform. Students can wear athletic pants, shorts, jeans without holes,....anything that is appropriate for a Catholic school setting. January 28,2025 - TUESDAY: PJs Day - Students can wear their pajamas to school. January 29, 2025 - WEDNESDAY: Red, White, and Blue Day – Students wear red, white, and blue clothes. January 30, 2025 - THURSDAY: Students can dress as their future career choice . January 31, 2025 - FRIDAY: Students can dress in neon . On Wednesday, our choir and guests will be singing at Namaste House at 3:45. Everyone is welcome to this beautiful event. On Thursday, we will have special guests talking to our students about how they use their faith in their career. This will take place in the gym right after morning prayer. On Friday, FMS is providing sack lunches for students who do not bring their lunch and all students will eat in their classroom. This will give parents time to decorate the gym for our family celebration at noon . All families are welcome to join us. We have early release at 1:00 on Friday. We will have before school care but NOT after school care. Special thanks to Taylor Whirry and Andrea Martinez for planning and organizing all of the events for Catholic Schools Week. On Saturday, February 1, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory will be donating 20% of their revenue to our school when you show the flyer from our school and make a purchase. The flyer is attached. They will take it printed or on your phone. Thank you for continuing to sell your raffle tickets . Your efforts and generosity are greatly appreciated. Remember, you are always welcome at Sacred Heart Catholic School . We love when parents are able to come to morning prayer or hang out with us at lunch. Thank you for trusting us with your children. I hope you have a great Catholic Schools Week.

Dear Parents, I think we can finally say that Christmas is behind us now. We had our wonderful Christmas program on Monday. Special thanks to Ms. Gapinski for planning and directing our Christmas program and thank you to all the parents who brought their children to our Christmas program. There were several parties this week and gifts were exchanged. Thanks to our teachers and families for making this week special for our students. Huge thanks to Miss Elmer and Mrs. Hamlin for a fabulous first Friday family lunch. The gym looked beautiful, and the third graders did a fabulous job of singing. Next up is second grade on Friday, February 7. Our Dream Vacation raffle tickets are ready and will be sent home Monday. Look for an envelope in your student's backpack. Each family is responsible for selling 12 tickets, which is $300.00. This year the grand prize is a 7-day Alaskan cruise for two, including airfare to Seattle and all transfers between the airport and hotel. This prize is valued at $6800. Other prizes include: 2nd place - Sandia Casino Getaway for 2 worth $1100 which includes a 2 night stay, gas, money for Casino play, golf for 2, and dinner for 2. 3rd prize - Great Wolf Lodge for 5 in Phoenix worth $1100 which includes a 3 night stay, gas, and fun money. 4th prize - One night stay for 2 at Sky Ute Casino worth $650 which includes money for Casino play and dinner for 2. 5th prize - An outdoor theater package worth $500 which includes an outdoor projector, screen, and four chairs. Tickets are only $25 each for a chance to win one of these prizes. The drawing will be held February 28, 2025. We will be selling tickets at all Masses beginning January 25. Sign up with Mrs. Carla if you are able to sell tickets at Sacred Heart Masses. We don't have a lot on the calendar for the next two weeks, then it is Catholic Schools Week (January 25 - January 31) with LOTS of events. Taylor Whirry and Andrea Martinez have created a full week of activities, including our Penny Wars. We will send home the schedule and other items Thursday of this week. Remember to join us for morning prayer when you are able; you are always welcome at our school.

Dear Parents, Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful loooong Christmas break, and everyone in your family is healthy. I sure did hate for our students to miss out on one of the most fun weeks of the year, but I know our teachers have good things planned for the week. Christmas Program Monday is the Epiphany, so our Christmas program is still in the season. Will you please have your student in the church by 5:45 PM dressed in nice church clothes or a Mass uniform? Our program will start at 6:00 PM and we will have a cookie reception afterwards in the Family Center. IA Club will not meet this Monday because of our Christmas program. Ms. Gapinski and our students have worked hard to prepare for this program. Thank you for taking the time to bring your kiddo to the church Monday evening. Report Cards To give our teachers time to finish any first semester assignments and update grades, we will wait until Friday to send home report cards. Thank you for understanding. First Friday Family Lunch This Friday, January 10, is our first Friday family lunch, hosted by the third grade. Please bring your lunch and enter through the lower doors. I am expecting lots of singing from this musical bunch of students, so I know you are in for a treat. Preschool through 1st grade eat at 11:00 AM; 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grades eat at 11:30 AM; and 5th through 8th grades eat at noon. Thank you for spending your lunch time with us when possible; we love having our families at school. Kleenex and Clorox Wipes When we increased the registration fee last year, we omitted Kleenex, Clorox wipes, paper towel, and reams of paper from the school supply list. I believe my words were, “We have enough Clorox wipes to clean San Juan County.” I underestimated the need for Kleenex, especially with so many students sick. And I definitely underestimated how many Clorox wipes our teachers use doing their best to make sure their classrooms are as germ-free as possible. I am not asking you to purchase Kleenex or Clorox wipes because I said I wouldn’t this year but…if you happen to have any of those lying around that you want to send to school, we would happily take them. Thank you for everything you do to support our school. Dream Vacation Raffle We will begin ticket sales for our Dream Vacation raffle very soon. The grand prize is an Alaskan cruise with four other fabulous prizes. I will send more information in a separate email, but I wanted to let you know this is coming. Each family is responsible for selling $300 worth of raffle tickets. This is fundraiser #3 for the year with only Night to Remember remaining. Thank you for participating in our fundraisers so we can keep our tuition as low as possible and still provide all of the programs you would expect from a school as exceptional as ours. Here is what we have on the calendar for January so far: January 6 - 10, 2025 Monday, January 6 - Return from Christmas Break; Christmas program practice at 2:30 in the church; Rescheduled Christmas program at 6:00 in the church with a cookie reception following in the Family Center Tuesday, January 7 - Ukulele Jam Wednesday, January 8 - December and January Birthdays celebrated at Morning Prayer, 5th attend Adoration; Choir practice Thursday, January 9 - Confessions Friday, January 10 - First Friday Family Lunch hosted by 3rd grade; Semester 1 Report Cards sent home January 13 - 17, 2025 - Start Dream Vacation Raffle Ticket Sales Monday, January 13 - IA Club Tuesday, January 14 - Ukulele Jam Wednesday, January 15 - Choir practice Thursday, January 16 - Friday, January 17 - January 20 - 24, 2025 Monday, January 20 - Holiday - Martin Luther King Day - no school Tuesday, January 21 - Ukulele Jam Wednesday, January 22 - Choir practice Thursday, January 23 - Friday, January 24 - Saturday, January 25 - SHCS Choir at 4:30 PM Mass January 27 - 31, 2025 - Catholic Schools Week Monday, January 27 - IA Club Tuesday, January 28 - Ukulele Jam Wednesday, January 29 - Progress Reports sent home; Choir practice Thursday, January 30 - Friday, January 31 - Early Release at 1:00 PM I can't wait to see everyone Monday!

Dear Parents, One more week until Christmas Break! I know your student is excited. This week will go by fast. Thank you to everyone who has donated an ornament to our beautiful 12-foot tree that was gifted to us by Father Tim and Sacred Heart Parish. All ornaments will be put back on the tree each year to remember our families and, when this tree is full, I will ask Father Tim for another one! If you want to donate an ornament from your family, just write your family name on the back and 2024. You can put it on the tree or give it to us in the office. Huge thanks to Tina Trujillo and her family, Michaela Martinez and her family, and Quality Appliance for our wonderful Christmas party last night at the Elks Club. Our students had so much fun being together, and so did the parents. The most often heard comment was that we should do this more often! The decorations were beautiful; the food was delicious; the location was perfect, but the best part of the evening was being around people who love SHCS. It is truly the people who make our school such a magical place. Our Santa Shop is still open for donations and for shopping. Thank you to everyone who has donated items, and to everyone who has shopped at the store. The 8th graders, under the supervision of Ms. Alysia, have been running the Santa Shop and will be using the money they raise for their Legacy Project. Yesterday, we had four teams compete at the Robotics competition at Heights Middles School. 11 teams competed in all and six advanced to state. Guess what! All four of our teams advanced, meaning Sacred Heart Catholic School teams make up four of the six teams headed to state in February. Two of our teams won special awards. The Robot Design Award went to Snake Pit and the Innovation Project Award was won by Junkyard Dogs. There is no way I can do justice to our Robotics teams' accomplishments in this little paragraph. I will send all of the information tomorrow. Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Idzerda for making Robotic possible at SHCS. Our teachers in Kindergarten through 8th grade will continue the safety lessons required by the diocese. Lesson 3 - Boundaries: You Have Rights! PRINCIPLE Children must understand they have a right to be safe, and they are allowed to create boundaries to protect themselves in situations where they feel uncomfortable, or where they could be harmed. OBJECTIVES Through this lesson, the adult lesson leader reinforces the parent’s message about boundaries. After Lesson 3, children should be better able to: Identify various types of boundaries Begin to set their own boundaries and communicate them to others Honor appropriate boundaries in different types of relationships Special thanks to Ms. Gapinski for giving our choir the opportunity to serve our community through song. They gave a beautiful presentation at the Republican Women's Luncheon on Thursday. On Monday, we have our school Christmas program . Ms. Gapinski and our students have been working hard to create a beautiful program for everyone. It is traditional for families to bring a canned good or other non-perishable item to the program and place it in the basket in the foyer of the church. Will you please have your student at school by 5:45 PM? Students can wear their Mass uniform or "Sunday Best" to the Christmas Program. Thank you for making it possible for your student to be here. We have added a cookie reception to the evening in the Family Center, so please join us! This week IA Club and Ukulele Jam will not meet. On Wednesday during all three lunches, Coach Katie will be in the dunk tank to celebrate reaching $25,000 in our Walkathon. Everyone is welcome. On Thursday, students can wear pajamas to school. Friday we have Mass and students can wear Christmas outfits again. Father Tim said everyone looked so cute. Father Jeff will be here Friday for Mass so he will get to see how cute our students are, too. We have Early Release next Friday at 1:00 PM . We do have before-school care, but we do NOT have after-school care. Texas Roadhouse is sharing 10% of the revenue earned from SHCS guests on Monday, December 23 from 4 - 9 PM. I will send the flyer. before then. In January we will change from recognizing birthdays and going to confession from the end of the month to the beginning of the month.  I hope you have a wonderful week. Join us for morning prayer and Mass when possible!

Dear Parents, Two more weeks until Christmas Break! I hope everyone in your family is having a wonderful December. Tomorrow, Monday, December 9 is a Holy Day of Obligation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary . We will attend Mass at 8:15 AM. All students should wear their Mass uniform. Please join us if you can. Thank you for attending our First Friday Lunch if you were able to be here on Friday. The fourth graders did a fabulous job hosting. Their presentation of The 12 Days of Christmas was beautiful and their handmade props were excellent. Our gym looked very festive with trees as centerpieces and all the students enjoyed a biscochito, made from scratch by Mrs. Lange. Nice job, 4th Grade! Next up is 3rd grade on Friday, January 10, 2025. I know they are already planning. Our SHCS choir did a lovely job at Festival of Trees on Tuesday and our 3rd graders did a beautiful job at Mass on Friday. Our choir also sang this weekend at Riverglo on Friday night and at 4:30 Mass on Saturday. We are fortunate to have a choir that represents our school in the community so well. I hope you had an opportunity to go to Festival of Trees and see our beautiful tree that our school donated. Thanks to Miss Elmer, her sister Mechelle, and the third graders for creating our angel tree titled " Angels Among Us ." Amanda Harris was the lucky winner of our tree. Father Tim and Sacred Heart Parish gifted our school with a beautiful 12 foot lighted Christmas tree. It is on the landing of the stairwell. I thought it would be special if we decorated the tree with ornaments from our families. THIS IS TOTALLY OPTIONAL! I know we ask a lot of our parents. If you would like to send an ornament to school from your family to hang on our tree, that would be wonderful. I promise, for as long as I get to be here, we will hang the ornaments we receive on the tree every year in honor of our families. The ornament can be homemade, purchased, a family picture...anything you want! Just be sure to write your family name on it and the year. We will hang it every year, and add to it every year. Our school Christmas tree will be a collection of ornaments representing all the families who make our school such a wonderful place and will be enjoyed for years to come. Safety Lessons Our teachers are presenting lessons on safety, which are required by the diocese each year, to students in Kindergarten through 8th grade. We started this series of lessons with Ms. Alysia, who taught online safety during her computer classes the week before Thanksgiving, Last week's lesson was on Physical Boundaries , and this week's lesson is Safe Adults, Safe Touches and Special Safe Adults. The teachers are using age-appropriate materials published by VIRTUS. Lessons were emailed to parents. Please let me know if you do not want your child to participate. I will send home the lessons through email each week. These lessons will go through Friday, January 17, 2025. Robotics Competition We have four robotics teams representing Sacred Heart Catholic School this Saturday at Heights Middle School. These twelve students have been preparing for this competition all year, under the leadership of Mr. and Mrs. Idzerda. Last year was our first year to have a Robotics program, and our teams made it to state; their goal this year is Nationals! Celebrating our Walkathon Success On Wednesday, December 18, Coach Katie will be in a dunk tank during all three lunches to continue our celebrations of our huge Walkathon success. You are welcome to join us for this fun event. As a Catholic School , we are called to be in communion with other human persons, forming relationships that respect the dignity of others, working for the good of others and with generous hearts assisting people whenever we can. Thank you for all the good works you do for our school. I hope you have a nice week.

Dear Parents, I hope you had a wonderful break. Three more weeks and we do it again! Thank you for making our Works of Mercy a success. I got to go to Namaste House with 3rd grade on Friday to hear them sing and watch them deliver their gifts to the residents. This was a special activity that was appreciated by everyone involved. The owner of Namaste House was very complementary of our students and thankful for what they did for the residents. I was also able to go with Ms. Jackson to the packing headquarters for Bags of Love where she delivered the twelve duffle bags her second grade families donated to the organization. The directors were very thankful for the bags with toiletry items, a stuffed animal, and homemade blanket. Bags of Love provides bags filled with items to students who are displaced from their homes by law enforcement or CYFD. We received this message from BirthRight: Birthright would like to thank Preschool, Pre-K, 4th, and 5th grade students and their teachers along with their generous parents for the tremendous amount of baby items that were collected during their "Works of Mercy" drive. Thank you for choosing Birthright and allowing us to shower mothers and babies with your donations. May God Bless you, Birthright Volunteers Kindergarten collected items for Childhaven. I am certain they received many much-needed items from Ms. Beasley's and Mrs. Benally's classes and can't wait to hear how delivery went last Friday. Mrs. Atencio and her first grade students will be delivering their donated items to Navajo Ministries, and the middle school will be delivering the food they collected in the next few days. Thank you for being so generous to these organizations. Many people in our community will benefit from your efforts. Our school is so proud. Thank you for eating at Olive Garden a couple Sundays ago. We received almost $200 from SHCS sales. On Monday, December 23, Texas Roadhouse will donate 10% of their sales for people who bring in our flyer. We will send it out soon. As a Catholic school , we are blessed to have educational leaders in a Catholic setting who are called to aid parents in the education of their children so that their children can grow in all aspects of life. Thank you for trusting Sacred Heart Catholic School with your children. This Week; December 2 - 6 Miss Elmer and her sister are working on a tree to donate to Festival of Trees from our school and will get it delivered on Monday. On Tuesday, our Choir will perform at Festival of Trees from 5:30 to 6:15 PM. On Wednesday, our 4th graders will attend Adoration in the church and Progress Reports will be sent home. On Thursday, several of our classes will attend Teddy Bear Storytime at Festival of Trees. On Friday, we will have our First Friday Family Lunch, hosted by Mrs. Lange and her 4th grade students. Also on Friday, our SHCS Choir will perform at Riverglo from 7:00 - 7:45 PM. On Saturday, Miss Gapinski will lead our SHCS Choir at 4:30 PM Mass. December (nothing new added) Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Monday, December 9, 2024, has been designated as a Holy Day of Obligation in observance of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. December 8 falls on a Sunday this year so the obligation to attend Mass is transferred to Monday, December 9. Students are to wear their Mass uniform. We will follow our regular Monday schedule, but attend Mass instead of morning prayer, and miss any specials that start before 9:15 AM. On Friday, December 13 we will attend Mass as usual. This will be a semi-free dress day. Students do not have to wear a uniform as long as they wear a Christmas-themed outfit . School Christmas Party Our school Christmas party is Saturday, December 14 at the Elks Club. This event is totally free for teachers, staff, and families, except the cash bar. Please let Mrs Carla know if you and your family will be attending. School Christmas Program Our school Christmas program is Monday, December 16 at 6:00 PM in the church. December Birthdays December birthdays will be celebrated at morning prayer on Wednesday, December 18. December Confessions Confessions will be heard by Father Tim and Father Jeff on Thursday, December 19. Christmas Break Begins December 20 We will have early release at 1:00 PM on Friday, December 20 to begin Christmas Break. We will have before school care, but not after school care. Quarter 2 Quarter 2 ends Friday, December 20. Report Cards will be sent home Wednesday, January 8, 2025. Will you please have your grades concluded by 3:30 PM on Tuesday, January 7, 2025? Looking Ahead to January 2025 January 6 - Return from Christmas Break January 8 - January Birthdays at Morning Prayer, 5th attend Adoration; Semester 1 Report Cards sent home January 9 - Confessions January 10 - First Friday Family Lunch hosted by 3rd grade Remember, you are always welcome to join us for Morning Prayer at 8:00 AM in the gym. On Thursday mornings at 8:00 AM we would love for you to join us in the church to hear Mr. Burnham teach about parts of Mass, and for Mass on Friday mornings at 8:15 AM. I hope you have a wonderful week.