PRINCIPAL’S LETTER Dear STM Catholic Parents and Students, Welcome back! What a blessing it is to begin the 2013/2014 school year! The administration, faculty, and staff are excited to return and be of service to you and your children. Thank you for your investment in and continued support of Catholic education. It is going to be an awesome year! A huge thank you to Home & School for organizing and executing last Tuesday’s New Family Ice Cream Social and Friday’s Back-to-School Picnic. The weather was perfect, the attendance for both events was great, and everyone enjoyed themselves. I think it is safe to say that the dunk tank was a big success! Thanks to Mr. Dahn, Mr. Goerke, Mr. Milburn, Mrs. Burkholder and Mr. Johnson for being such good sports! Thank you Lisa Zinno, Katy Coleman, Kama Sarkissian, Bridget Keating, Tami Smith, our maintenance crew, and all the parent volunteers that made these events possible. I hope you found your way to our STM Catholic Spirit Stand at the picnic. If not, you will have an opportunity to do so at both Back-to-School Nights! Thank you Donna Martinez and Michelle Pierce for taking this on and promoting STM Catholic! All parents and students are asked to carefully read the Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Pledge that you will find in your Parent/Student Handbook this year. This policy is new to STM Catholic and a signed copy must be on file for each student to participate in our technology program. Please note, students are responsible for providing their own ear buds or headphones to use with the mobile iPad labs. These devices will be kept in the classroom. Make sure you order your August/September lunches. Details will arrive via an IC Blast. Although we had a few parents with teary eyes at this morning’s Yahoo/Boo Hoo party, our kindergarteners are off to a great start. Parents, rest assured your children are in excellent hands. If you know of any other families who are looking for a great school, we still have seats available in kindergarten and several other grade levels. Please have them give us a call. Again, welcome back and thank you for being part of our STM Catholic community! Peace and blessings, Jan Altevogt, Principal Question of the Week Is it important to do the right thing even if others are angry as a result? Why or why not? This week’s Gospel reading is Luke 12:49-53 “…’I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!...” FR. DOUG SAYS, “HAVE A GREAT YEAR, EVERYONE!” Woodlawn School, my K-8 school back in Illinois, closed twenty years ago. What a wonderful school it was! Woodlawn School was where I was a starter on the basketball team – and developed a healthy self-image. It was where I struggled to learn German, which was a required course for all sixth, seventh and eighth graders. It was in the Woodlawn School gym, where, in absolute terror, I delivered the valedictorian speech at our eighth grade graduation ceremony. With great fondness, I still remember school dances, fieldtrips, track meets, Christmas carols – and even square dancing during gym class! Five years ago, we had a reunion in the old school gym. It was a fantastic night! Members of our eighth grade basketball team were there. My first girlfriend was there. And Mrs. Schuldt, my seventh grade religion teacher, was there – a Catholic, who reminded me that my essay on the “Jesus People” represented the very beginning of my spiritual journey. I share all of this to encourage all our students, parents and teachers to “hang loose” and enjoy all the wonders of this new school year. Sure, there will be a lot of hard work, but during this year you will develop friendships that will last a lifetime. You will discover talents you never knew you possessed. You will have opportunities to go deeper in your relationship with Christ and the Church. And if you encounter special challenges (as all of us do from time to time), you will find that God’s grace will always help you make it through. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if I can be of any help in any way. I’ll be in and out of the school nearly every day, visiting classrooms, chatting with students and assisting our teachers. But I’m also available at other times, as well. I’m just a call or e-mail ([email protected]) away. Have a great year, everyone! UPCOMING EVENTS Aug 19 Mon Aug 19 Mon Aug 19 Mon Aug 19 Mon Aug 19 Mon Aug 19-23 M-F Aug 20 Tue Aug 23 Fri Aug 23 Fri Aug 24 Sat Aug 26 Mon Aug 27-29 T-Thu Aug 28 Wed Aug 28 Wed Aug 30 Fri Aug 30 Fri Aug 30 Fri Sep 1 Sun Sep 2 Mon August/December Milk Orders Due in Main Office, 8:00 am First Day of School Kindergarten Orientation, 8:00 am, Individual Kindergarten Classrooms Yahoo/Boo Hoo Party for Kindergarten Parents, 9:00 am, Small Cafeteria 11:30 am DISMISSAL for all grades (LION’S DEN CLOSED) No Hot Lunch Served—Milk Free August/September Hot Lunch Ordering Closes Online Parents in Prayer, 8:00 am, Small Cafeteria, Welcome, Rosary First School Mass, 9:00 am, Teachers/Staff (Dress Uniform) 6th Annual STM Parish Jericho Jog Hot Lunch Begins Grade 6 Outdoor Ed at High Peak Camp, Estes Park Q&A with Father A, 10:23 am, Mrs. Swindle 8S Grades K-4 Back-to-School Night, 6:00 pm Parents in Prayer, 8:00 am, Small Cafeteria, Teachers, Administrators, and Volunteers Mass of the Holy Spirit, 9:00 am, Dineen (8D) (Dress Uniform) 11:30 DISMISSAL—Staff Development (LION’S DEN OPEN) October Hot Lunch Ordering Open Online NO SCHOOL—LABOR DAY—(LION’S DEN CLOSED) School Office: 303.770.0441 Middle School Office: 303.221.9195 FAX (Main Office): 303.267.1899 FAX (Middle School) 303.221.9153 Attendance: 303.221.9237 MS Homework: 303.220.3396 Jan Altevogt, Principal ext. 162 AnnaMarie Murillo, Elem AP ext. 163 Barb Markulik, MS AP ext. 136 FROM THE HOME AND SCHOOL COMMITTEE The Home and School Committee is extremely grateful to all of the amazing volunteers who dedicated their time and talent to make the annual Back-to-School Mass and Picnic and New Family Ice Cream Social a HUGE success! This event would not be possible without you! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! MEDICATIONS The medication forms that you and your doctor must fill out for ANY medication kept at school can be found on the website under Forms and Documents. This includes any over-the-counter medication. We must have these on file. You must provide the medication to the clinic in order to have it administered to your child(ren). Please let us know if you have any questions. See the Parent/Student Handbook for the complete policy we must follow. INDIVIDUAL PICTURE DAY Individual picture day is Tuesday, September 3. The date is incorrect on the order forms and flyers; however we will still use them. Order Forms will be sent home Wednesday, August 28. Additional forms are available outside the main office. Picture Day is a "Dress-Up Day". If your child chooses not to dress up, he/she should be in uniform. See the Dress Code which was in the August mailing. Faculty Phone: Direct Dial Numbers are Listed In The Family/Student Directory Monday Notes: [email protected] (Deadline for submission is Wed. @ 3:00 pm) Lion’s Den: Sarah Teall 303.221.9185 Cell: 720.984.7769 Website: www.stmcatholic.org Email: [email protected] PARENT/FAMILY HANDBOOK The Parent/Family Handbook will be coming home with your youngest/only student soon. Please read it and return the completed, signed forms found inside the cover by the September 6 deadline. VOLUNTEER BOOKLET A Volunteer Booklet will be coming home with your youngest/only child soon. Please take the time to go through it as it has many opportunities to volunteer available to you. Please return the filled-out half-sheet to the main office. These will be given to the chairperson who will contact you. PLAY LIKE A CHAMPION TODAY – MANDATORY COACHES AND PARENTS WORKSHOPS Coaches Workshops All coaches must attend a Play Like A Champion Today training session prior to coaching a team in the Catholic Schools Athletic League (CSAL). Date September 7 September 7 September 9 Time 9:00 am – 12:00 pm 2:00 – 5:00 pm 5:00 – 8:00 pm Location JP II Center Shrine of St. Anne JP II Center Parents Workshops All parents with students in Grade 5, or any new families in grades 6-8, must attend a Play Like A Champion Today training session prior to their child(ren) playing on any sports teams in the Catholic Schools Athletic League. Parents of students that do not participate in the sports ministry, but do participate in other cocurricular activities are also expected to attend a Play Like A Champion Today training session. Date August 28 August 28 September 10 September 10 September 12 September 12 September 19 September 19 Time 5:30 – 6:30 pm 7:00 – 8:00 pm 5:30 – 6:30 pm 7:00 – 8:00 pm 5:30 – 6:30 pm 7:00 – 8:00 pm 5:30 – 6:30 pm 7:00 – 8:00 pm Location Shrine of St. Anne Shrine of St. Anne JP II Center JP II Center Shrine of St. Anne Shrine of St. Anne JP II Center JP II Center VOLUNTARY STUDENT INSURANCE ENROLLMENT FORMS Information and enrollment forms for Voluntary Student Accident Insurance were sent home in the August mailing. They are also posted on the website under Forms and Documents/Voluntary Student Accident Insurance. Students are not covered through the Archdiocese of Denver. All parents must have insurance coverage in order for their child to participate in sports. Parents must purchase insurance coverage if they do not have their own insurance that covers sports injuries. MEDIA MINUTES The library will again be open after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:00-3:45 pm for Reading Counts beginning on August 20. Please remember that all students must be accompanied by an adult during this time. Thanks to those students who visited the library during the summer, we already have over eight million words in Reading Counts! FROM LION’S DEN Due to the licensing requirements by the State, Lion’s Den requires 24-hour notice for drop-ins to assure compliance with the State regulations. Call Sarah Teall at 720.984.7769 and speak with her if you will be using Lion’s Den on a drop-in basis on a given day. AFTERNOON SCHOOL CAR LINE HELP NEEDED! Please consider helping for 30 minutes in the afternoon just before you pick up your kids. It's easy and you'll work with a partner each afternoon. You would need to arrive between 2:30-2:40 p.m. and should be done by 3:10 p.m. We are looking for people who can help once a week or once every other week. Thanks for your consideration. Please email Mrs. Altevogt at [email protected] right away if you can help!!!! USED UNIFORM SALES Used Uniform Sales will be held on the FIRST WEDNESDAY of each month from 2:00-6:00 p.m. in the school basement. A donation drive in the morning carline will be held on August 27, 28, and 29 from 7:00 - 8:00 am. Bring uniforms your children have outgrown to donate. Thank you! If you have any questions or need to purchase used uniforms at a different time, please contact Tiffany at [email protected]. SAFE ENVRIONMENT TRAINING SESSIONS If you are a new volunteer working with children, you are required to attend this training. The schedule for training is as follows: Monday, August 26, 2013 at 7:00-8:30 pm in McCallin Hall Saturday, September 21, 2013 at 9:0010:30 am in McCallin Hall Please RSVP by calling 303.221.9144. Additional classes www.archden.org. may be found at TRAINING FOR NEW JUNIOR GREAT BOOKS Training for leaders is coming soon! All adults and high schoolers are eligible to be leaders and we need you! The leader-training seminar will be held on Saturday, September 21, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. For more information or to register, please contact Monique Dinkel at 303.916.4292 or [email protected] by September 12. JERICHO JOG The Sixth Annual Jericho Jog at St. Thomas More Parish is Saturday, August 24, 8:0010:00 a.m. Join in for a great time including a 5K race, 1K Family Fun Run, yummy food and lots of fun for the whole family including face painting, clowns, prizes and relaxing chair massages. To register go to www.active.com and enter Jericho Jog in the search box. For more information, go to www.stthomasmore.org/jericho-jog or see the attached flyer. JOIN US IN AMERICAN HERITAGE GIRLS AT STM Another great year of American Heritage Girls is getting started. American Heritage Girls is a Christian Scouting Organization where girls work on various badges, participate in service projects and grow as strong leaders in their community. Our troop, which consists of all age levels, meets once a month in the evenings; and individual units, which are made up of girls in the same grade level, meet for an additional meeting each month. For general questions, please contact Teresa Kennedy at [email protected]. If you are interested in your daughter joining and/or you are interested in helping out please contact the appropriate Unit Leader. 7th/8th Grade: Becky Hensler, [email protected] 6th Grade: Teresa Kennedy, [email protected] 5th Grade: Julie Krager, [email protected] or Jill Guerrero, [email protected] 4th Grade: Laura Rohling, [email protected] or Christy Hupka, [email protected] 3rd Grade: Holly Lister, [email protected] 2nd Grade: Teresa Kennedy, [email protected] or Jodi Lieske, [email protected] 1st Grade: Kristen Chisenhall, [email protected] or Cari Smith, [email protected] Kindergarten: Teresa Kennedy, [email protected] COMMUNITY ELECTRONICS RECYCLE Saturday, September 7, 9:00-11:30 am Church parking lot Electronic recycling collection is set for the parish. Certified data destruction by Metech Recycling. See www.stthomasmore.org for details on accepted items. Limit one computer and one TV, two computers or two TVs. No limit on smaller items. This event is part of the STM’s Stewardship of the Earth. SIGN UP NOW FOR FIRST EUCHARIST PREPARATION If your child is in 2nd or 3rd grade and already baptized, s/he can prepare for his/her First Eucharist this year. Preparation begins in September and is in addition to and separate from education provided by the school. Please register by September 6. On-line registration can be done at: registrations.stthomasmore.org or good old fashioned paper forms are available in the Information Cove at Church and on the wall outside the Office of Catechesis. We begin with parent meetings in September which take place in St. Francis Hall. Just choose one to attend, AFTER registering your child. There is no need to RSVP as to which meeting you are attending. Tuesday, September 10, 6:30-8:00pm Thursday, September 12, 6:30-8:00pm Monday, September 16, 12:30-2:00pm Additional information is available on the STM website under the Faith Formation tab. For questions, please contact Linda Enloe at [email protected] or 303-770-0531 x7. AUGUSTINE INSTITUTE See the attached flyer to hear a talk, Consuming the Word: the New Testament and the Eucharist in the Early Church” by Dr. Scott Hahn. STEPHEN MINISTRY Stephen Ministry is designed to help those individuals who are having difficulties in coping with life’s problems. Stephen Ministers, through listening, caring, and prayer, help their care receivers cope. Stephen Ministry is a one-on-one, confidential, caring ministry. Care receivers are assigned on a gender specific basis. Each Stephen Minister has received over 50 hours of training, and part of that training has been to recognize if and when a care receiver’s problems are beyond their capabilities. A class will be starting this fall. If you wish to be trained as a Stephen Minister, contact the Stephen Ministry at STM, contact either Paul Quinn at 303.770.2499 or Judy Dietz at 303.790.0784. Men of St. Thomas More: MOMS (AND DADS) OF ST. THOMAS MORE "Men For All Seasons" is a men's group at St. Thomas More. Our goal is to help your husbands be better Catholic husbands and fathers. We meet for an hour starting at 6:20 am Fridays and will begin our fall session on September 20. This year we will be watching and discussing Fr. Robert Barron's acclaimed "Catholicism" series. Please encourage your husbands to come give us a try. Thanks! If you have any questions, please contact one of us: John Christian, [email protected] Murray Deline, [email protected] Steve Bell, [email protected] P.S. Our last summer session will be with Dr. Ted Sri on September 6. We'll go to 6:30 am Mass and meet afterwards. Your husbands are welcome! The Catholic schools of the Archdiocese of Denver, under the jurisdiction of Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila, S.T.L. and at the direction of the Superintendent, state that all of their Catholic schools admit students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin to all the right, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the schools. Furthermore, Archdiocesan schools admit handicapped students in accord with the policy on Admissions, 4.2.1. These schools do not discriminate on the basis of race, age, handicap, color, national or ethnic origin in the administration of their educational policies, employment practices, scholarship and loan programs or athletic or other school administered programs.