Principal Page Thursday, March 16, 2017

Lent Fast from discouragement; feast on hope. Fast from facts that depress: feast on truths that uplifts. Fast from lethargy; feast on enthusiasm. Fast from suspicion; feast on truth. Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire. Fast from the shadows of sorrow; feast on sunlight of serenity. Fast from idle gossip; feast on purposeful silence. Fast from problems that overwhelm; feast on prayer that undergirds. Gentle God, during this season of fasting and feasting, gift us with your presence, so we can be a gift to others in carrying out your work. Amen. Congratulations to Mrs. Debbie Aumann – our sixth grade teacher and middle school science teacher! She received the Herb Kohl Fellowship Award. Only 100 of these awards are given annually across the entire state. This is an incredible accomplishment and one that requires a nomination as well as a very long application once nominated. St. John the Baptist School is proud of all of its Kohl recipients throughout the years; Ms. Schels, Mrs. Loof, Mrs. Koehler, and now, Mrs. Aumann. Three of those teachers are still at SJB and our buttons are popping! Also, Congratulations to 5th grader, Payton Schmidt, for winning the Knights of Columbus Free Throw Competition at the State level last weekend. This is only the second time that this has been won by someone from Jefferson. The last time was in 1985 by Greg Fetherston. We are so proud of you, Payton!

Tuition Tax Rebate Go to your FACTS account

Tax Day is coming up on April 18, 2017. Don’t forget to claim your private school tuition tax deduction! Please take advantage of this deduction! If you are having difficulty getting a copy of what you paid in tuition in 2016, I would be happy to run it off for you!

Grandparents’ Day Please remember to let us know who is coming for Grandparents’/Special Seniors’ Day! There is a lot of planning that goes into the day, so your prompt reply is needed! Also, please consider helping with the day. It is a nice chance to “be a fly on the wall” and watch the children interact with their grandparents. We also need desserts for the day. Thanks.

Catholic Quotes “Our school is a safe place to learn, a place of faith and knowledge.” “Catholic Education is a privilege to me, one of the best things in the world! It is truly a gift from God. We truly are a family here! I thank God and my parents for the gift of this school!” “I am happy I go to a Catholic School because I grow closer to God every day!”

Pancake Breakfast/Big Ticket What an awesome crew of workers – parents and students (and student siblings) - there was for Home and School’s Pancake Breakfast! Thank you to Amy Monogue, Issa Kraus, Liz Gee, Mandy Steies who took on the leadership of this event! Thank you, too, to all who came and enjoyed breakfast. We need YOU to get involved in your child’s school. Please come to Home and School meetings as that is where the planning takes place to benefit YOUR children. Many hands make light work!

Update on electronic Thursday envelope Donations are needed for the Atrium – the awesome religious experience for our younger students. We need kid-sized tables, chairs, or 3-foot shelving units. Please contact Jodi El-Beri if would have anything to donate. jelberi@stjohnbaptist.net

Ten tips to help you get to Mass on Sunday… #9 Participate and explain the Mass. Kids love to join in singing and praying the prayers they know (this is part of the practice). Help them not just be bystanders and observers, but to actually take part in the celebration of the Mass.

Spring Salad Luncheon Plans are in the works to have a Spring Salad Luncheon on April 21 (Fr. Tom’s Birthday). April 23 would be Connor Bourke’s Birthday and so we are planning on honoring both of those awesome guys. Connor would be graduating from High School this year and we thought this would be a great way to remember him. This would be open to the parish and people can come and eat lunch alongside our students. The proceeds from the Free-will offering will go to the up-keep of the playground, as Connor’s memorials provided new equipment (including “Connor’s Corral” – which is in need of new “flooring”). Watch for more information, and if you would like to help with the planning, please let me know! We would like each class to donate some salad ingredients.

Thank you! Recently, our Hispanic Community had Taco Sunday and gave the proceeds to the school. That same day, they catered the Athletic Banquet. The money they charged for that was also donated back to the school. What delicious way to support our school!

Office Payments PLEASE – when making payments for Extended Care, Raffle Tickets, Lunch, Field Trips, etc. – please make out separate checks. You can combine field trips for all of your children, as well as lunch and milk. All of these are individual accounts and we have to run to the bank to split up the checks. So, lunch and milk can be one check for multiple students; field trips can be written for multiple students, but please do NOT write one check for any combination of accounts. (It would make Mrs. Becker’s life SO much easier….) Remember, we are asking each family to purchase $2000 in SCRIP. Your tuition cost is less than 1/3 of what it actually costs to educate your child. We depend on fundraising for 1/3 and the parish supports us with the other 1/3. SCRIP doesn’t cost you anything extra – you pay $100 for a card, you get $100!

Thank you! The Aluminum Can Drive brought in $241. Thank you to Tim Koehler for always coordinating this (and for the extra $9 to round up to $250)!

Middle School Track Middle School Students that need to get to Middle school for Track, need to get on bus #11 at the end of the day. Remind them to get right out there after school.

Parents Corner… Please remind your children to NOT take a ride from a stranger or approach a car that they do not know. I am not aware of this happening in Jefferson, but I just wanted to alert you. It is always good to remind your children of this.

St. John the Baptist Catholic School

333 East Church Street Jefferson, WI 53549

(920) 674-5821 www.stjohnbaptist.net

Mrs. Susan Loof - Principal How we EDUCATE THE MIND WILL CHANGE with the times, how we CULTIVATE

THE HEART is and will REMAIN TIMELESS . Blessed Basil Moreau

Dates to Remember March 18 – March 26 – SPRING BREAK!!! Tuesday, March 28 – Stairway to Heroin- JHS - 6:00-8:30 pm Thursday, March 30 – Band Students to the Overture Center with Mr. Heninger Friday, March 31 – End of 3rd Quarter Monday, April 3 – Middle School Track starts Wednesday, April 5 – Easter Candy Delivery Thursday, April 6 – We go to St. Joe’s in Fort for a visit! - Pre3 – Grandparents’ Day Friday, April 7 – Grandparents’ and Special Seniors’ Day Monday, April 10 – Home and School Meeting at 6:30 Friday, April 21 – Spring Salad Luncheon

Enclosures o Enrollment for next year for those not yet returned o We Made the Paper! o Middle School Dance (5-8) and Lock-in Information

(7&8)

Please attend weekend

Mass. Please pray.

PLEASE RETURN YOUR THURSDAY ENVELOPES!

(Even if you receive your information electronically)

PreK made GAK…. Nicholas works on an iPad.

The third graders are pictured with Judy Havill after receiving dictionaries

donated by Retired Telephone Pioneers.