WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

PTA CHRISTMAS BAZAAR - DECEMBER 2

PICTURE RETAKE DAY - DECEMBER 5

MOUNT HOLLY CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING POSTPONED UNTIL FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8

PTA BREAKFAST WITH SANTA - DECEMBER 9

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION - NO SCHOOL DECEMBER 8

CHRISTMAS SHOW / BAND CONCERT - DECEMBER 11

HALF DAY - DECEMBER 15 & 22

Dear SHS Parents and Guardians,

I hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving. A huge thank you to everyone who donated items and their time making our three holiday service projects a success! Our St. Vincent De Paul Thanksgiving food drive helped to bring Thanksgiving meals to over 130 families. The Samaritan’s Purse shoebox gift drive yielded twelve shoe boxes full of Christmas cheer to children around the world, and our donations to the Joey’s Little Angels toy drive helped to send 3,500 toys to children in 30 hospitals across the country. Sacred Heart School is truly making a difference and teaching our students that service grows out of a genuine love for Christ and love and concern for those whom He gives us opportunities and direction to help. Our next service project will take place on December 20th with The Sacred Heart School Choir visiting the residents of the Samuel Miller Christian Retirement Home for a Christmas sing-along.

Many Blessings,

Mrs. Joanna Barlow

Principal

The Sacred Heart School Choir has been invited to sing at the Mount Holly Christmas Tree Lighting on Friday, December 8th. The Choir will perform their songs and then march in the parade. The evening will end with the tree lighting. All Sacred Heart Families are welcome to come out and support our Choir and enjoy this kick off to the Christmas season. Festivities begin at 6pm in downtown Mount Holly.

Congratulations to the following students for being an example of Humility throughout the month of November: Katelynn Baban, June Turner, Nehemiah Jean-Baptiste, Asa Massenat, Maximus Chapman, Juliana Payne, Molly Murray, Melvin Theodore, Natalie Demarest, Skylar Mobley, Valintina Standish, Hannah Scafiro, and Dominic Figueroa.

December’s virtue of the month is Patience, waiting or enduring without complaint. What a perfect virtue for the month of December as we await the birth of Christ. The Virtues in Practice curriculum explains, “Patience is one of the 12 fruits the Holy Spirit forms in us. When this fruit is truly alive in us we can control our emotions when something disagreeable happens and respond with calmness instead of anger, or irritation. Sometimes it is difficult to suffer without complaining but we know that God has a plan, so we rely on His strength and wait for His will.”

Those students who exemplify patience will be honored at our January 5th First Friday Mass.

• Report cards are available to view today, December 1st.

• If a parent tries to access the portal 5 times with incorrect credentials, the account will be locked and no credentials – even ones sent from the Forgot Password link – will not work until the account is re-enabled.

• Parents are advised to click on the Forgot Password link after 2 unsuccessful attempts. This may decrease the chance of being locked out of your account.

UPCOMING 8TH GRADE CLASS FUNDRAISING EVENTS

• December 2 - Poinsettia Sale at the PTA Holiday Bazaar

• December 6 - Dine In or Take Out at Downtown Pizza 35 High Street, MT. Holly; mention Sacred Heart School and they will donate 10% of sales to our 8th Grade Class fund.

• December 7 - Middle School Hang Out Nite for students in grades 5 - 8. 7:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. in the computer lab. Students are invited to bring games or activities that they would like to share. The cost: $10 per student and 2 slices of pizza and a drink will be provided. Additional snacks available for purchase.

Hang Out Nite Permission Slip

The next 8th grade class parent meeting is scheduled for January 17 at 6:30 in the library.

The PTA St. Nick’s Shoppe will run December 4-7. During their designated shopping day and time, students will be permitted to purchase Christmas gifts for their friends and loved ones. Starting prices are as low as $1. The shopping schedule will be communicated home by your child’s classroom teacher.

St. Nick Shoppe - Information Letter

Click below for upcoming events/fundraisers:

Christmas Bazaar - December 2

Moe's Ornament Fundraiser -Sale ends December 2

St. Nick Shoppe - December 4-7

Breakfast and Crafts with Santa - December 9

Breakfast with Santa Registration Form

You are invited!! Sacred Heart School’s Annual Christmas Show will take place on Monday, December 11 at 6:30 p.m. in the SHS Auditorium. All Children PreK - 4th grade will be performing. The Sacred Heart School Choir and Band will also perform. Join us and let’s celebrate the Reason for the Season!

Giving Tuesday is a global day of generosity, when people make donations to all kinds of organizations. Tuesday, November 28th marked the 5th year SHS participated in this global day of giving. Giving Tuesday is not just about money, people can donate time, food and even parts of themselves. With this in mind, we saw Giving Tuesday as a teachable moment for our students. This past Tuesday our students pledged to give back by doing something good for others. We reinforced the idea that giving and kindness isn't about a day, it is a way to live our lives.

Sacred Heart School would like to thank all of those people who participated in our Giving Tuesday Campaign. If you missed out and would still like to participate in Giving Tuesday please click here or scan the QR code. Your contribution no matter how small will make a difference. Your financial gift will directly contribute to offering the students of Sacred Heart School a dynamic, faith filled, values centered curriculum that fosters creative thinkers and problem solvers. Thank you for being a part of the Giving Tuesday movement with us!

Icicles to Heaven are a beautiful way to remember our loved ones during the Christmas season. When you purchase an icicle ornament in memory of a loved one, a tag with his or her name will be attached to the ornament. The ornament will then be hung on a special Christmas tree in the Church near the Tabernacle in the Eucharistic Chapel. The names will also be included in a special book of remembrance placed close to the tree. Icicles will be hung on the tree by Christmas weekend, and those honored will be remembered at our School Mass in January. Icicles will be available for pickup at the school and in the auditorium after Masses at the conclusion of the Christmas season so that you may keep this special memento for years to come. Order forms can be found here, in the church vestibule, or online at sacredheartmh.org/foshs

**All orders must be placed by December 15th**

Over the past few months, we have increased our social media presence. Make sure to follow us and like all the great things happening at Sacred Heart School!

Instagram: sacredheartschool_mtholly

Facebook: sacredheartschoolmt.holly

The Sacred Heart School Marketing Department is looking for volunteers to help us take Sacred Heart on the Road. Interested parents and their children are asked to help us spread the word about our awesome school.

Who: SHS Parents and Students

What: Be a presence at local events to showcase and spread the word about our school.

When: Tentative Events

12/8/23 - Mt Holly Tree Lighting

1/27/24 - Mt. Holly Fire & Ice Festival

3/2/24 - St. Patrick’s Day Parade

July 2024 Burlington County Farm Fair

If you are interested in being part of the SHS Show on the Road Committee please email schooloffice @sacred-heart-school.org. 7 & 8 grade students who participate with their parents can earn service hours.

Additionally, parents, if you have some time on your hands and would like to volunteer one day a week to assist with lunch or recess duty, please email schooloffice@sacred-heart-school.org. Please be advised that all volunteers must be VIRTUS trained and fingerprinted. If you need to start the process to be fingerprinted and/or VIRTUS trained please email ptaevents@sacred-heart-school.org. Any day you could offer assistance would be welcomed.

General Information - For Families with Children Attending Catholic Schools in The Diocese of Trenton. Tuition assistance is awarded each year to families with children in our Catholic schools in grades K-8. Awards are made based on financial need.

How is the determination made? Information contained in the application along with the supporting materials is used to determine financial need. The formula utilized has been especially designed for families with children attending Catholic school. This calculation is based on a moderate standard of living for the geographic area of the applicant, further ensuring a realistic result. This formula determines the ability of a family to pay for private education. FACTS includes a comprehensive review and verification process ensuring the accuracy of the data.

Award Amount - Families who apply can receive up to one-half of the school’s in-parish tuition

Rate. Click here to learn how to apply.

FOSHS cordially invites you to the Blue and Gold Gala and Basket Auction April 20th at Deerwood Country Club. Dinner, dancing, a super 50/50 and fantastic basket auction are some of the highlights of what will be a wonderful evening. Details to come!

MySchoolBucks is a convenient online service that allows you to securely pay for your student’s meals online using your credit/debit card or electronic check.

You can:
- Set Up Automatic Recurring Payments
- Track & Review Meal History
- Create Low Balance Alerts
- Make Payments with the Mobile App
- And More…
Sign up now! Registering for your FREE account is easy, go to https://www.MySchoolBucks.com. Create a secure account and never worry again about sending cash or checks with your student(s) to school again!
https://www.MySchoolBucks.com | (855) 832-5226

Have a smartphone? Get the MySchoolBucks Mobile App:

iOS (iPhone) - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/myschoolbucks/id661878685?mt=8
Android -
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hss.msb&feature=search_result

Mrs. Fortin, our Art teacher, is excited to introduce the SHS Virtual Art Gallery. This year we will be showcasing the student's artwork through a new online website called Artsonia. We recently began uploading student art to their portfolio. We will be adding to each student's portfolio throughout the school year. If you do not see any artwork for your little Picasso do not worry, we are just finishing up additional projects in each class.

Please take a moment to scan the code on the flyer to access your child's artwork. If you love your little Rembrandt's piece; this site allows you to purchase it as keepsake. Full giftshop options including ornaments, shirts, mugs etc. Twenty percent (20%) of all proceeds will be donated back to Sacred Heart School!

Genesis credentials were sent to new users. These credentials come from Genesis SIS – not Sacred Heart School. Existing users should use the credentials they already have. If you have forgotten your credentials, click on the Forgot Password link. If you attempt to access an account 5 times using incorrect credentials, NO PASSWORD, even one sent from the Forgot Password link, will work until the account is re-enabled. Accounts are re-enabled Tuesday – Friday, sometime between 8:00 am and 1:00 pm. If your parent account is disabled please:

· Wait until midnight

· Go to https://parents.dioceseoftrenton.org

· Click on forgot password link

· Wait for a new password to be sent

· To avoid errors, copy and paste the new password

If you do not think you received credentials, please check your SPAM before posting a parent access support request.

*** If you did not complete and sign off on the start of school forms:

• Sacred Heart School 2023-24 Photo Release Form
• Sacred Heart School 2023-24 Student/Parent Handbook & Acceptable Use Policy

Your Parent Access Account has been deleted. You can no longer access your child(ren)’s assignments, grades, or report cards. Your Parent Access Account will not be restored until you provide physical copies of the forms.***

To view our great products click SHS SPIRIT WEAR to enter the website. Remember all your purchases support our school and show our Chargers Pride!

Morning Care (6:30am-7:30am) and Extended Day Program (EDP) is available. If you are interested in either of these programs, please be sure to visit the website to get all the information you need. This is also where you can register your child for the programs.

Let’s show everyone all the amazing things happening at Sacred Heart School! Have you taken some great pictures of events or activities at SHS? If so, share your photos with us. Your photo(s) could be used to promote our school via our website, newsletter and our social media accounts. We will also use the photos for our 23/24 school yearbook.

To share, email photos@sacred-heart-school.org and use the following guidelines:

● Try to include more than one SHS student in the photo

● Email photos with name of event or activity in the subject heading

● Include names of students and grades

If you are happy with our school, please consider giving us a 5 star review on google and yelp. If you are not happy, please let us know at schooloffice@sacred-heart-school.org