There are many stories that bring to life the mission of St. Matthew School, a special place where educating minds and hearts matter. One of our students, Julian, beautifully captured the essence and the spirit of SMS. His story was recently featured in the Catholic Transcript. Our Superintendent, Valerie Mara, was visiting our school and Julian invited her to Mass. After Mass, reflecting with Mrs. Mara, he exclaimed that it was “the best day of his life.” This spirit of joy fills our hallways and is a catalyst to the exemplary work of our students, guided by our teachers. Julian is an important part of our story as are all of our students. You are an important part of our story as well! As an alumnus, parent, grandparent, volunteer, parishioner, community partner, or friend, your generosity, both in prayer and financially, keeps the spirit of our school thriving.

We are reaching out today to ask for your assistance. Committed to the ongoing strength of St. Matthew School and Catholic education in the greater Bristol community, we are excited to kick off an annual appeal in support of the exceptional programming that our school offers students. Did you know that tuition alone only covers half of the expenses to operate our school annually? Our Parish and diligent fundraising from our families helps to fill the gaps. The average cost per student is about $5,400 per year or $30 each day. The goal of our annual fund is to reach beyond the daily expenses of our school to truly enhance our programming. We are hoping to receive $7,000 in generous donations this year.

Much has changed in the last 62 years since our founding and we move along with the times. While our mission remains unchanged, our dedicated teachers and staff delicately balance tradition with innovation to provide the best possible education for our students. Your generous contribution will directly support our students and advance Catholic education at St. Matthew School.

You and your family are always in our prayers!

With our gratitude and warmest regards,

Father Dietrich

Rev. John Dietrich, Pastor

Liz

Dr. Liz Plasky, Principal

1. Online through our PayPal Portal

2. Mail a check to our school at 33 Welch Drive, Forestville CT 06010

It is with a grateful heart that we share an extraordinary start to our annual fund made possible through the generosity of our school council and administrative team. The leadership of our school believes in our students, families, and teachers so much that they decided to spark a culture of giving through their generous financial gifts. May God bless their donation of time, talent, and treasure!

Less than one month into our request for your support through our annual fund, we've already received 60% of our goal. Please consider a donation to your beloved SMS today!

From our school family to your home, we extend loving prayers for a most blessed Christmas and only good things this coming year!

We're gearing up to begin the admissions season for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year! It is always an exciting time to welcome interested families to learn more about our amazing school and to have their children join us. We anticipate limited openings in Pre-K3 through Grade 8. However, it is important to know that the size of our Pre-Kindergarten enrollment has almost doubled in the past year. We anticipate wait lists to form early for Pre-K3, Pre-K4, and Kindergarten for 2024-2025. If you know of anyone interested in an exceptional school, including our early childhood programs, please have them visit our website at smsct.org or call Kate at 860.583.5214.

Once a student, you are always a member of our SMS family. We believe that it is important for our alumni, Parish, and greater community to keep up-to-date with all that’s happening at our school. We’d love to keep in touch!

Please let us know how to keep in touch…even if you think we already know how! Our first electronic edition of Memories and Milestones received over 500 views and we sent it to only half of those emails!

Many of our email addresses are for parents of our graduates. Please consider forwarding this message along and/or updating your contact information on our website.

Bulldogs forever!

Email: advancement@smsct.org
Website: smsct.org
Location: 33 Welch Drive, Forestville, Bristol, CT, USA
Phone: 860.583.5214
Facebook: facebook.com/stmatthewforestvillect