The Weekly Memo

Life for you is going to speed up this month as your kid(s) return to school! You may be experiencing the fast-pace already. As John Mark Comer notes in his book The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, there is a new epidemic of the modern world: “hurry sickness.” Among the ten symptoms he associates with this disease are restlessness, workaholism, emotional numbness, escapist behaviors, and slippage of spiritual disciplines. At times in my life, I check off all ten boxes. I drive fast, I walk fast, I looked for the shortest checkout lines, and I get crabby when time is wasted. I typically feel rushed this time of year, even when I don't have anywhere to be. Can you relate? Sometimes this gets in the way of my ability to be present with people, and this is not good. I love being with people! Although there is so much to do, please let's not forget what's important.

Much of the contents of this Weekly Memo are repeated from last week. This is intentional to keep reminders in front of families as we switch gears from "summer mode" to a more structured school schedule. For those of you who are new to WC, The Weekly Memo serves as a weekly communication to our parent community. We'll send it to your inbox each Friday during the school year. If you would like the newsletter to be sent to an additional account, let us know! Grandparents & supporters may request to receive the communication, too. Please email Mrs. Kathy Mouw with contact information: Kathy.Mouw@westernchristianhs.com

Enjoy the weekend!

Mr. Brian Verwolf

Head Administrator

“You are Invited…” Aren’t those wonderful words to hear or to read? We love to feel welcomed and wanted! In fact, I think this is a core need for all of us. I believe God understands that too; why wouldn’t He, He created us!

The theme verse for our year of learning and growing together is a sweet reminder of how much God loves us, and how welcomed we are by Him! Ephesians 2:19-22:“...You are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”

High school can be a time of great growth, great opportunity, but also great wondering. Where do I fit in? Why did God create me the way He did? Why is this so hard? Who sees me and loves me? We want God to use Western to welcome His children (and their families) into His household. Because of Jesus Christ, we have a place at God’s eternal banquet table. Sometimes, in great error, we imagine that it’s our table, and we get to decide who else is invited to take a seat. This verse prompts us to remember that it’s God’s table. It always has been and it always will be. The only one who deserves a place in God’s household and a seat at God’s table is Jesus Christ. But the compassion of our God, the love of our Savior, and the prompting of the Holy Spirit extend an invitation to us, God’s children.

You Are Invited. What wonderful words! Let’s embrace that invitation. We lift our voices and hands in joy as we humbly, gratefully take our seat at His table. And when those around us come to His table, we open our arms and our hearts and thank God for His beautiful BIG table. We hear our Savior say, “Welcome Home!” and then we warmly welcome all who love and follow Jesus! This is our forever home!

Mrs. Karen Christians,

Director of Discipleship

• Wolfpack Edge Annual Luncheon and Booster Club Golf Outing - Friday, August 9 at 11am and 12pm

• Senior BBQ at Verwolf’s House - Thursday, August 15 at 6:30pm

• Society Meeting - Monday, August 19 at 6:30pm

• Opening Staff Inservices - Monday-Tuesday, August 19-20

• Freshman Orientation - Thursday, August 22 from 4-7pm. We'll feed the students supper! Parents are welcome to join for a 15-minute parent meeting at 6:45pm in the Event Center.

• First Day of School - Friday, August 23 - noon dismissal

Western Christian is excited to welcome all new families into the WC community! Like with any new experience, there are always questions. It is our hope that this publication will help answer some of them. Enjoy!

Handbook for New WC Families

On Thursday, August 22, we welcome all freshmen to campus to officially kick-off a new school year. We will begin promptly at 4pm in the Event Center. This portion of Freshmen Orientation will include students and staff only. We ask that parents join us in the Event Center at 6:45pm to help us close out our meeting by 7pm.

We will serve pizza to students and practice a "mini-schedule" to give students a better feel for how to navigate their school schedules before the first day of school. Our goal is to make your student completely comfortable in a new setting!

Here's the agenda:

• 4:00 - Student Welcome - Event Center
• 4:15 - The Domino Effect - Event Center
• 4:45 - Logistics of School - Event Center
• 5:15 - Practice Lockers and Class Schedules, and Eat Pizza
• 6:45 - Parent/Student Meeting - Event Center
• 7:00 - Dismissed

Mr. and Mrs. Verwolf invite all senior students to their house for a BBQ before the first day of school. The goal is for 100% of Seniors to attend from 6:30-8pm on Thursday, August 15. So far, about 50% of the class has RSVP's. If you're a senior student, Please RSVP by clicking this link.

As we approach the beginning of another year, the tech department would like to remind you that each student must have a working laptop to begin the year. Please have your child power up your laptops, fully charge them, and update them before taking them to school.

If you are still considering purchasing a laptop for your student, please refer to our BYOT specs page for minimum requirements.

Finally, we will be handing out Freshmen emails at Freshmen orientation. Please assist students in logging into Google and JMC at that time and encourage them to email Mr. Fenchel with any change requests or questions: mark.fenchel@westernchristianhs.com

If you qualified for ESAs for the 24-25 school year, you should have recently received an email from Odyssey to authorize the use of your funds. Please be sure to confirm the one-time payment for the fall semester at your earliest convenience.

Once again we need families to host a Dutch student (girls and boys) for just 3 weeks from October 25 to November 15. The goal is to experience life in NW Iowa; however, that looks for each family. In order to participate though, families need to have a child currently attending Western Christian. If you are interested in being a part of this or would just like more information, please contact Carey Van Donselaar at carey.vandonselaar@westernchristianhs.com or 712-449-5923

Here's a link to the online store.

Follow us on our social media platforms to stay updated with all new apparel/accessories for the wolfpack!

• Instagram - wcpackshack
• Facebook - The Pack Shack

Abby Vanden Bosch, Western's Social Worker, is providing mental health counseling services to students. She is available to meet with students throughout the summer, so please contact her if you feel your student could benefit from these services: abby.vandenbosch@westernchristianhs.com.

We have found that many students become anxious near the start of a new school year. It may be helpful to consider your school transition early, and Abby is happy to help you process!

Psychologist Peter Gollwitzer suggests having “implementation intentions." He recommends making advanced mental commitments. It’s the idea of preloading a response. Deciding ahead of time, that if _________ happens, I will do ___________.

Studies have shown that people who use advanced mental commitments are far more likely to achieve their goals than those who do not, including a higher efficiency of students turning in homework, more loyalty to individual fitness plans, healthier relations with peers, and so on.

When signing up for the ACT, there is a deadline for regular sign up, and if you miss that deadline, you may be able to register prior to the late deadline–complete with a late fee. The late deadline can be found on ACT’s website. (All fees can be found at the link below.)

Registration: https://www.act.org/

Fees: https://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/registration/fees.html

Preparation: See Mrs. Dirksen in the Learning Center for assistance with test preparation: Mary.Dirksen@westernchristianhs.com

The Bargain Alley Thrift Store is seeking more volunteers. Please contact Kari Hoekstra at the store or email her at bargainalleyhull@gmail.com if you are interested.

Western Christian High School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs (if any exist), and athletic or other school administered programs.