The Good News December 15, 2024

The Third Sunday of Advent is called, Gaudete Sunday, represented in our Advent wreaths by the pink or rose candle. The theme of the day celebrates our hopeful anticipation for the coming of Christ at Christmas. Rose is the liturgical colour used to signify joy. The anticipation of the coming of Christ and His infinite love for us is our JOY!

As we head into week three of our Advent season, we continue to light the way to Christ in our hearts and homes. Our staff and students have been preparing Him room with their prayer and acts of service.

Thank-you Saint John XXII families for sharing in the Advent season with us! Your support with creating baskets for our raffle to support women and children at Lurana Shelter, donating socks for the Bissell center and joining us for all our Countdown to Christmas activities...these are the moments that matter as we light the path to Jesus and remember the true reason for the season-Jesus.

"All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.”

St. Francis of Assisi

• Sock Toss

• Advent Mass at OLA church (10 am) - parents welcome

• Hot Lunch, Toboggan and Hot Chocolate Day

• Christmas Sweater Day
• Christmas Sing-along

• PJ and Christmas Movie Day
• Last day of school before Christmas break

Jan 6 - First day back

Thank you for your amazing generosity in our Basket of Blessings Raffle that was held the night of our Christmas Concert. $2847 was raised for Lurana Shelter

May God bless you and your family this Advent Season.

Monday, December 16th - Sock Toss

Tuesday, Dec 17th – School Mass (am) We will celebrate mass as a school at OLA church at 10 am. Our grade 3 classes will be leading. Families are welcome!

Wednesday, Dec.18th - Toboggan and Hot Chocolate Day! We will spend parts of the day outside having fun in the snow. We will be tobogganing and having hot chocolate. Students must bring their own toboggans (No Crazy Carpets or GT racers) and helmets! Check with your bus drivers for rules for transporting toboggans on this day. Please let your child's teacher know if you do not want your child to toboggan! Please ensure your child has snow pants and proper gear to spend extended time outside.

Thursday, December 19th - Christmas Sweater Day, Christmas Sing-along

Friday, Dec 20th – PJ and Christmas Movie Day! Wear your PJs for the day, and bring your favourite stuffed animal. We have some cleaning to do in the morning, and then we will spend the afternoon enjoying a movie. Students can bring ONE sandwich-size Ziploc bag full of a snack of their choice to enjoy during the movie.

We recognize that this season can be a difficult time for some of our families within our community. If you or your family are struggling with finances, emotional or mental health, medical or physical needs, please reach out to someone within our school or parish community and we can respond. Everyone needs help sometimes, we are not meant to journey this life alone. There are many resources, agencies and people who have offered assistance and we can confidentially arrange for support, especially through this Advent season.

Kristine Willis Dengler, Principal kristinew@eics.ab.ca 780-998-7777

Eleanor Heesings, Family Wellness Worker eleanor.heesing @eics.ab.ca 780-995-9352

The School Council would like to extend a sincere thank you to all the volunteers who helped with the preparation and execution of this year's Advent Concert. Your time, effort, and support did not go unnoticed, and we truly appreciate all that you did!

We invite all St. John XXIII students to submit their artwork for this year's Yearbook Cover Contest! All entries must be submitted by January 20th. A panel will select the top five submissions, and then the school population will vote on their favorite design via a Google form.

The winning artwork will be featured on the front cover, while the remaining top four selected designs will be showcased on the back cover.

Don't miss your chance to have your artwork seen by the entire school!

Submit art on:

1. 8.5 x11 sheet of white paper

2. Vertical orientation only

3. Colorful (bold, dramatic lines and colours. No pencil crayons or water-colour paints as they do not show up well when scanned. Suggested tools- markers, sharpies)

All entries must include:

Our theme - “Rooted in Christ", inspired by John 15:5,8: “I am the vine; you are the branches… bear much fruit, and become my disciples.”

Entries due January 20th

Tips for a good entry:

1. Limit the amount of white space - lots of colors (including the background)

2. Use up the whole sheet of paper (the bigger the better)

3. Choose bright and bold colours! Avoid using pencils and light colored crayons.

4. To make your cover POP, create a thick outline using a sharpie or marker

5. Covers will be scanned so artwork must be completely flat

We’ll be using Munchalunch for ordering hot lunch! It’s a simple, convenient way to choose and pay for your child’s lunch online. You can easily pay with a credit card (Visa/Mastercard), debit-credit card, Google Pay, Apple Pay, or a pre-paid credit card.

How to Register:

1) Go to: https://munchalunch.com/schools/stjohnXXIII

2) Click the “Register Here” button (as shown below). The system will guide you through the registration process.

3) After adding your children, click the green “Order Lunch!” button to order.

4) Next time, just click the “Login Here” button to access your account.

Ordering Information:

Online ordering for January Hot Lunch is now live:

• Wednesday, January 15th - Booster Juice & Cobs Bread

• Tuesday, January 28th - Pancake Lunch (Ricky’s)

Important Reminders:

• Orders will be accepted up to 7 days before the hot lunch date.

• If your child is ill or absent on a hot lunch date, you’re welcome to pick up their lunch order by 11:30 AM. If you’re unable to do so, please consider it a donation for a child in need.

• Please note that we are unable to issue refunds. We appreciate your support of our hot lunch program, as the prices include costs associated with running the program and help raise funds that benefit the student experience at our school. Thank you for your understanding!

If you need assistance with ordering, please contact our hot lunch coordinator Brandy at Hotlunchstjohnxxiii@gmail.com

We're excited to offer our remaining Big Box of Cards sets! Each box contains 35 handcrafted cards for just $36.32. Choose between the All Occasion box or the Birthday box set—perfect for any celebration!

Hurry, as these sets are available on a first come, first serve basis and quantities are limited. You can order as many boxes as you'd like from our available stock, so be sure to stock up for all your upcoming events! Payment is quick and easy through MunchaLunch, and must be made at the time of order. Don’t miss out on this fantastic deal!

Mark your calendars! Our next School Council meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 20th, at 6:30 PM. We encourage all parents and guardians to attend. We look forward to seeing you there!

Email: stj@eics.ab.ca
Website: https://stj.eics.ab.ca/
Location: 9526 89 Street, Fort Saskatchewan, AB, Canada
Phone: 780-998-7777
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/St.JohnXXIII
Twitter: @St_JohnXXIII