The Messenger
A Publication of St. Gabriel the Archangel School 5/15/2024
Dear Fabulous Families -
- We celebrate the May Crowning tomorrow at our 8:00 Mass. Come join us!
- We look forward to our 8th Grade Graduation next Tuesday evening as our students celebrate this milestone in their lives. We can't wait to see what they accomplish in the future!
- Donate Unwanted Uniforms - As this school year comes to an end, please send in any unwanted uniforms to the main office. We will use these for our uniform swap this summer.
- FACTS - As we move to FACTS for payments, our Archdiocese bookkeeper, Mary Weiskopff, asked us to share this document with you.
- Donut Sunday Send-Off for Sr. Gail - Grab a donut and say "good-bye" to Sr. Gail to celebrate her retirement on Sunday after the 10:00 am Mass.
NEW! Please note that the link for second semester lunch and recess duties are below:
Coming home today from the office in the yellow envelope:
- SLU - Summer Reading Program
Reminder: Submissions for the newsletter should be sent to Mrs. McEnery by noon on Monday. Graphics should be a jpg or png. In the subject line, please put "Newsletter".
Tonya McEnery
Principal
St. Gabriel the Archangel
Sr. Gail - Retirement
What a Great Staff Appreciation Week!
Thank you to everyone who supported our staff last week with your sweet notes/treats. A big shout-out goes to our awesome PFA who blessed us with goodies throughout the week. We enjoyed receiving a Gabe's "Gators" T-shirt on Friday where the Holy Name Society used their culinary talents and provided a great cookout lunch for us! We appreciate the love from our community!
Free Eye Exams This Summer
Order Fall School Supplies
School supply shopping made easy!
School supply shopping made easy!
Click the below link or scan the qr code to order your school supplies today! Orders ship directly to your house. Be sure to select next years grade level/s! Contact Molly Roell if you have any questions, mollyroell@me.com or 314-803-2236
https://schooltoolbox.com/school-supplies/school/list-boxes/?schoolId=55723
Did You Miss the Uniform Fitting?
From: Just Me Apparel, Our Uniform Supplier
- For pricing or sizing questions, please visit the website at www.justmeapparel.com or call us at 636-391-3551. You can order on line or by phone throughout the school year and we will make weekly deliveries to your school!
This is the perfect time to get your orders in for next school year. This is important to insure skirts and jumpers fit appropriately. Skirts and jumpers should be at least finger-tip length. Many students are outgrowing their current uniform.
Protecting God's Children / Safe Environment Training
- Important - All volunteers need to successfully complete the mandated Archdiocesan Protecting God's Children/Safe Environment Training. Before signing up for lunch duty/recess duty, field trips, etc., volunteers must have this completed. Please use the following link to find the complete information from the church website: mandated training information. Please direct questions to our parish secretary and Child Safety Coordinator, Eileen Garavaglia, at 314-353-6303 Ext. 110 or garavagliae@stgabrielstl.org.
Religious Education Information and Resources
Dear Parents,
.
It is hard to believe how fast this year has gone by. The growth in our students has been amazing and it is a blessing to see them willing to put themselves out there in leadership roles. Tomorrow, is the 8th grade's last All School Mass. We will celebrate a May Crowning at the beginning of Mass. The 8th graders will process in with their 2nd grade buddies and Mary will be crowned. The school will pray for our 8th graders.
We look forward to celebrating Kindergarten Baptism Mass next Tuesday. Please make note of our last all school Mass for the year that will be on Friday, May 24th at 11:15 am.
Please see the below invitation from the Archdiocesan Office's Immigration Task Force for an upcoming fundraiser.
Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit,
That my thoughts may all be holy.
Act in me, O Holy Spirit,
That my work, too, may be holy.
Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit,
That I love but what is holy.
Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit,
To defend all that is holy.
Guard me, then, O Holy Spirit,
That I always may be holy.
Saint Augustine (354-430)
Earth Day Newsletter from the School Sisters of Notre Dame:
Prayer Resource:
The School Sisters of Notre Dame have a virtual prayer space to pray for peace.
SSND Prayer Room: Open on Fridays from 9am- 9pm Central Time.
https://ssnd.org/ssnd-virtual-prayer-room/
It is our privilege to partner with you in your child's religious formation. Students attend Mass twice weekly. See below for our Mass days and for which homeroom is in charge of Mass planning. Masses are at 8:00 am. Please join us whenever you are able!
Tuesdays
5/21 4M -Kindergarten Baptism Mass
Wednesdays
5/22 7L
Thursdays
5/16 8th Grade Blessing and May Crowning Mass
5/24 Last Day of School Mass-Friday, May 24, at 11:15 am
Please contact me if you have any questions.
Come pray with us!
Deborah DaLay
Coordinator of Religious Education
PFA Uniform Swap - Mark Your Calendars!
Calendar Dates for 2023-2024
Dates below are subject to change and additional days will be added as we continue to plan for the year. Dates are also posted on the Google calendar located on our website.
MAY DATES
May 17 - 7th Grade Leadership Day
May 17 - Mystery Day
May 21 - 8th Grade Graduation, 6:00 pm
May 24 - Last Day of School,
Ready for Summer Dress Down Day!
Show off your vacation wardrobe – shorts, T-shirt, sunglasses, hat – Get creative! (No swimsuits)
- Mass at 11:15
- Noon Dismissal
JUNE DATES
June 23-28 - Totus Tuus
Welcome to ARCHANGEL YOUTH MINISTRY (AYM) covering the parishes of the St. Louis Hills neighborhood (St. Gabriel & St. Raphael). AYM is open to all high school teens. No sign-up necessary and teens do not need to be from the St. Louis Hills parishes to participate. High schoolers can attend on a regular basis or drop-in as it fits their schedule.
Sunday evenings (6:45-8:30 pm in Gabriel House) include snacks, socializing, games, talks, and discussions. Teens are encouraged to bring a friend to share in the fun.
AYM CELEBRATES OUR MOTHERS!
*The next AYM Night will be this Sunday, May 19th, following the 5:30 pm Youth Mass. Moms are invited to join us for the evening to have dinner and play trivia. Teens are welcome and encouraged to attend even if their mom is unavailable. Please rsvp to Sarah by May 16th so we can plan accordingly.
2024 BLOCK PARTY & 90th ANNIVERSARY MASS!
On Saturday, June 15th, St. Gabriel Parish will kick off 90 years of being a parish with an outdoor Mass celebrated by Archbishop Rozanski! Immediately following the Mass, the 2024 Block Party will begin! AYM needs teen and adult volunteers to help work in the food tent and cleanup at the end of the night. Please use the signup genius link below to view available times. AYM greatly appreciates your support!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4CAAAE23AAFBC16-49564404-stgabriel
CURRENT 8TH GRADERS:
You're Invited! With the completion of the Luke 18 Retreat weekend, current 8th graders are now invited to start attending AYM Sunday Nights whenever it fits their schedule. We look forward to having you join our AYM Family!
LOOKING AHEAD:
NO AYM Night | May 26th | Memorial Day Weekend
SGA 90th Anniversary Mass & Block Party | June 15th | The Block Party is a fundraiser for AYM so we will need many teen and adult volunteers!
National Eucharistic Pilgrimage | July 7th | 10 am Mass at the Cathedral Basilica followed by a Eucharistic Procession (walk) to St. Stephen Protomartyr church | More info to come...
Steubenville Conference | July 12th-14th | 8th-12th graders
STAY CONNECTED with AYM
Follow us on Instagram @archangelym
Like our Facebook Group: Archangel Youth Ministry
Join the SGA or SRA Flocknote Group: Youth Ministry
Visit the Youth Group page on the SGA parish website
Contact Youth Minister: Sarah Henderson - hendersons@stgabrielstl.org
From Fr. Molini
“We don’t use the envelopes to donate to the parish”.
Every now and then, the rectory office gets a message like this from a family asking us to cancel the donation envelopes mailed out to parishioners. The problem is that often, there is no indication they have used any means to donate to the parish; no envelopes, no stock donations, no “once-a-year” gift, nothing, for years. I cannot express the dismay I feel when a family is willing to use our school, but not support the parish as well. It further emphasizes a societal inability to see the whole picture, focusing only on what affects “me” as an individual.
As a Catholic parish, our view must be more broad and communal.
We have recently seen the closure of several Catholic Schools in the area. Most had long-term concerns ranging from low-enrollment and rising costs associated with other issues. I guarantee, in addition, that part of the challenge facing those parishes was the disconnect between support for the school and parish. No parish school can survive on tuition payments alone. Every parishioner is asked to support the parish, whether a child is in school or not. If the parish is unable to maintain their fiscal health, the school will suffer.
In addition, every parishioner assists the education of the parish’s children since tuition does not cover the total cost to educate a child. Every child receives a “scholarship” in this way, offset through Sunday contributions.
This may be a good wake-up call for us all. Do I support the parish…by attending Sunday Mass, participating in our activities, and donating to the good of the whole parish?
Am I just interested in using the school for education, or do I support the entire ministry of our parish to foster a strong parish community that benefits the spiritual and communal integrity of our area? The school cannot survive on its own…and the parish needs everyone’s support.
Feasibility Study Update
Feasibility Study and Future Plans
We have received the results of the Feasibility Study and are grateful to the many of you who participated, either by interview, paper survey or online survey. Over 325 responses were received – more than one-fifth of parish households – a satisfactory response for surveys. The committee has reviewed the results and summarized it as follows:
- We need to continue to make clear that St. Gabriel’s is not merging with another parish or school. As I’ve said since my arrival: St. Gabriel and St. Raphael are two independent parishes with two independent parish elementary schools and two separate parish communities. There are no plans for any changes to this configuration.
- There is parish interest that the Archdiocese support this effort in a tangible manner. I’ve already broached this subject with those involved, and will do so again.
- Significant enthusiasm was expressed for both proposed projects.
- A Gabriel House renovation needs to be done, and must include some space accessible for parish use.
- Most also like the Gathering Space concept, but want it as large as possible.
- Six - to - seven million dollars as a goal seems unlikely. Still, conducting a capital campaign was supported by the vast majority of survey respondents.
Again, thanks for the honest and generally supportive comments. The committee has several tasks before it:
1. Re-evaluate the proposed projects and size them to better reflect the sentiment of the parish response. This means probably not building an addition to Gabriel House while further defining the use of the building for parish and school use. We also will re-consider the size of the Gathering Space.
2. Once we have explicitly identified the best use of the spaces under consideration, meet with the architect to begin the drawing process and settle on estimates.
3. Enlarge our current committee to include parishioners with skills and expertise in planning, construction, marketing and fundraising.
4. Begin the capital campaign process once our enlarged committee is in place and more defined plans and price point are complete.
I will continue to use the bulletin to keep you apprised of the process and building plans. Thanks so much for your patience and support throughout this process.
A reminder: The timing of the campaign and the work on the buildings is still to be determined but be assured, you will be kept informed as we proceed with the work.