Bethel Flame
It’s hard to believe that December is here and the year is halfway through already.
We have a lot of fantastic events coming up - beginning next week!
Next week begins the Scrip Days of Christmas. This will be happening December 9-13. Stop by the Commons any morning to buy gift cards, support Bethel, and check items off your to-do list. Monday through Thursday, spend $25 or more on any Scrip card and get a homemade cookie (Wednesday will be GF and refined sugar free BUT STILL GOOD). All Scrip purchases enter a drawing for one of two $50 Amazon gift cards on Friday!
Also next week, several of us will be participating in Instant Christmas. Instant Christmas is where we gather together to deliver a Christmas party to special groups of people. On Monday we will be going to the Guardian Angels Home across the street from us at 6pm. On Wednesday, we will be going to Charter Senior Living in Pekin at 6:30pm. On Thursday we will be going to AC Life Points in Morton at 6pm. We will arrive at the locations, deliver some gifts, sing some carols and be on our way. If you would like to join us, you will be welcomed. If you would like any more details, you can contact me or Joe Greenwood at the school.
Our Jr. High students are holding lots of fundraisers to help offset the costs for their Jr. High trips. Please keep an eye out for all of the interesting events happening. Last week Logan’s Steakhouse hosted a fundraising event for them and it was wonderful. Not only was the food great and we were helping a great cause, getting to see our Bethel families connecting outside of school was priceless.
Speaking of connecting outside of school, I had a fabulous time at the Hometown Holidays last Saturday, November 30. It was a wonderful event and we had our students all the way from preschoolers to high schoolers participating. Many thanks to our PTL for making this happen!
Looking ahead, the next really big event we have coming up is our pancake breakfast taking place on February 9. This is a great opportunity to, if you haven’t already, dip your toe in the waters of volunteering at our school. This event takes a lot of people to pull off and, we say this all the time, if you want to get the most out of your experience at Bethel, the best way is to get involved. This is where relationships are established and developed and our family culture is strengthened. There will be more information coming forward about this after the 1st of the year.
December is going to fly by and everyone is going to become very busy. Please make sure you take to enjoy this special season with your family and friends and also keep the focus on the reason we celebrate - Jesus Christ.
Friday, December 13 is Bethel's ugly Christmas sweater and bubble gum day! All are invited to wear their ugliest Christmas sweater and chew gum to raise money for a good cause. Everyone who donates 25 cents or more (25 cents donation per piece of gum) gets to chew gum at school.
You may purchase your bubble gum the morning of the 13th at school. Students may also bring their own gum of choice, but a donation is required to chew.
All proceeds will be donated to the Asheville, North Carolina area to assist with continuing flood relief efforts due to Hurricane Helene. Click the graphic for more information.
Drop off your children at Bethel school for a fun afternoon of games and activities while you get shopping done or just an afternoon to yourself! Children ages 3 and up (and fully potty trained) are invited to spend from 1:00 to 4:00 PM at Bethel on Saturday, December 7. Your free will donation will support Bethel's junior high class trips. Click the graphic for more information.
The Scrip days of Christmas are coming December 9-13! Stop by the commons any morning to buy gift cards, support Bethel, and check items off your to-do list. Monday through Thursday, spend $25 or more on any Scrip card and get a homemade cookie (Wednesday will be gluten free and refined sugar free). All Scrip purchases throughout the week will be entered in a drawing to win one of two $50 Amazon gift cards on Friday.
We have gift cards in denominations large and small, from $10 Starbucks, Target, Four30 Scones, Confectionery and America's Popcorn Shoppe up to larger denominations at those same places, plus Disney, WalMart, Casey's, Amazon, Lowes and Menards. There are cards for restaurants like Texas Roadhouse, Culvers, Monicals, Olive Garden, Panera Bread and McDonalds and Visa gift cards to cover the rest. Please stop by so we don't eat all the cookies ourselves!
Mark your calendars! Auditions will be held on Saturday, January 11 and Tuesday, January 14, and are open to any student in 5th grade through high school. This is a no-cut production, and a variety of roles are needed. See Mr. Dollinger or Mrs. Duke for more information.
Use THIS LINK to reserve an audition time. After you sign up, you will be sent materials to help you prepare for your audition.
Thank you to those who participated by walking, donating or praying for the Theresa Tracy Trot. It was a beautiful day for a walk/run! Team Tagge raised more than $1400 for pancreatic cancer research. The two Bethel students who ran, Dylan and Henry, received medals for placing first in their age brackets, and Dylan came in second overall! John looked fantastic in his purple tutu, and all in all, it was a great morning.
Mr. Tagge was able to be there with us for the race, and he wanted to pass along his sincere thanks to everyone that was a part of the event.
Platinum Sponsors:
Angie Powers * Wesley Zobrist Family * Foster Jacob * Leveldale Farms * Primary Care Chiropractic * Gingerich Crane
Gold Sponsors:Super Nutrition * Eros Glow * LE Inspired * Graham Group Remax * Tazewell Floors * Bravo Painting
The Snack Shack is open every school morning from 8:15 to 8:25 in the commons, with snack prices ranging from $.25 to $1.00. Seventh graders will be selling snacks each morning to raise money for overnight field trips in 7th and 8th grades. Students are welcome to purchase a snack to help us raise funds for our trips! THANK YOU!
Our preschoolers are having a wonderful time getting ready to celebrate Jesus' birthday with an exciting couple of December weeks! We are learning a new Bible verse for the month, Isaiah 9:6 "Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given." Morton Library staff will visit to present a special Christmas story time on December 9 and 10, and preschool Christmas programs will take place on those evenings as well. The programs will be held in the Church sanctuary at 6:30 PM each night, with doors opening at 6:00 PM. We are looking forward to spending a special evening with all of you!
The last days of preschool before our Christmas break are Wednesday, December 11 (MW, MWF, MTWTh classes) and Thursday, December 12 (all other classes), and the preschoolers will celebrate with a class book exchange on their last day. Preschool will resume on Monday, January 6, and Lunch Bunch and enrichment classes will return soon after on Wednesday, January 8. We wish you all a joyous Christmas season full of God's love and continued blessings in 2025!
February might seem far away, but we know it will come up quickly! We are making plans for an exciting week at Bethel to celebrate National Lutheran Schools Week, ending with our annual special person day on Friday, February 14. Click HERE to see more about those special school days coming up after our Christmas break.
Make plans to check out an upcoming Bethel basketball game or cheerleading performance! All family and friends are invited to cheer on our Bethel Flames. Family athletic passes are still available for $50, and include admission for all family members living in your household for all Bethel home sporting events for the year.
Click the button below for our current sports events calendar, and check back often for updates!
Chapel offerings for the month of December will go to Samaritan's Purse.
Week of December 9 (preschool verse) - Isaiah 9:6: For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon[a] his shoulder, and his name shall be called[b] Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Week of December 16 - Psalm 37: 4-5: Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
Weeks of December 23 & December 30 Merry Christmas & happy new year!
Week of January 6 - John 6:69: and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.
