What's the Buzz?
10/17/2024
Upcoming Dates
Remember to utilize our SMS Google Calendar subscription (click here to view), or view the “Events” page on the SMS website.
Oct. 18: 9am School Mass led by St. Thomas Aquinas Faith Family (Mrs. Baker)
Oct. 21: HSA Bills Dress Down Day (bring $2 or purchase pass)
Oct. 22: 8th Grade Mass at the Cathedral
Oct. 23: School Picture Day - students may dress up today
Oct. 23: Last Day to purchase Pre-Sale Meat Raffle Tix
Oct. 25: 9am School Mass led by St. Scholastica Faith Family (Mrs. Laderer)
Oct. 25: 6pm Trunk or Treat
Oct. 26: Last day to register to vote in NYS
Oct. 28: HSA Bills Dress Down Day (bring $2 or purchase pass)
Oct. 28: SMS Pumpkin Carving Party at Spoth's - Reservations due by 10/18
Oct. 29: Red Ribbon Day - Uniforms with red shirts and socks may be worn
Oct. 31: Halloween
Nov. 1: All Sants' Day - 9am School Mass led by grade 3 students, reception for 3rd grade students and parents to follow
Nov. 2: HSA Meat Raffle
Nov. 4: HSA Bulls Dress Down Day (bring $2 or purchase pass)
Nov. 4: HSA Meeting, all are welcome! 7pm, Cafeteria
Nov. 8: 9am School Mass led by St. Joseph Faith Family (Mrs. Picone)
Nov. 8: HERO BOX Dress Down Day for Veterans (bring $2 for charitable donation to veterans, not included in HSA pass)
Nov. 8: Early Dismissal at 11:30am
Nov. 11: Veteran’s Day - NO SCHOOL
Nov. 13-15: SMS Book Fair
Nov. 15: 9am School Mass led by St. Gemma Faith Family (Miss Kirwan)
Nov. 15: Drama Club Fall Play - Holy Mother of Bingo!
News from the Cafe
The NOVEMBER LUNCH MENU is now live!
Charges for lunches ordered for the month of October have been applied in your FACTS account. As a reminder, once submitted, lunch orders cannot be changed so please be careful when filling out the form, and also only submit one lunch order per student. November Lunch orders are due by Monday, Oct. 21at, at 12 Noon.
Menu Change: Please note the following menu change for lunch on Oct. 21st: Eggo Waffles topped with a blueberry/strawberry compote & whipped cream will be served instead of the Pancake Chicken Sausage & Cheese Sandwich.
Lunch Room Volunteers
If you are interested in helping out in the lunchroom and are VIRTUS trained please sign up below using the buttons. If you have any questions, you can email Mr. Mangione at attendance@st.maryschoolswormville.org.
LAST DAY FOR BASKETBALL REGISTRATION
We are now utilizing the SportsEngine app to do our winter sports registrations for basketball. We need to know by next week who will be participating in grades 3-8. Complete your registration through the app, however even though it says to have your credit card ready, we do not have that set up yet. Your participation fee will still be added to FACTS.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18TH IS THE LAST DAY FOR REGISTRATION
Don’t throw out those old shoes, send them in starting Tuesday!
Our 8th grade class is hosting a shoe collection! Bins have been placed outside the school office and have been filling quickly, but we will take all we can get! Shoes, sneakers, cleats, hiking boots, rain boots, water shoes & sandals are acceptable. They will not accept single shoes, ice skates, roller skates, wet or moldy shoes, or shoes with holes or tears.
Exciting News!!!
We are excited to welcome Mrs. Pam Daigler to our SMS family. Just in case you haven't heard from your child already, Mrs. Daigler will be teaching music to our students and accompanying them when singing during Mass. She will be here on Thursdays and Fridays.
Holy Mother of Bingo - Fall Play Tickets are now on sale!
Tickets for the highly anticipated 2024 SMS Drama Club Fall Play are now on sale! Click here to purchase tickets. Tickets will not go on sale to the parish/general public for another week to ensure Drama Club families & SMS families are able to get the best seats. It is an incredibly fun play where the audience is involved and plays 5 rounds of bingo with your students! Mrs. Baker will be sending over seat assignments later on. In an effort to save paper, you will not need a physical ticket.
Drama Club Program Ads & Student Shout Outs & Sponsorships are also still available until tomorrow at NOON. Please be sure to send any photos or artwork for ads purchased to rkisailus@stmaryschoolswormville.org by Monday 10/21 at the latest.
We are also looking for parent volunteers to help with the following...
-Clean up of tables/chairs after dress rehearsal on Thursday, November 14th
-Set up of tables, bingo cards & desserts before performance on Friday, November 15th
-Clean up of tables/chairs after performance on Friday, November 15th
-Concession sales before & at intermission on Friday, November 15th
-Ticket check in on Friday, November 15th
If you would like to volunteer, please click the link below to sign up!
PARENT VOLUNTEERS: Click here!
School Picture Day is Weds., Oct. 23rd!
Staff & students should dress in their best for school picture day on Weds. 10/23. Picture order forms went home in backpacks last week, if your student’s didn’t make it home, there are extras in the office, or you can order online, just click the link below to order photo packages for your students. All students will be photographed regardless of if you wish to order photos, for the yearbook.
Order School Photos here before 10/23 Sign in or create a new account, then enter the SMS Picture Day ID: EVTSX4CNX
Get ready to Trunk or Treat on 10/25!
All SMS students, Montessori - Grade 8, and immediate family members are invited to dress up in Halloween costumes and join us for trunk-or-treating in the school parking lot! Click here to view the flyer being sent home this week with more information, and here to sign up to decorate a trunk!
Tomorrow is the last day to sign up for Pumpkin Carving at Spoth's on 10/28
For over 20 years, Spoth’s Farm Market has generously hosted, and Dengler, Roberts, Perna Funeral Home have generously sponsored a pumpkin carving party for SMS students! Cider, treats, pumpkins & carving tools are all provided, you just bring the creative carving ideas & get ready to have some fun! This yearly tradition is one of the highlights of the fall for our students.
'Tis the Season!
Now that we have observed the anniversary of the October storm, this is a reminder that the weather can turn on us at any time. If there is a school closing or delay, you will receive a phone message, text, email, post to the school Facebook, and an announcement on Channels 2, 4, and 7. Sometimes this information comes to us late at night (around 10pm). My philosophy is that I want you to know as soon as I do so that you can make arrangements for your children. My apologies in advance for the late and/or early contact regarding closings.
CLASSROOM HALLOWEEN CELEBRATIONS: 10/31
All students are allowed to dress up for Halloween! They may stay in costume all day and all students will be walking in the annual "SMS Halloween Parade" at 1pm. Please nothing gory, no blood, no masks covering the entire face, no weapons or anything resembling a weapon for costumes. Shoes must be safe for navigating the stairs. Your children may also be enjoying Halloween activities, crafts, parties, snacks, etc. on Halloween as organized by their teachers and HSA Room Parents. Please refer to communications that have (or will be) coming home from their individual classrooms for more info on the festivities planned for each class.
Parents are invited to watch our parade at 1pm if desired. Hopefully we will have a sunny day and can parade over to our parish offices and around campus.
Pray for Vocations, Host the “Traveling” Chalice & Paten
Recently Mrs. Christina Egleston, Catholic Education Director, gave a presentation to students about how with their families, they can enjoy learning more about vocations and spend time praying for those called to say yes to God by hosting the “traveling” Chalice & Paten in their homes! Through your prayers, we believe more men and women will hear God's call to seek out their religious vocations. You are invited to sign up to have the Chalice & Paten that Father Tom has blessed in your home. At least once a day, gather your family in the presence of the Chalice and Paten and pray. At the end of the week, return all of the contents the way it was originally packed back to school for another family to host.
Click here for more detailed instructions.
Click here to sign up to be a host family.
Questions? Please contact Mrs. Katie Bishop, kbishop@stmaryschoolswormville.org or the Catholic Education Office at 716-688-0599.
Your student is #BuzzWorthy!
Has your SMS student achieved something notable outside of school recently in sports, scouts, or another community organization? Do you have news to share with our community as an alum? If so, tell us about it! We’d love to share the #BuzzWorthy news on social media or in an upcoming “What’s the Buzz” school newsletter. Simply email any photos and a short description to buzzworthy@stmaryschoolswormville.org.
Give to SMS by Sharing a Review!
Google searches, word of mouth, and school search & review platforms account for 72% of how parents first discover the schools they consider for their children. With this in mind, SMS is launching a campaign this Fall to encourage alumni, current school families, parishioners and community members to become brand ambassadors for SMS! Talk to your neighbors & friends about SMS, share our social media posts with your networks, and share your personal review of the school! There are a few ways you can do this:
- Visit https://tinyurl.com/4269mbtb to share a Google Review
- Visit https://tinyurl.com/57jtaxcu to share a review on niche.com (the leading school search & review platform)
- Email your review to rkisailus@stmaryschoolswormville.org to have it featured on our website. Feel free to include photos as well. We have a number of great reviews from families from the past, but would love to feature a few more recent alumni success stories, or anecdotes from families whose lives have been positively impacted by SMS.
You Don’t Need to Be on Social Media to See all the Great SMS Content...
Did you know, that even if you’re not a social media user, you can still see all the great photos and updates from your students’ classrooms at SMS? Simply download our app onto your tablet or smart phone, and check out the “Feed” section. All of the same great posts and news articles that you would see on Facebook or Instagram are in the app as well.
If your student is missing items, check out Lost & Found
Our new location for the school “Lost & Found” box is inside door A4 near the stairway to the lower level just past the cafeteria. If you’re on campus for Mass or another event, please stop by and check the tote box periodically if your student is missing sweaters, jackets, water bottles, etc.!
Safety Drills
We are continuing to complete our mandatory safety drills. We are required to complete 6 fire drills and 2 lock down drills prior to December 1st.
HSA Events Flyer - Stay up to date with all the exciting things the HSA has planned for this Fall!
Spirit Wear went home with students today! If you have any questions please contact Rebecca Kisailus at rkisailus@stmaryschoolswormville.org.
Pre-Sale Tix End This Weds., Volunteers, Basket & Gift Card Donations Greatly Needed!
Pre-Sale Tickets are available until this Weds., 10/23 for $15 each, or $100 for a table of 8. Don’t delay! Tickets will be $20 at the door. We are also really in need of some donations for our theme baskets & gift card raffle - even if you cannot attend on 11/2, please consider helping us make the Meat Raffle a success by donating a gift card to a local store or restaurant, or making up a theme basket for our basket raffle, or donating some items and we can make up the basket! See the SUG link below to sign up.
Click here to sign up to volunteer or donate items for our gift baskets.
If your family participated in the “All In” HSA Family Commitment at the beginning of this school year you automatically receive 2 tickets to the Meat Raffle. Please email Kim Chilcott, event chairperson, at kimmer923@aol.com, to RSVP.
Community Opportunities
Cool Weather, Pumpkins, Homecoming and more! Come to Breakthrough to unwind and share!
- An opportunity for Middle School through High School teens to grow in faith through games, interactive activities, prayer, food and conversation.
- Build a connection between scripture and living our faith while getting to know other teens in our parish and community.
- Gatherings are scheduled from 6:30 pm - 8 pm on 1 Friday and 1 Monday each month. Check the white board inside the parish center for gathering locations.
Contact St Mary's Youth Ministry for further details or with questions: (716) 688-0599, youth@stmaryswormville.org
Sign Up to attend and Invite a Friend. | Are you Confirmed and looking for Volunteer Hours? Sign Up Here.
WNY Catholic High School Open Houses
A number of our local Catholic high schools are holding Open Houses & offering shadow day experiences this Fall. Click the links below for more information.
Bishop Timon - St. Jude High School
Buffalo Academy of the Sacred Heart