Learning, Loving, and Leading through Christ

November 13, 2023

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Leadership Team Updates

Dear St. Alphonsus Families,


Can you believe we are only 7 school days out from Thanksgiving break? This year is certainly flying by. We have lots of things to update you on this week, but first and foremost, please remember to donate to our Thanksgiving food drive this week. You can find more details below, and Friday is the last day we will be collecting. Please give generously if you can.


Second, don't forget that tomorrow is an Out of Uniform Day for with a minimum $1 donation to help the Girl Scouts refurbish the Wiggle Room in church! Again, more details below.


Speaking of uniforms, the Home & School Uniform closet is open again this week. It will be open on Friday, November 17 from 7:45 to 8:30am. You can drop off donations at this time and also shop. Everything is $1 per item, cash only.


Our next Pizza Lunch Fundraiser is the Monday after Thanksgiving break, November 27. There will be no hot lunch, ala carte, or milk served on this day, so please be sure to pack your student a cold lunch or order some pizza! Forms are due this Wednesday, and late forms cannot be accepted--we are held to tight deadlines by Domino's. You can find the form below.


And this is a reminder to turn in your permission slips for Elf Jr. the Musical! The entire school is attending this musical presented by St. Thomas More High School on December 14! Please also include your $6 fee--cash or check made out to St. Alphonsus Catholic School. Please send exact amount--no change will be given.


Lastly, thank you for using the [email protected] email to report absences and early pickups. Please note that if you report a planned absence early, you still need to call school on the day of the absence to confirm that your child will not be in school.


Have a great week!

Ms. Parey, Mrs. Schermetzler, and Mrs. Bruhn

Interim Leadership Team

Upcoming Dates to Remember


11/14

Out of Uniform Day with Donation

Details Below!


11/14

School Advisory Commission

Open Session

5:00pm - Community Room


11/15

Pizza Lunch Order Forms Due

No Exceptions or Extensions


11/17

Uniform Closet Open

7:45-8:30am


11/22-11/24

No School

Gobble, gobble!

Happy Thanksgiving!


11/27

Pizza Fundraiser Lunch

Details Below!


11/29

Dine Out Night

Chipotle


12/1

Poinsettia Sale Pickup

2:45-6:00pm

Community Room



12/1

Advent Wreath Blessing

Details Below


12/5

Christmas Concert

(Grades 3K - 3rd)

10:30am & 6:00pm


12/9 & 12/10

Cookie Walk

Details Below!


12/13

Dine Out Night

Cousins Subs


12/14

Elf Jr. The Musical Field Trip


12/21

Pizza Fundraiser Lunch

Details coming soon!


12/22

Las Posadas

8:00am

Details Coming Soon


12/22

11:30am Dismissal

MERRY CHRISTMAS!


12/25 - 12/29

No School

Christmas Break


pepperoni_pizza.jpg

Our Next Pizza Fundraiser Lunch is Monday, November 27


Order forms went home this week and are due back to school by THIS WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15. Please note that there is NO HOT LUNCH OR MILK served on this day, so if your students are not ordering the pizza lunch you will need to send a cold lunch. LATE ORDER FORMS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED--NO EXCEPTIONS.


A copy of the order form is attached here. Return forms by October 4th with cash or check for payment. Exact amounts only, no change will be given. One form per child but families can use one envelope.


Volunteers are also needed to help serve the lunches to students. This is an easy commitment of about an hour! You can sign up here.

November Out of Uniform Schedule


We thought it might be easier for you to have a list of days that are Out-Of-Uniform either with a pass or with special circumstances for the whole month, so here are the remaining Out-of-Uniform days for November:


11/14

Out of Uniform with donation to the Girl Scouts for their Wiggle Room project (details below)


11/17

Last Friday of the Month, Out of Uniform with purchased pass


11/30

Out of Uniform with Dine Out Night purchase on 11/29 (receipt required)

Advent Wreath Blessing & Las Posadas

Please consider joining us on Friday, December 1 at 2:00pm in Church for an Advent Wreath Blessing. Bring your advent wreaths from home to have them blessed during our short prayer service. We hope to see you there!

Save the Date for Las Posadas!


Join us on Friday, December 22 for a special St. Alphonsus Catholic School Holiday Tradition: Las Posadas. This special performance takes place almost entirely in Spanish and tells the story of Mary & Joseph's journey to Bethlehem. It is followed by a short prayer service.


Las Posadas will take place on Friday, December 22 at 8:10am. Please be seated by 8:00am.


We are also looking for a few talented seamstresses who would consider refurbing some of our Las Posadas costumes, particularly for the angels. If you or someone you know would consider sewing us some angel costumes, we would be so appreciative. Please contact Mrs. Schermetzler for more details.

Dress Code Reminders

It's time for the next rounds of Pack the Church & Student Lectors at our Sunday Masses!


Our popular student lector program is back at Sunday masses this winter, on these dates:


Sunday, December 3 at 11:00am Mass

Sunday, January 28 at 9:00am Mass

Sunday, February 25 at 11:00am Mass


St. Alphonsus students in grades 2-8 are eligible to be lectors. Students in all grades can be gift bearers. You can sign your child up here. Parents, when signing up please include YOUR email so that we can contact you the week of your students participation. 


Lectors will practice with Mrs. Schermetzler on Fridays before the weekend masses!


In addition, all of our student lector dates will continue to be Pack the Church dates for school! We would love to have the church filled with St. Alphonsus School families on these dates. Students should wear their Unity shirts or another St. Alphonsus shirt so that they are easily visible as St. Al's students. We hope to see you there!

November & December Lunch Menus

New Spiritwear Sale Is Open!

Looking to get a few early Christmas gifts? We have a new St. Alphonsus Spiritwear Sale going on!


You can shop the sale here and all orders will be shipped directly to the address you provide on or before 12/22/23.


A portion of the revenue from these orders will be donated to St. Alphonsus.


The sale is only open til Friday so order today!

The Thanksgiving Food Drive is Back!

'Tis the season for giving and we are back for another year of the Thanksgiving Food Drive in cooperation with Christian Formation and the Parish. Here is what each class is responsible for donating. Boxes will be placed outside each of our classrooms and we are collecting now through November 17.


If you're able to donate, please give generously. The food pantry line on Sunday was long, and many people are in need of help this holiday season. Let's show them the love & care of the St. Alphonsus community.


3K & 4K

Boxes of Cornbread Mix

5K

Canned Cranberry Sauce

1st Grade

Canned Green Beans

2nd Grade

Pudding/Jello Mix

3rd Grade

Boxes of Mashed Potatoes & Canned Gravy (no glass jars please)

4th Grade

Canned Corn

5th Grade

Cake Mix & Frosting

6th Grade

Boxed Mac & Cheese

7th Grade

Boxes of Stuffing Mix

8th Grade

Canned Yams or Canned Sweet Potatoes

Girl Scout News - Out of Uniform Day TOMORROW!

4th & 5th Grade Girl Scouts Try to Earn Bronze Award!


The Girl Scout Bronze Award is a nationally recognized achievement and is the highest honor a Girl Scout Junior can earn. Troops must work on a service project that will leave a lasting positive impact in the community. 


Troop 11412 from 4th and 5th grade has decided to update the Wiggle Room at Church and make it more family friendly. This project will include painting, cleaning, creating artwork & adding toys, bookshelves and furniture. 


Our troop will be covering most of the renovation costs, but we could use a little extra support to make this room really special. The troop is hosting an Out-Of-Uniform Day tomorrow, Tuesday, November 14. Bring in your donation of $1 or more to help support this project and students can be out of uniform that day! Please send your donation in a envelope marked Troop 11412 Wiggle Room Donation. 

SCRIP Makes Sense!

This week's SCRIP updates:


A urgent note from the SCRIP lady!


If you have experienced a problem trying to reload your Pick n’ Save cards in the past 10 days, you are not alone. RaiseRight doesn’t have control over this situation. But you can purchase e-cards and you can also contact SCRIP Coordinator Vickie Major if you want to purchase physical Pick n' Save cards. Thanks!


The holidays are coming! Some of you may wonder “What can I get my child’s teacher or a staff member for Christmas?”  Why not gift them some SCRIP Bucks?


SCRIP Bucks are gift certificates that you give to your favorite person in whatever denomination you like. ($5/$10/$25). Your gift can be redeemed for anything SCRIP sells. In the past, teachers have saved up their SCRIP Bucks and have purchased big ticket items. 


This is what I call the TRIPLE WIN!

1.   Your teacher wins (because it's a gift!)

2.   You win because you will receive the credit for whatever your giftee purchases.

3.   The school wins as part of the rebate helps the bottom line.


Don't forget the other TRIPLE WIN! Purchasing SCRIP for St. Al's Dine Out Nights help you, Home & School, and the school itself! Order those Cousins gift cards today to get them in time for November 8.


Hop on the SCRIP bandwagon! Start saving towards your tuition!


Signing up for SCRIP is easy, and there is even an app to use! Register here, using the enrollment code 855F1LF31943. You can also check out our Enrollment Forms and FAQ on our school website. If you would like to order via paper order form, you can find that here.


Any questions, please email our SCRIP coordinator, Vickie Major, here.

Home & School Happenings

The Poinsettia Sale is on!


Do you have some hard to shop for people on your holiday shopping list?  Do you want to make your home or office more festive this holiday season?  We have the perfect solution to your problem!

 

We are selling high quality poinsettias and evergreen baskets from Milaeger’s! If you have or know of a business that would like to order we can accommodate large orders! 

It’s the easiest holiday shopping EVER: 

 

  • Order forms came home with students this week, you may start selling immediately
  • Send your sheet with totals and payment to the school office by Tuesday, November 21
  • Pick up your plants on December 1st in the MPR (cafeteria) between 2:45 and 6:00pm        
  • Don't plan to sell? No problem! You can also simply order via this order form and return your payment to the school office in a sealed envelope marked Poinsettia Sale, Attention Jennifer Rekowski.

 

We are also in need of helpers on December 1 to help pick up, unload, organize, & distribute plants. Please note you must be Safeguard certified to volunteer. Use this link to sign up!

 

The St. Alphonsus Home & School thanks you for your support! Please direct questions to Jennifer Rekowski via email or phone at 414-688-5752.

It's time to think about Cookie Walk!


Cookie Walk is a beloved St. Alphonsus School tradition. School families bake & sell cookies after all masses on the weekend of December 9 & 10. You can find more details below.


We ask ALL school families to participate by committing to bake at least 4 dozen cookies or holiday treats. Forms will go home this week OR you can print out the form below, also linked here. All families who return a form will be entered to win an Out-of-Uniform pass for their child.

Sign up for Box Tops & check out the newest flyer below!


Use our referral code BTNX89MQ when you sign up and you’ll get 25 Bonus Box Tops when you scan your first receipt now through 05/31/2024, while supplies last! Download the Box Tops for Education app here. 


Any questions, please contact our Box Tops Coordinator Carrie Jurgens.

Parish News

Next Parish Women's Group Meeting is November 18!


The next parish women's group meeting will be at 9:30am on Saturday, November 18 in the Parish Ministry Center, Room 101. We will focus on the theme of "Saints." We will watch an inspirational homily by Fr. Mike Schmitz, and discuss our thoughts and other personal saint stories. Come for some faith, friendship, and probably food!


Also, if you have any questions for Fr. Kevin, we will host "Ask a Priest" again on December 16, followed by guided Adoration in the chapel. We will meet in the Community Room, so we can be closer to the chapel. Please have some questions ready on November 18, so we can let him prepare ahead of time.


This drop-in group is for all women in the St. Alphonsus parish. We meet once a month or so. For questions, contact group leader Maggie Ensing.

Do you have items for the newsletter? To submit them or for questions and submission guidelines, please contact Amy Schermetzler.

Please note that submissions are due by 12:00pm Fridays.