Faith Academics Service

November 14th ~ Newsletter

One Community One Family

Dear Christ the King Catholic School Community,

 

This week we are celebrating Christ as our King through prayer, fun activities, and a special Friday mass in love and reverence of Christ – led by Father Paulson and our 8th-grade class of 2024.  


Christ the King is one of the names of Jesus found in various forms in scripture. The Feast of Christ the King was instituted by Pope Pius XI in his encyclical “Quas Primas” in 1925. This year Christ’s Feast Day lands on Sunday, November 26, 2023. As a response to the secularism and upheaval between nations at that time, Pope Pius XI stated, “We must look for the peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ.” We are so blessed to have Christ as our King, blessing and leading our days as One Community One Family. All glory and honor to God, His son Jesus, and our Holy Mother Mary.

 

Likewise, we are so excited for Miss Thornbury and our 7th-grade students, their families, our staff, and parent volunteers as they travel for a transformative week at Camp Caritas in Occidental, California. Catholic Charities CYO Camp is a comprehensive, 5-day residential environmental education experience for young people. The program offers a blend of age-appropriate science curriculum aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards and retreat-style activities fostering social, spiritual, and academic development for youth from diverse backgrounds. One of the unique aspects of the program is the faith community-building experience, where the focus is placed on recognizing the individual’s unique gifts and strengths. Through hands-on exploration, Catholic Charities CYO endeavors to illuminate the divine in all things and build empathy and understanding for the natural world.


A gracious thank you and shout out to Keisha and Brendan O’Shea for creating the 2023-2024 Christ the King Catholic School Directory. Taking over this monumental task requires patience, an eagle eye, tremendous work, and follow-through. Beth and Enrique Alvarez are to be commended for their years of service to our directory/community in handing it over to the O’Shea family. Keisha and Brendan picked up this project with leadership lighting the way in keeping our directory in its intended and highly useful form. Keisha is a data analyst by profession and her skills in visualization, research, attention to detail, analysis, and exploration created an awesome directory! Such a wonderful couple and family to our community! Much gratitude and blessings to the O’Shea family. In addition, Mrs. Rubino is to be commended for her work with Keisha on final edits and suggestions whereby her skills were greatly appreciated as well.

 

In closing, I pray for a very joyful/peaceful/blessed Thanksgiving break/day/meal with your family and loved ones. Much gratitude for your generosity with our annual Saint Vincent De Paul food drive as well. In this month of gratitude, I thank God for each of you and for your commitment and important place in our school’s strong education and faith-filled legacy.


God bless you and much love and respect in my heart for you all as we await the light and spirit of the Advent season,


Mr. Joseph M. Silveira

Principal 

Christ the King Catholic 

Prayers

Dear Heavenly Father, please watch over us while we prepare for Thanksgiving. Help us to count our blessings and be thankful for all that we have. All to often it is easy to get caught up in our wants and desires. Let us remember to say Thank you and realize that You have provided so much for us and our CTK community.


We pray for Zion Omole's (6th) brother Ezra and Mrs. Kemmerer's (5th Grade Teacher) mother who are battling illness. Prayers, compassion and healing grace to Sister Kathy Lang, Sister Carmel Garcia, Sister Joanne Gallagher and Sister Anna Marie Gillett. We ask God to hear our prayers and provide the love and support we are seeking.


 If you have special intentions please email Mrs. Meran here so we can include them in our next newsletter.

Important Dates

Tuesday, November 14 - 7th Grade Camp Caritas, 1st Trimester Ends

Wednesday, November 15 - 7th Grade Camp Caritas, Principal for the Day, 2nd Trimester Begins, CTK Spirit Wear, Ice Cream Sales Grades 1-8, 2:15pm Dismissal

Thursday, November 16 - 7th Grade Camp Caritas, HL- Pasta with Creamy Red Sauce

Friday, November 17 - 7th Grade Caritas, 8:00am Liturgy Grades K-8 (8th Grade Prepares), Dress Uniform

Monday, November 20 - Friday, November 24 - Thanksgiving Break

Thursday, November 23 - Happy Thanksgiving!

Monday, November 27 - School Resumes, CTK Spirit Week Wear a Tie or Tie Dye

Tuesday, November 28 - CTK Spirit Week, Wear your Class Colors

Wednesday, November 29 - CTK Spirit Week, Wear CTK Spirit Wear, Ice Cream Sales Grades 1-8, 2:15 Dismissal

Thursday, November 30 - CTK Spirit Week, Regular Uniform, HL - Pizza

Friday, December 1 - CTK Spirit Week, Wear a Cross with Dress Uniform. 8:00am Liturgy Grades K-8 (6th Grade Prepares)

Saturday, December 2 - 10:00am First Reconciliation (Last Names A-L), 11:00am First Reconciliation (Last Names M-Z)

Sunday, December 3 - 5:15 Tree Lighting

Choir


Choir practice will be in the church this 

Wednesday November 15th from 2:20pm to 3:00pm


St. Cecilia, patroness of music and musicians, Pray for Us.


Community Choir Event: 

Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland

 Advent Procession with Lessons & Carols

Sunday Dec. 3, 2023 at 5pm. Free parking in the parking garage


CTK Spirit Week

Christ the King Spirit Week! 

November 27th - December 1st 

   



Hello CTK! We are excited to announce that Student Leadership will be hosting a Spirit Week in honor of the Christ the King feast day on November 26, 2023. We have lots of fun activities for the school to connect us as a community. During this week, we ask that students drop by CTK and donate non-perishable food such as brownie mix or canned goods. This event will be associated with Thursday, but donations are open all week. There will be a box in front of the office where you can drop off your food. We appreciate all the donations! Here is what we have planned:



Monday November 27 - 


Peace, Love, & Kindness Tie Us Together as Disciples of Christ! Wear a tie, bow tie, or tie dye with non-uniform free dress! Be sure to spread random acts of kindness all day long! 


Tuesday, November 28 -


One Community, One Family Wear your class colors (see below) with uniform bottoms. K- 4 will enjoy a story read by one of your Student Leadership representatives and grades 5-8 will enjoy a friendly CTK Trivia Kahoot!


Kindergarten: Red

1st Grade: Orange

2nd: Yellow 

3rd: Green

4th: Blue

5th: Purple

6th: Pink

7th: White

8th: Black


Wednesday, November 29 -


CTK Spirit Day! Wear red, gold, or any CTK apparel to show off your school spirit with non-uniform bottoms. Make sure your fee dress choices are appropriate for school and do not violate the CTK dress code outlined in the handbook. 



Thursday, November 30 -


Thankful Thursday! Faith Family Activity in gratitude for our love for God, our teachers, students, family, and Christ the King community! (Regular uniform). Students are invited to donate to the less fortunate in our community by donating non-perishable food such as brownie mix or canned goods.



Friday, Friday December 1 -


Wear your Cross to School! To close CTK Spirit Week, we will celebrate Mass together as One Community and One Family. Students can wear a cross necklace throughout the day or bring a rosary, or a small handheld cross.



We look forward to a wonderful week of honoring Christ the King and celebrating our school community!


Lord, Jesus Christ, Our Sovereign King

     the beginning and end of all things,

you have made your Church to be a people

     that bears witness to the goodness and beauty of your kingdom.



Sincerely,

The Student Leadership Team

Tree Lighting

Congratulations

Congratulations to our very own Mrs. Karst. She has received her Master's degree in Reading, Language and Literacy. We are truly blessed to have Mrs. Karst as part of our faculty. She excels in her reading room classes and brings her talents to our student leadership as well. Mrs. Karst, on behalf of the entire CTK community, we say thank you for being a part of our team. We are so proud of you!

Hot Lunch Coordinator

We are looking for a Hot Lunch Coordinator to take over our Hot Lunch program on Thursdays. This is a great way to get involved and have some fun! You even get to see your child and their friends come through the line. Our students love hot lunch and we hope to keep this tradition going.



Please contact Mrs. Rubino here if you are interested and for more information.

Hot Lunch & Ice Cream Tickets

As a friendly reminder please check your supply of hot lunch and ice cream tickets before your child needs them. Tickets can be purchased through the family envelope and will be sent home with your child. We understand that sometimes tickets will need to be purchased in the office but please use the family envelope as your first option. When purchasing tickets please make sure you have the proper form filled out. Please do not send your child to the office with money and not a form.


Hot lunch ticket form is here


Milk & ice cream form is here

2023-2024 Directories

The 2023-2024 school directories are here! They will be going home in the Family Envelope today. Every family will receive one copy, additional copies may be purchased in the office for $5. Please remember that this directory is to be used for school related business only.


We would like to thank Brendan and Keisha O'Shea for taking on the school directory. We are grateful for all of your hard work and dedication.

Reminders from the Office

Safety at drop off and pick up is of upmost importance to all of us at CTK. We cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is to follow the guidelines we have set out. Please comply with the following no matter how tempting it might be to do otherwise:


  • Always use the upper lot to drop off and pick up students. DO NOT use the small lot, drive in front of the church or up the service road off Brandon Road for any reason.
  • Morning drop off begins at 7:50 with orange vested supervisors on the lower yard. If you are here before 7:50, you can keep them in your car or sign them into CLUB CTK. NO child should be on campus without adult supervision for any reason.
  • If your child walks or bikes to school please time their arrival as close to 7:50 or later as possible.
  • Friday Morning Choir at 7:30: Please ensure that your children have reached the front of the church safely and remain with them until school personnel arrive to open the church. Please keep in mind the safety of all students and resist the temptation to drive by church or to leave your children unattended. The few extra steps are always worth it!
  • Please drive SLOWLY and CAREFULLY in the school parking lot during morning drop off and afternoon pick up. It is always important to pay attention to the crossing guard and signals near school. Small children can be hard to see in a crowded lot, so we ask that you be aware of their safety at all times. Also, when parking please pull forward to the front spaces, if available, and park facing the gym.
  • Please leave all parking spaces along the fence empty. The area all along the fence is for carpools only. Parking in these spots prevents the flow of carpool traffic and backs up traffic onto Gregory Lane. Please park in the center of the lot.


Our children are one of our greatest gifts; we appreciate your help in keeping them all safe!



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As much as we all love our furry friends, per the Oakland Diocese policy we can not have dogs on campus. We appreciate your understanding and thank you for leaving your pets at home.


Please click here for the statement from the Oakland Diocese

Library Books

It's never too late to turn in your over due library books! Jeff Kolb Class of 1969 dropped off his over due library book this week. Jeff checked this book out in 1962 and kept it in perfect condition! We are always happy to welcome our alumni home and love hearing stories about their time at CTK. Jeff's class was the first group to attend all grades at Christ the King Catholic School.

Scrip

Shutterfly's rebate through RaiseRight has increased from 9% to 16% for the next two weeks!


This is a great deal to take advantage of if you're starting your Christmas shopping or looking to create cards and gifts. 


There are several other vendors that have increased bonuses this week. Head over to RaiseRight.com to see all gift cards and promotions available. Happy shopping!


Family Service Hours

Thank you to everyone that has signed up to help our teachers and school! Your time and commitments help us to have the best school year possible. 


When you are finished with your volunteer service, remember to fill out the google form that records your Family Service Hours. You can find the form here. This form can be completed after each volunteer opportunity or your earliest convenience so that your hours are recorded and not forgotten! 


Expense Reimbursement

Please complete the form here if you are requesting reimbursement for school activities (for example, PTG events). After requests are reviewed and approved, your reimbursement will be ready within 7-10 business days. 


Wreath Fundraiser

Happy Thanksgiving & Merry Christmas

from Christ the King - St. Stephen Parish

Cub Scout Pack 401!


Our Cub Scouts are planning to sell Christmas Wreaths for our annual fundraiser after weekend Masses on Sat.-Sun. 11/25-11/26, 12/2-12/3/23, and also after School at CTK (3pm) on Mon.-Tues. 11/27-11/28/23. The cost is $30 for a 22" Wreath. Please stop by and pick out a Wreath from your CTK - St. Stephen Cub Scouts! Merry Christmas!!


Brian Hanley

Pack 401 Cubmaster

Parish News

CTK Parish Constant Contact: Click here to view the November 8th parish news.

CTK Parish Prayer Line: Please email prayer requests to Rosa Grand via [email protected].
Quick Links!

Partners in Faith November Issue: Click here


Parent Student Handbook: Click here


Hot Lunch Ticket Order Form: Click here


Milk & Ice Cream Ticket Order Form: Click Here


School Supply List Grades K-8: Click Here


Club Registration Form: Click Here


Walk to School Form: Click here


Student Medication Form: Click here


Virtus Safe Environment TrainingClick here to access the online training site and click here for instructions.


Diocese of Oakland Volunteer Application form: Click here


TB Assessment Form: Click Here


CTK Parish Prayer Line: Please email prayer requests to Rosa Grand via [email protected].