We had our first spirit day today: City vs. Country. Thank you to our 5th-6th graders for choosing today's spirit day and lunch menu. Thank you to Mrs. Chanin for preparing a delicious lunch!

Redeemed: Our school theme for this school year is a wonderful reminder about what Jesus has done for us. It keeps us focused not on ourselves, but what Jesus has done for us. He conquered sin, death, and the devil and His victory is our victory. These words from LSB 718 verse 4 are a great prayer as we continue to follow Jesus:

Jesus, lead Thou on Till our rest is won.

Heav'nly leader, still direct us,

Still support, console, protect us,

Till we safely stand In our fatherland.

Serving in Worship: The Seraphim Choir (grades 5-8) will be singing in church this Sunday, October 20. The Cherub Choir sings in church next Sunday, October 27. Students will warm up at 9:10am in the music room. Thank you!

The Liberian Children's Ministry: Thank you for encouraging your children to bring in their chapel offerings weekly. Several times in the last few weeks, we have seen children reminding their parents to give them their chapel offerings on Wednesdays. What a wonderful habit this is for children. We have just two weeks left for our current chapel project.

Turkey Trot 2024: The Turkey Trot is two weeks away! Races will begin at 9:00am. There will be caramel apples from Jacques Orchard for children, medals for all finishers, free online finisher photos and professional timing of the races. This is a great school event!

Lunch Menu for the week of October 21:

• Monday, October 21: Popcorn Chicken, Corn and Applesauce.
• Tuesday, October 22: Homemade Stromboli, California Vegetable Blend and Sliced Peaches.
• Wednesday, October 23: Tony's Pepperoni Pizza, Green Beans and Diced Pears.
• Thursday, October 24: Hot Ham & Cheese Sandwich, Tater Tots and Pineapple Tidbits.
• Friday, October 25: Hot Dog on a Bun, Baked Beans and Mandarin Oranges.

PTL Tips of the Week: With our recent guest speakers, Joe and Joy McMillan, at our PTL meeting on Monday about technology safety, here is an article by Dr. Tim Elmore called Four Rules That Could Reverse the Anxiety Epidemic in Teens. Click anywhere in this article to read the short article with these four main rules that are posed:

1. No smart phones before high school.
2. No social media before 16 years old.
3. No phones at school.
4. More independence, free play and responsibility in the real world. 

MSU vs. MI! Who's Your Team? This Monday, we will have our annual contest sponsored by our PTL to determine which fans are our biggest supporters. Students, parents, teachers, and anyone else can add change, cash, or checks into whichever team's canister they support. We will tally the totals to determine a winner before the big game on Saturday, October 26. The winning team will have their team's fight song played every day the following week for the closing bell. All proceeds will go towards raising funds for classroom flexible seating options and playground equipment. Go Blue! Go Green! or Go Away! You get to choose. 

Parent-Teacher Conferences: Conferences will take place on Thursday, November 14 in the afternoon and early evening for all parents with Preschool-8th grade students. Students in grades 5-8 are encouraged to attend these conferences with their parents. Sign-Ups through FACTS will be open beginning on October 25. Once sign-up open, please follow these steps:

1. Log into your FACTS Family Portal.
2. Go to the calendar tab on the left.
3. Then click on the My Classrooms tab on the top.
4. Go to Nov. 14, 2024 in the calendar.
5. Your child's conference sign up is there. If you have multiple children in different grades, there will be multiple sign ups. You will need to sign up for each child. Please note: If you select a 2:00pm appointment for one child, that time slot will not be blocked out on the other sign up.
6. All conference time slots are 15 minutes. Thank you for helping us stay on schedule for the day by limiting your conference to 15 minutes.
7. The last time slot is scheduled for 6:15pm-6:30pm.

We will have a half-day of school on November 14 (child care is available in the afternoon). There is no school on November 15, but there will also be child care on this day.

Theme Shirt Thursday: Our next Theme Shirt Thursday will be on Thursday, October 31. If you forgot to order a theme shirt while the St. Peter store was open, we still have several theme shirts in various sizes available in the office. Shirts are $16 each and can be billed through FACTS. Please call the school office or stop in if you would like to purchase one.

School Picture Retakes: If you missed Picture Day or wish to have your picture retaken, Hicks Studio will be at school Tuesday, October 22, beginning at 8:30am. The photographers will be here for about 20 minutes. If your child is a preschool student and it is not a day they attend school, you can still stop in on Tuesday morning at 8:30am to have their picture taken. There are extra picture forms in the office.

7th-8th Grade Class Trip Fundraiser: Our 7th and 8th graders will be holding a wreath and grave blanket sale with proceeds to benefit their class trip to Washington D.C. in April. Completed order forms and payment can be turn in to any 7th and 8th grade student or the school office. Money cannot be collected at the church. You may order now through November 17. Orders will be ready for pick-up on Monday, December 2 and Tuesday, December 3 from 3:00-6:00pm in the church pavilion. We thank you for your support of this great opportunity for these students.

Advent By Candlelight: Sunday, December 1, from 4:30-6:00pm, come and prepare your hearts for the Advent season. Soup, salad, bread and desserts will be served. An inspirational message, meaningful conversation and Christmas hymns will be enjoyed by all. Please call the school office (989.642.5659) or email Mrs. Kelley Fehn at kelley.fehn@stpeterhemlock.org to reserve your spot. This event will take place in the school gymnasium.

Thank You: Thank you to Mrs. Liat Marlow for making five additional banners for our gym for the new schools in our Tri-County Lutheran League.

A-Volleyball Team Concludes Season: Our Lady Panthers finished their regular season with a 6-2 record in the TCLL North Division which enabled them to finish in first place. They also had an overall record of 8-2 (10-4 including the VLHS tournament). They were seeded in the TCLL Gold Tournament Bracket and faced St. Lorenz in the first game. The girls played a hard fought game against the Spartans but bowed out of the tournament with a 0-2 loss. These girls were really fun to watch this season and had some great victories. Thanks for a wonderful season girls!

Soccer Team Finishes Strong: The soccer team finished their regular season with a 6-0 record and champions of the TCLL North Division. Their overall record for the regular season was 9-1. On Saturday, they played in the season-ending TCLL Gold Tournament bracket which featured the four best teams in the TCLL. In their first game, they easily cruised past St. Michael's, Richville with a 5-0 victory with Charlie Hyatt scoring 5 goals and Brady Klemish scoring 2 goals. In the Championship game, they faced the only team that had defeated them this year, St. Lorenz, and our Panthers played a great game. They jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with Ethan Smith and Charlie Hyatt each scoring a goal in the first quarter of play. The Panthers defended the Spartans well the entire game, but they came up with two goals, one at the end of the first half and one at the end of the third quarter. The game remained tied in regulation and through the first over-time. In the last minute of the second overtime, there was a penalty called in the box which gave St. Lorenz a penalty kick that they made. It was a devastating loss for the team, but it was also a proud moment to watch their sportsmanship throughout the game and at the end of the game in their second place finish in the tournament. Thanks for another great season soccer team!

Parent Sports Meeting: There will be a Parent Sports Meeting on Monday, October 21 at 6:30pm in the cafeteria for all parents who have a child playing A or B-Team Basketball (5th-8th graders). Your attendance is encouraged.

Girls A-Team Basketball: The A-Team Girls Basketball schedule is all set and the link is available below. A paper schedule will be handed out to players today at school.

Coach Needed: For our A-Boys Basketball Team, we are in need of a coach. Please contact Eric Hagenow if you are interested. Thank you for considering.

State Cross Country Meet: Zophia Zaleski ran in the Lutheran School State Cross Country meet last weekend at CUAA. Zophia finished in 18th place with a time of 15:17 for the two mile race. Congratulations on a great race, Zophia!