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SSJ School News
February 8, 2024 - Issue #22
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Lenten Prayer for Ash Wednesday
God of goodness and mercy, Hear my prayer as I begin this Lenten journey with you. Let me be honest with myself as I look into my heart and soul, noticing the times I turn away from you. Guide me as I humbly seek to repent and return to your love.
May humility guide my efforts to be reconciled with you and live forever in your abundant grace. Transform me this Lent, heavenly Father. Give me the strength to commit myself to grow closer to you each day. Amen.
(Dynamic Catholic)
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NEW THIS WEEK & REMINDERS
Gratitude
I wish to inform you that Miss McIntyre, Music teacher, has resigned her position here at SSJ effective Friday, February 16, 2024 to pursue other opportunities. I know you join me in thanking Miss McIntyre for all she has shared with our SSJ Family during her time here. We wish her much peace and happiness in her future endeavors. I am accepting resumes to fill the music teacher position.
SSJ Pretzel Orders Now Open
Pretzel orders for the months of March and April are now open. Click here to order. All orders are due by Monday, February 12th. Payment for pretzels must be made using your FACTS account. Checks and cash are no longer accepted. You must submit the online form in addition to depositing money in FACTS. If you have any questions, please contact the school office at 610-696-5249 or kheraghty@simonandjude.org.
Register for CYO Spring Sports
Registration for SSJ CYO Spring Sports is now open for students in kindergarten to grade 8! Click here for more information and a link to register.
Title 1 Family Survey Reminder
Each year we request our school families to complete a Title I Family Survey to ensure our eligibility for participation in federal programs that may provide our students with a variety of materials and services. On February 5th, you received an email with two attachments. The first was a letter from Sister Regina explaining our request for information. The second was the Title 1 Survey. We ask that you complete the survey document and return it to Sister Regina no later than February 12th. All information will remain confidential. We appreciate your cooperation and participation.
Emergency Baby Formula Collection - Tomorrow is the Last Day!
The Baby Formula Collections continues until February 9th. If you are able to help out, we are asking for one can of baby formula which can be brought into school. This would be a tremendous help and very much appreciated by those in need. God bless you for your generosity and let us all respect life in every way.
Terra Nova Testing Reminder
Children in grades two through seven will take the annual Terra Nova testing on March 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. Again this year we, along with many Archdiocesan schools, will take the test online. It is our hope that all students are present to take the testing online with his/her class. If it is necessary to schedule appointments, please schedule afternoon rather than morning appointments.
Pizza, Prayer, & Play Thanks
Thanks to The Knights of Columbus, our volunteers, and to all who will participate in tonight's Pizza, Prayer, & Play!
7th & 8th Grade Cluster Dance Reminders
SSJ is hosting a 7th and 8th Grade Cluster Dance this Friday, February 9th, 7-9 PM. More details are below. Click here to download the REQUIRED permission slip. Don't forget your admission fee and cash to purchase candy and water.
Spring Craft Club
Miss Stenson and Miss Hilbert are excited to offer a Spring Craft Club for students in K to grade 4! More details are below. Click here or on the flyer to sign up.
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FROM SSJ'S HOME & SCHOOL ASSOCIATION | |
HSA Raffle
Thank you to everyone who purchased tickets during our Catholic Schools Week Flash Raffle Sale! Congratulations to the the winners of our last raffle, the Hearn family, Emma (gr. 4) and Lily (gr. 2).
SSJ Mother & Son Night
Join us for SSJ’s Mother and Son Night at the Philadelphia Flyers!
Save the date for Sunday, March 24th, 2024, at 6:00pm at the Wells Fargo Center. Sign up by February 14th! Click here to reserve your spots via SignUpGenius. Click here to make your payment via PayPal or QR code below!
Bag Bingo
SSJ Designer Bag Bingo will be held on Thursday, February 22nd in The Meehan Center. Seating is limited and tickets will sell out quickly! You can purchase your bingo ticket, grand prize ticket (LOUIS VUITTON!!), and raffle tickets all through the link. Raffle tickets and 50/50 will also be sold at the event for more chances to win. Click here to buy your tickets now.
Once you have purchased your ticket, click here for a SignUpGenius to sign up for a table. Don’t have a group? Buy a ticket and we will pair you up with new friends!
The event is BYOB and favorite food to share with your table. Tables are 10 people max. If you have more than 10 please consider splitting into 2 tables. Please contact Anne Marie Gerhart at annemarie.gerhart@gmail.com for any questions and if you are interested in donating a bag or a door prize.
The Eras Sweetheart Dance (SSJ Version)
On Saturday, March 23 from 6-8:30pm, all SSJ girls in Pre-K - 8th grade are invited to The Eras Sweetheart Dance (SSJ Version)! Grab your dad or favorite guy, feel free to dress in a Taylor Swift-era inspired outfit and get ready to have a blast! As Taylor Swift says, 'Tonight I'm going to dance for all that we've been through.' Get ready for a night of dancing and memories - we don’t know how it could get better than this! Click here to RSVP & Buy Tickets by March 15. If you have questions, contact Carolyn Phillip (carolyn.m.judge@gmail.com) and Dana Durkin (Danadurkin4@gmail.com).
Save the Date
Our General Home and School Association meeting will be on Wednesday, February 28th.
Dine and Donate Event
February 22 - LoPiccolo Dine and Donate. Details below.
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Catholic Schools Week Service Project Thanks
Cereal & Milk Collection
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Fun “SSJ” dominos to conclude our Cereal & Milk Collection for the West Chester Food Cupboard! Generous students contributed over 270 boxes of cereal and teachers over 60 boxes of milk... A total of 447 pounds of food! Thank you for your generosity! | |
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We Fill Buckets at SSJ!
Our faculty and staff who will receive their buckets tomorrow are Miss Lor Stenson (Rm. 12); Mrs. Jackie Funk (PreK 4 Aide); Mrs. Theresa Murray (PreK 3 Aide); and Mrs. Kate Pinner (CARES).
During the week of February 5th, students will acknowledge: Ms. Mary Pat Mauer (PreK 4 Teacher); Mrs. Jennifer Bowers (PreK 4 Aide); and Mr. Andy Salzmann (Maintenance).
This year we are promoting kindness at SSJ School for our faculty and staff. Every week, three faculty and staff members will have a bucket, and students are invited to fill their buckets. Items that might be good would be thank you notes, candy, class supplies, trinkets, or something you think that person would enjoy.
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Scholastic Book Fair Thanks & Congrats
Thanks to everyone who made this year’s Book Fair a success! We are able to order many new books and makerspace materials for our Library Media Center with the proceeds! A special thanks goes out to our Book Fair Chairpersons, Jen Miley and Katie Sierakowski who put in countless hours to make the book fair happen! Thanks as well to all the families who donated to the JOY raffle baskets, especially the Cleary family who generously donated a four pack of Phillies tickets to a game this season! We are so grateful for every volunteer who dedicated time and effort to this event!
Congratulations to the 22 winners of the free poster raffle! And congrats to Genevieve Buckley who won the jar of Emoji kisses with the closest guess! Our 2 big raffle winners were Paul Daniel (Emoji Joy Basket) and Gabe Levey (Joy Sports & Entertainment Basket)! Congratulations again to all our lucky winners!
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Kindness Spreads at SSJ
Kindness is being recognized at SSJ this February and March. When an adult sees a kind action, they will write up a slip of peanut butter or jelly paper and they will give it to the student to put it on a bulletin board of bread. The students with the most rewards will win a Dairy Queen gift card sponsored by the Peace Committee.
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PRAYER REQUESTS
We are happy to pray for the needs of our school family. If any family has a prayer request please send it to srelinich@simonandjude.org.
For Mr. Robert Ewing, grandfather of Ben Brango, (room 17), who has died. May he be enjoying the rewards of eternal life. May Our Mother of Sorrows console and comfort his family and all who mourn his passing.
For the grandfather of Jaxon Sentyz (room 14), who suffered an injury. May Christ’s healing hand comfort him and grant him a complete recovery.
For Katie Weinberger, aunt of Owen (room 5) and Lilly Cline (room 8), who is ill and will be undergoing surgery. May Christ's healing hand grant her a successful surgery and a complete and speedy recovery.
For Mr. Leo Stenson, father of Miss Stenson (room 12), who is ill. May Christ’s healing hand grant him a complete and speedy recovery.
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On Friday, February 2nd, students from grades 5 to 8 competed in an Archdiocesan sponsored Religion Bee. Mary Daniel took first place, and will represent Saints Simon and Jude School in the Archdiocesan preliminary Religion Bee on Thursday, February 22nd at Cardinal O’Hara High School. Congratulations and good luck!
Congratulations to our Religion Bee participants:
Front row: Mary Daniel (1st place), Brodey McGrath, William Buckley
Back row: Connal Farrell (2nd place), Ryan Clancy, Christian Reinecker, Martha Hricko (3rd place), Lilly Cline
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Congratulations to the January Peacemakers who practiced the virtue of hope! During the month of January, our Peacemakers strived to be like Saint John Neumann and showed the school community what it means to have hope in their daily lives.
Row 1: Andrew Donnelly, Sydney Hill, Taylor Buckley, Bennett McAllister, Remy Diederich
Row 2: Alyssa Miley, Elaina Welsh, Kylie Miller, Gemma DelVescovo
Row 3: Gabe Levey, Summer Keating, Edward Corliss, James Levey
Row 4: Patrick Cleary, Cole Joyce, Hailey Stanislawczyk, Alex Kubica
Not pictured: Annabelle Stratis
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Regional Spelling Bee
On Wednesday 2/7/24, Natalie Benek represented SSJ very well at the CCIU Regional Spelling Bee. She spelled correctly through the first several rounds, but alas, was eliminated in the semifinals. Natalie makes us SSJ proud!
Natalie was the winner of our annual SSJ All School Spelling Bee that was held during Catholic Schools Week.
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During Catholic Schools Week our 7th grade students created "New & Improved SSJs!" The students constructed 3D models of their buildings, with each room featuring a floor plan illustrating its intended use. We are very proud of our students' creativity and hard work! | |
8th Grade & Teacher Talent Show Acts | |
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REPEATED INFORMATION
Chairs for Sale
I am happy to announce that our new folding chairs for the gym have arrived. We will be selling the old (in good condition) red chairs for $5.00 a chair. If you would like to purchase a chair or chairs please email Mrs. Heraghty, kheraghty@simonandjude.org or Mrs. Rezer, fprando@simonandjude.org and let them know the number of chairs you would like and when you would like to pick them up. Cash or checks made out to Saints Simon and Jude School are accepted.
| Save the date and hire your babysitter now for a fun and festive night out! More details coming soon. If interested in volunteering to help with the event, please email Vanessa Kehoe – vbo@georgetown.edu. | |
Mark Your Calendars
Summer Camps are Back!
Saints Simon and Jude School is excited to welcome all students entering Kindergarten to Grade 5 for a summer filled with learning and fun! We look forward to participating in spectacular themed activities such as crafts, art, reading, movement, and STREAM (Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Arts, Math) projects. Campers will be divided by age and activities will be age-appropriate.
We will also offer Art (Grades K-3 and Grades 4-8) and Theater (Grades 3-8) Intensive Camps for more specialized learning experiences!
Explorers Summer Camps will be back in the school building! The weeks will be June 24-28, July 8-12, July 15-19, July 22-26, and July 29-August 2 from 9 AM until 12 PM. More details and the summer camp schedule will be available soon! Get ready for a GREAT summer!
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