Dear Families,

Our 4^th Annual Trunk or Treat will be next Tuesday on Halloween. If you plan on decorating your trunks, please look for the email Julia Lacouture sent out earlier this week with specific information for the event. If you would still like to decorate your trunk, please contact Julia Lacouture at juliapaola_r@hotmail.com and signup through Sign Up Genius HERE. There will four special prizes for the best decorated which includes a prize for a Christian theme. The teachers and staff will be voting for the best trunks, and I will announce the winners in my next bulletin. Happy Decorating!

Friday, October 27, 2023 – St. Louise CYO Cross Country and Soccer Jerseys may be worn

Tomorrow, students may wear their St. Louise CYO Cross Country and Soccer Jerseys with their regular school uniforms to represent their teams. Great job on a wonderful Cross Country and Soccer season St. Louise. Go Chargers!

Last Call! St. Louise Auction - Saturday November 4^th, 2023

Our annual school auction is a week from Saturday. “A Grand Affair” will be at The Golf Club at Newcastle on Saturday, November 4^th, 2023, at 5:00pm. Get your tickets now and join us for this fun event and support St. Louise Parish School. You can sign up HERE.

Halloween Costume Guidelines

All students at St. Louise are allowed to come to school on Tuesday, October 31, wearing a Halloween costume. 

When helping your child decide what his/her costume will be, please take into account these "Fun Dress Day" guidelines:

• Costumes must be appropriate for an elementary school and more importantly, a Catholic elementary school; therefore, themes or dress that are disrespectful and/or too "adult" need to stay home. This includes, but is not limited to:
• No dressing up as the opposite sex.
• No costume with a crude sense of humor.
• Violent themes are not allowed. This includes, but is not limited to:
• Bloody makeup;
• Weapons (including fake ones);
• Costumes depicting devils or vampires.
• Costumes depicting violent characters such as Scream, Freddy Krueger, It/Pennywise, Dementor, etc.
• Mr. Fuerte has the final decision on which costumes are inappropriate, you may ask him if you wonder if your child's costume will be considered appropriate or not. Or simpler yet - if you have to wonder...then the answer probably is you should choose another costume. ;-)
• Thanks for keeping the "Happy" in "Happy Halloween!" by making this a fun day with no hassles.
• Should your kiddos arrive at school dressed as one of the more than 10,000 saints recognized by the Catholic church, they should stop by Mr. Fuerte’s office to pick up a special prize. 

Carpool Rules and Guidelines Reminders

• Reminder to slow down on campus. ONLY 5 MPH
• There have been some students who are being dropped off on Main Street or on 156^th on the side of the road. Please do not drop off your children outside of campus as it can be very dangerous.
• Please make sure to follow the “Yellow Brick Road” or crosswalks.
• Please be kind to our carpool supervisors and 5^th grade patrol members.

Food Cycler Food Waste Diversion School Pilot Program

Starting next week St. Louise Parish School will be piloting a Food Waste Diversion School Pilot Program. With support from the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks Solid Waste Division and Food Cycle Science (FCS), we received a grant to pilot the program to build a culture of appreciation and respect for food. The program aims at helping students understand the connection between what they eat, how they eat and the subsequent impact of their individual choices that contribute to the well-being of their communities and the planet. It also provides the students with the understanding that their classrooms have an opportunity to support their community in their environmental goals, reduce their community’s carbon footprint and extend the life of their community’s local landfill. 

St. Louise School parent, Seychelle Wilmouth is helping us start and initiate the pilot program. The school will receive 4 Food Cycler FC-30 machines. We will have one machine in grades PK-2, 3-5, 6-8, and Faculty/Staff. The teachers with the Food Cycler FC-30 machines will collect food waste from their designated grade level classrooms and keep track of how much waste is collected each week. The Food Cycler FC-30 will take the food waste and convert the food to compost which may be used afterwards as nutrients for soil. Each machine can process 2.5 liters of food waster per cycle. St. Louise Parish School will pilot the program for 12 weeks and keep track of food waste. To find out more about the Food Cycler please click HERE.

Have a Blessed Weekend!

Mike Fuerte

Auction News

Be sure to stop by the School Lobby after school after school all next week October 30-November 3 for Preview Week!

Check out the AWESOME Grade Projects available to bid for on Auction Night.

Sign up for fun Teacher Experiences & Parties - limited space available.

Buy Raffle Tickets for the kids' baskets.

Sign up for Free Dress, Burgermaster and IHOP Lunches!

A Message from Mrs. Smith - New School Counselor

Current Events | War in the News

It can be intimidating to broach the topic of war and conflict with your children.

You may be wondering…do I bring it up? Or do I wait for my child to bring it up? What is even appropriate to share? What if I don’t have answers to their questions?

These are all completely valid questions and concerns.

If you are looking for support in this department, UNICEFUSA has provided a list of best practices when discussing sensitive topics like war and conflict with your kids.

Talking to kids about war and conflict- a best practice

When conflict or war makes headlines, it caused widespread emotional distress. This includes children, who will look to their caregivers for a sense of safety and security.

What can I say to my child?

Find out what they know and how they feel.

In a comfortable, familiar setting, ask about their knowledge and feelings. Some may be uninformed or uninterested, and others may harbor worries. Monitor their media intake and correct misinformation they encounter. Keep in mind that kids may conflate media imagery with their own reality, especially during crisis. Don’t dismiss their fears, instead, acknowledge and address them with compassion.

Keep it calm and age-appropriate.

Children have a right to know about world events, but it’s important to protect them from unnecessary distress. Use age-appropriate language and observe their reactions. Be mindful not to overshare your own fears. Reassure them of their safety and discuss global peace efforts. To learn more, consider exploring reputable sources together like UNICEF or the UN.

Spread Compassion, not stigma.

Conflict can breed prejudice. Avoid labels like “evil” or “bad people” and promote compassion, such as for displaced families. Even distant conflicts can incite local discrimination. Ensure your kids neither face or perpetrate bullying. If they’re being affected, encourage them to report these incidents. Emphasize that everyone deserves safety, and we must oppose bullying and champion kindness.

Focus on the helpers.

Children should know about acts of courage and kindness amidst crises. Highlight positive stories like volunteers and first responders helping or youth advocating for peace. Encourage your child to take positive action, whether through creating peace-themed art, making a poster, or joining local fundraising efforts. Taking even small actions can provide solace. 

Calendar

Charger Cards & Gear

Open House / Admissions Help Needed!

We need help posting Open House signs around East Bellevue, Issaquah, Sammamish, North Bend areas. Please contact the office if you'd be willing to post some signs for us!

Email the Office to Volunteer

WANTED- Your old boomboxes!

Mrs. L.B. is in need of 6 boomboxes that can play CDs. If you have one that you would like to donate, please drop it off at the office.

Parish Announcements & Events

A Message from Fr. Nehnevaj,

A few years ago, students at St. Louise had the opportunity to altar serve at the 9am parish Mass as a way to serve both God and the larger parish community. After discussions with Fr. Gary, I am excited to announce that 4^th-8^th grade students at St. Louise school will once again have this opportunity. Mrs. Herridge and I will be working together to bring back this St. Louise practice.

If your child has already been trained as an altar server (whether that is here or at another parish), all they have to do is make sure that myself or Mrs. Herridge knows of their desire to serve.

If your child has not yet been trained as an altar server, they first need to be trained (either here or at another parish). If your preferred weekend Mass is the Saturday 5pm, Sunday 9am, or the Sunday 5pm contact altarserveradmin@stlouise.org for the training schedule. If your preferred weekend Mass is the Sunday 11am or the Sunday 1pm, contact fabiola@stlouise.org for the training schedule. Altar servers must be in at least 4^th grade and have received their first Holy Communion.

Since our parish Mass is 9am this does mean that the altar servers get to miss class. Students will be limited to serving one Mass per month to limit the amount of class time lost. Additionally, teachers will have the ability to restrict this opportunity for anyone who needs to spend more time in the classroom.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at fr.n@stlouise.org.

In Christ,

-Fr. Nehnevaj

"I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.”

Students in 2B work on their SEL Skills learned from their Friendzy lessons by playing the Compliment Buddies game. They were walking around the classroom and greeting and complimenting each other. They then returned to their desk and wrote up one compliment for the whole class to guess the student that was being complimented.

This week we celebrated National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 - October 15) in the library with the 3rd grade classes. Students learned about great achievements from a few Hispanics and Hispanic Americans. Students were given the opportunity to color either famous quotes from these individuals or pictures of the people themselves.

Ellen Ochoa (NASA astronaut)

Pele (Soccer star)

Jaime Escalante (Math teacher, from the movie, Stand and Deliver)

Frida Kahlo (Artist)

Our 4th graders are working on putting their classroom map together based on what they have learned about Washington State. They even got to go on a field trip last week to the WA State Cornmaze!

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Antezana Garvizu Family