Connecting People to God's Grace

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK

Dear Grace Families,

Thank you, parents, for taking time out of your schedule to attend parent-teacher conferences. We appreciate having the opportunity to talk about your child’s progress and discuss ways to continue helping your child see success. The first trimester ends next Friday, November 13. Report cards will be sent out the following week on Friday, November 20.

Special Dress-Up Day - This past week, Reagan G. was principal for a day. She declared that Monday, November 9 will be pajama day at school. All students are welcome to wear their favorite pj’s to class that day!

Winter Weather Closing - We’ve been blessed with a beautiful autumn (God is really helping me adjust to the Midwest after five winters in Arizona!), but the weather could change any day, so we need to be ready for school closings. If Grace closes because of inclement weather, messages will be sent out via ProCare. It will also be posted on Facebook. Watch or listen for “Grace Lutheran School, St. Joseph” on WSJM-AM 1400, WSJM-FM 94.9, CBS 22, NBC 16, and ABC 57.

Grace’s policy is that if St. Joseph Public Schools close, we too will close. In the rare event that St. Joseph Public Schools is open but Lakeshore Public Schools and Benton Harbor Public Schools are closed, we will also close. If school is closed, all after school activities will also be cancelled.

Grace families are not just St. Joseph families, but are from communities all over Southwest Michigan. If Grace is open but the weather is awful where you live, don’t risk it! It is okay to keep your kids at home if you feel it is not safe for you to make the trip to Grace. I just ask that you let the school office know if you are keeping your child home because of inclement weather.

Call News

Please keep Mr. Avila in your prayers as he deliberates his divine call to serve as principal and upper grades teacher at Good Shepherd Lutheran School in Burton, Michigan.
Pastor Phil Hunter continues to deliberate the divine call to serve as our next pastor. Feel free to reach out to Pastor Hunter and tell him about the ministry at Grace (pastor@citrusgrovechurch.com).

Upcoming Events

November 11 - Veterans’ Day
November 13 - End of 1st Trimester
November 20 - Reports go home today
November 22 - PreK - 3rd Grade Sing at 10:30 Service
November 25-27 - Thanksgiving Break

In Christ,

Mr. Reich

Meditation for the Week

Thought of the Week

VISIT OUR WEBSITE

THIS WEEK AT GRACE

Sunday, November 08, 2026

Sunday Worship Service 8:00 and 10:30 am

Bible Study and Sunday School 9:15 am

Monday, November 09, 2026

Hamburgers

Boys' C team 2 BB practice 3:30 - 4:30 pm

Girls' C team 2 BB game at Christ @ 4;00 pm

Boys' C team 1 BB game at Christ @ 5:00 pm

Girls' C team 1 BB home game vs St Paul Stev @ 5:00 pm

Tuesday, November 10, 2026

Chick fil A

Boys' C team 2 BB home game vs OLL @ 4:00 pm

Wednesday, November 11, 2026

Tacos

Boys' C team practice 3:30 - 4:30 pm

Girls' C team practice 4:30 - 5:30 pm

Boys' MS BB home game vs Eau Claire @ 6:00 pm

Thursday, November 12, 2026

Subway

Boys' C team 2 BB game at Christ 4:00 pm

Girls C team 1 & 2 BB practice 4:30 - 5:30 pm

Boys' C team 1 BB game at Christ @ 6:00 pm

Boys MS BB game at Fennville @ 5:00 pm

Friday, November 13, 2026

End of 1st Trimester

Chapel

Pizza

Saturday, November 14, 2026

Men's Morning Basketball - 7:00 - 8:30 am

IN THIS NEWSLETTER YOU CAN EXPECT:

2026-2027 School Calendar
Help needed for Hot Lunch
Link for Grandparent Pictures
Poptarts for Popdarts Event at St Paul, Stev.
Thanksgiving Break Info.
Culvers Give Back Night
South Berrien County Youth Basketball League
Children's Christmas Shop Information
Year Book Volunteer and Information
November Hot Lunch Calendar
MLHS News

YEAR AT A GLANCE CALENDAR 2026/2027

🍎 Help Wanted: Hot Lunch Volunteers!

Need help for this coming Wednesday, November 11
and the rest of November.

Please sign up here for a Hot Lunch Shift

Pictures from Grandparent's Day

Click Here

ML will once again have teams in the South Berrien County Youth Basketball League this coming January through February. Games are mid-January through mid-February on Saturdays, which does not conflict with your players' season at your school. This should be an addition to the season. Practices will likely be held one or two days a week in the evening on days when the coach and players are available.

There will be four levels of teams: Boys 3rd-4th, Girls 3rd-4th, Boys 5th-6th, and Girls 5th-6th.

Depending on how many players register, we may have multiple teams for each level.

We have Registration open on our website: https://www.mlathletics.org/program/youth-basketball-winter-league/28759

You will need to create a login and then go to PROGRAMS to find the Winter Basketball League Option

The cost is $30 to cover the costs of the program and a player jersey.

Parent coaches are needed. Without volunteer coaches, the league will not happen.

Contact Matt Herbst at mherbst@michiganlutheran.org if you have any questions or are interested in coaching or have questions about the league.

The deadline to sign up is December 4. At that point, we need to turn in how many teams of each level we will have so that the schedule can be made for our January start. No registrations are allowed past that deadline.

Thank you,

Matt Herbst

Grace Lutheran’s Christmas Shoppe is changing this year, and we urgently need volunteers to keep this tradition alive! Due to our growing school, the fellowship hall is now a permanent classroom. To adapt, the entire event will take place on Friday, December 4, 2026, in the gymnasium.

This staple tradition lets students experience the joy of giving by shopping for loved ones, while raising vital funds for local and worldwide mission work. Because all students will now shop on a single day, we need all hands on deck. If we do not get enough volunteers, we will not be able to host the event this year.

How You Can Help

We need committed volunteers for the following roles: