Weekly Bulletin 10-11-23

St. Brendan School

October 11, 2023

The mission of St. Brendan Catholic School, in partnership with parents and our parish community, embraces a Catholic Identity centered on the Eucharist to empower our students to act as Disciples of Christ, use their God-given gifts in service to the Church and community, and achieve academic excellence.

We crushed our goal and raised over $40,000!!!

Way to go St. Brendan Irish!

From the Principal

Dear Families,

Thank you for all the support of our Boosterthon Fundraiser. We are so thrilled to announce that we have surpassed our goal! We are excited to put the funds toward improving our school through our Strategic Plan goals. The kids certainly enjoyed slimming me and Mr. F today.

School Profit: $40,845

Percent to Goal: 116%!

Corporate Matching Donations: $6,449

States: 39

Countries: 9 - Brazil, Canada, India, Japan, Mexico, Philippines, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, & United States

Thank you for working with us to make our school stronger. We are grateful for your support!

Please check your child's backpack as the School Calendar that went home today. A special thanks to Alicia Reyes (parent of Armando and Calixta) for taking the class photos, and to Ermina Swager (parent of Anela) for designing and publishing the calendar.

Sincerely,

Catherine Shumate

Parent Club Meeting

Oct. 19th

Did you know that EVERY parent is a member of the St. Brendan Parent Club? Please be sure to save the date for our first Parent Club meeting of the year on October 19^th at 6:30pm. This is a meeting you will surely not want to miss. We will go over important information as well as have opportunities for community connection. You will also earn a volunteer hour and get a free dress pass for your student(s). We look forward to seeing you there!

Catholic Corner

“The greatest gift of family life is to be intimately acquainted with people you might never even introduce yourself to, had life not done it for you.” –Kendall Hailey

This week’s kindness focus is again on a family member. Think of one family member nearby or who you live with. Why do they deserve kindness? What’s your favorite thing about this person? Then, write a short, loving note to this family member. Hide the note in a place that might be hard for them to discover. Text them throughout the day with mysterious hints and then connect with them once they find their prize!

Kindness act of the week: Tell a family member you love them! This is an easy one so try to pick a different family member every day and tell them you love them.

Our service focus this month is the Corporal Work of Bury the Dead and the Spiritual Work of Pray for the Living and the Dead. This week we will focus on Bury the Dead.

Funerals give us the opportunity to grieve and show others support during a difficult time. Did you know that you don’t have to know someone personally to attend their funeral? You can go to anyone’s funeral and pray for them! I remember when my father died, someone unknown to him showed up to his funeral just to pray for him! It was very impactful to me and really touched my heart. Attending any funeral is a great way to physically demonstrate respect for life, and it comforts those who are mourning. Some specific ways you can practice the Corporal Works of Mercy are: send a card to someone who has recently lost a loved one, visit a cemetery and pray for those buried there, visit a cemetery in your community and clean gravestones or other work to help with upkeep of the cemetery, raise money to donate to help cover funeral expenses for those who cannot afford them, or attend an Indigent Remains Ceremony.

An Indigent Remains Ceremony is done every few years for those who died without financial resources to pay for a funeral, or for whom there was no family to claim their remains (no known next of kin). The next King County Indigent Remains Ceremony is in two weeks, October 25^th, at Mt. Olivet Cemetery.

If you can’t make the Indigent Remains Ceremony, St. Brendan will be hosting the annual Corporal and Spiritual Work of Mercy at Holyrood Cemetery on Saturday, October 28^th from 12 PM-3 PM. Please save this date for this wonderful way to honor those who have died. Next week we will have more information on what we will be doing at Holyrood Cemetery.

Virtues in Practice

Silver Cross Award Recipients

V.I.P Silver Cross Award

(Virtues in Practice)

Each month our Virtues in Practice Program highlights a virtue and saint that each class learns about and focuses on. In conjunction with this, the V.I.P Silver Cross Award was developed. Each month, all staff are on the look-out for students who are displaying the virtue and qualities of the saint. The students selected will receive a Silver Cross at Mass and have their picture displayed outside the main office. The presentation of the Silver Cross is a surprise as they are not told in advance if they are the recipient for the month..

Virtue for September - Faith – Believing in God and all He has revealed.

Congratulations Award Recipients:

Mrs. Stevenson’s PreK – Jacqueline Coker

Mrs. Murnane’s PreK – Felicity Roughton

Kindergarten – Hutch Griffin (not pictured)

1^st grade – Emmery Torrey

Second Grade: Lauren Golla

Third Grade: Genesis Machuca Silva (not pictured)

Fourth Grade: Andrew Van Hollebeke

Fifth Grade: Rachel Warner

Sixth Grade: Annabelle France

Seventh Grade: Anela Swager

Eighth Grade: Parker Burgess

Happy Birthdays

October Birthdays

10/12 - 10/18

10/13 Roisin McGuigan 8^th Grade

10/14 Sarah Binish 7^th Grade

10/14 Liam Hogg 3^rd Grade

10/14 Mrs. Deehr 7^th HR/Math

10/15 Salem Afework 3^rd Grade

10/16 Kekoa Rodica Preschool

10/17 Mrs. Munoz Librarian

Ordering School Portraits

School portraits and proofs from Lifetouch/Shutterfly were sent home. Find your Portrait ID and Access Code, which is unique to each student, on your proof. Please refer to the instructions inside if you wish to order school portraits. If your student was absent on photo day, they will be scheduled for a photo on re-take day, Nov. 9th.

Please contact the school office to request a retake. If you have purchased portraits, please return them to the school office and they will be replaced with the same photo package following retakes. A note about the reason for the retake will also help the photographers on retake day.

Retake day will be on Thursday, Nov. 9th.

Emergency Information Needed

Please fill out the attached Emergency Information form and return to the office as soon as possible. Even if you have one currently on file, please fill out another one so we have all current information.

Both top & bottom and front & back need to be filled out. Either print and return to office or email it back to me.

Thank you!

Karyn Murnane

secretary@school.saintbrendan.org

St. Brendan Trunk or Treat

SAVE THE DATE: We will be hosting out annual Trunk or Treat on Friday, October 27th.

Date: Friday, October 27th from 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM

Where: School parking lot

7th & 8th Grade Dance & Lock-In Sleepover

Thursday, October 12th

Save the Date:

St. Brendan invites your 7^th and 8^th grader to our school dance Thursday, October 12th from 6:30 – 9:00 PM. Note that Friday is a non-school day. The attire is casual – please no heels on the gym floor. We have an awesome DJ lined up and we have invited students from surrounding Catholic schools. We hope all your students will join us for a fun and safe night!

Following the dance, St. Brendan 7th & 8th grade students are invited to sleepover at a lock-in in the gym.

All Saints Day - Nov. 1st

Dress Like a Saint!

Students may come to school dressed as a saint. If students choose not to dress up, they should be in full uniform for All Saints Mass. Parents are welcome to join us for All Saints Day Mass at 9 AM.

Veterans Day Assembly

Monday, Nov. 13

Our school community will be holding our annual Veteran's Day Assembly in November. We invite families to submit photos of family members and loved ones who have served in the military. Please send photos along with the person's name, branch of service, title/rank, and relation to our school. You can e-mail photos and information to christenl@school.saintbrendan.org.

Veterans in our community are also invited to attend the assembly.

Note: if you already sent in a picture last year, then you DO NOT need to send a picture in this year. We will reuse the photo from last year. Thank you.

Yearbook Cover Contest

We are hosting a Yearbook Cover Contest. We are looking for a front and back cover that represents the spirit of St. Brendan Catholic School.

If you would like to submit an entry, please make sure it is on two pieces of plain white paper. The finished size of each page of your design must be no larger than 8 ½ x 11. Please DO NOT sign your name on the front of these papers.

1. Use an 8 ½ x 11 sheet of plain, white paper (e.g. copier/printer paper)

2. Make sure the paper is vertical (portrait).

3. Use the entire page for your design.

Entries are due to the main office by October 31st.

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Lambert. We look forward to seeing your amazing artwork!

Volunteers Needed

Volunteers are an integral part of our community. Your enthusiastic volunteerism helps keep operating costs low, fundraisers successful, and is a wonderful way to connect to the school community.

Volunteering opportunities at St. Brendan School are vast and varied. Be kind, and volunteer; currently, we have need for volunteers in the following areas:

Middle School Dance Chaperones - Oct. 12th, 6:00 - 9:00 PM

We are 6 weeks away from the annual St. Brendan Holiday Craft Fair! This event doesn't happen without the help of our entire school community. Check off some (or A LOT!) of your required volunteer hours during the craft fair - there are a lot of opportunities for the whole family. Available positions are now ready for sign up in Volunteer Hub: https://stbrendan.volunteerhub.com/vv2/

**Setup and clean up positions are a great way for St. Brendan alums to earn service hours for high school. Please consider signing up your high school student and help us spread the word to other alums (their hours count towards your family hours!)

Questions about the Craft Fair? Please reach out to Beth Flajole (eatveit@yahoo.com).

CYO Basketball

Grades 4th - 8th

CYO Basketball

4th - 8th Basketball registration is now open through November 19.

Games will begin Nov. 18-19. 6th-8th grade will have tournament Feb 3rd - 10th. All players and coaches must register using the Team Sideline website.

If there are any questions, please reach out to Basketball Coordinator Andrew Mencke (andrewmencke@gmail.com) or Athletic Director Anthony Fletcher (cyoad@saintbrendan.org).

Registration Dates

Early bird Registration: September 17 - October 12 $95

Standard Registration: October 13 - October 26 $110

Late Registration: October 27 - November 19 $125 (only for registered teams)

K-3rd registration will begin in October and the season will begin in January. Stay tuned for K-3 basketball registration information.

Calling Parent Photographers - Pictures Wanted

Please send any CYO soccer or XC pictures to christenl@school.saintbrendan.org. Photos will be used on social media and in the yearbook. Thank you to the parents who captured some great XC pictures from this past weekend.

Catholic School Open Houses

6th, 7th and 8th grade parents - good advice from former families is to start researching Catholic high schools sooner rather than later!

Kennedy Catholic Open House: Oct. 11

Bishop Blanchet Open House: Wednesday, October 18, 5:30-8:30 p.m. Please RSVP.

O'Dea High School Open House: October 24, 5:30PM

Holy Names Academy Open House - Nov. 5,

12:00 - 3:00: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4DADA92EA6F9C61-holy2#/

Archbishop Murphy Open House: November 6, 2022 • 2 pm - 4 pm: https://am-hs.schooladminonline.com/portal/public_calendars/open_house

Seattle Prep: November 8, 2023

Financial Aid Applications Now Open

Financial aid applications are now being accepted through FACTS Management for the 2024-2025 school year.

Fulcrum Foundation Tuition Assistance Grants

Available to parish and non-parish families
Open for entering K-8th grade families
Income/needs based grants

St. Brendan School Financial Aid Awards/ Fr. Mike Schmitt Grants

Available to parish and partner-parish families
Open to entering preschool -8th grade families
To be considered for St. Brendan School aid, families must also apply for the Fulcrum Foundation grant through FACTS.
Income/needs based grants

Documents Required

W-2s from 2022
Documentation for child support, DSHS, rental receipts, other miscellaneous income
Any other pertinent documents

Deadline

Application deadline is December 31, 2023
All documents must be submitted online by the deadline. If you need assistance scanning and uploading, please contact Christen Lambert in the school office.

Great ShakeOut

St. Brendan School staff and students will be participating in the Great ShakeOut on Oct.19. While earthquake hazard varies from region to region, most of Washington is prone to earthquakes. The Great Washington ShakeOut is a statewide opportunity to practice how to be safer during big earthquakes: “ Drop, Cover and Hold On.” The ShakeOut has also been organized to encourage you, your community, your school, or your organization to review and update emergency preparedness plans and supplies, and to secure your space in order to prevent damage and injuries.

What we do now will determine our quality of life after our next big earthquake. Are you prepared to survive and recover quickly?

Learn more: Answers to frequently asked questions

View this instructional video: ShakeOut

Don’t forget to prepare for your pets!