HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
THANKSGIVING DAY PRAYER
Lord, we thank
you for the goodness of our people and for the spirit of justice that fills
this nation. We thank you for the beauty and fullness of the land and the
challenge of the cities. We thank you for our work and our rest, for one
another, and for our homes. We thank you, Lord: accept our thanksgiving on this
day. We pray and give thanks through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
On this last Sunday of our liturgical year, we are celebrating the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. When we speak to Jesus as King of the Universe, we are looking forward to the end of time when Christ will come again! This week our reading from Luke reminds us of the Mystery of Faith that we proclaim at Mass - the juxtaposition of Jesus suffering on the cross and proclaiming him King of the Universe.
On the Way to Mass..Explain that today, we will celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Ask - "How is Jesus a King? How is He different from earthly Kings?"
On the Way Home from Mass...Talk with your children about the Mystery of Faith that we proclaim during Mass. Ask - "What do these words tell us about who the King of Kings - Jesus - is?
This week in the United States, we celebrate Thanksgiving Day! For many of us, this is a time of gathering with family and friends. This week we need to prepare our hearts, as well as our homes, to welcome (or to be welcomed). The image of Jesus, the King of the Universe, welcoming the criminal into Paradise reminds us of our call to welcome others and the essential need for giving to others.
With the new liturgical year beginning next week, here is a link to a printable liturgical calendar you may enjoy! Liturgical Calendar
With the new liturgical year beginning next week, here is a link to a printable liturgical calendar you may enjoy! Liturgical Calendar
THE HISTORY OF THE ADVENT WREATH
“The Advent wreath is part of our long-standing Catholic tradition. However, the actual origins are uncertain. There is evidence of pre-Christian Germanic peoples using wreathes with lit candles during the cold and dark December days as a sign of hope in the future warm and extended-sunlight days of Spring. In Scandinavia during Winter, lighted candles were placed around a wheel, and prayers were offered to the god of light to turn “the wheel of the earth” back toward the sun to lengthen the days and restore warmth.
By the Middle Ages, the Christians adapted this tradition and used Advent wreathes as part of their spiritual preparation for Christmas. After all, Christ is “the Light that came into the world” to dispel the darkness of sin and to radiate the truth and love of God (cf. John 3:19-21). By 1600, both Catholics and Lutherans had more formal practices surrounding the Advent wreath…
The four candles represent the four weeks of Advent. A tradition is that each week represents one thousand years, to sum to the 4,000 years from Adam and Eve until the Birth of the Savior. Three candles are purple and one is rose. The purple candles in particular symbolize the prayer, penance, and preparatory sacrifices and goods works undertaken at this time. The rose candle is lit on the third Sunday, Gaudete Sunday, when the priest also wears rose vestments at Mass; Gaudete Sunday is the Sunday of rejoicing, because the faithful have arrived at the midpoint of Advent, when their preparation is now half over and they are close to Christmas. The progressive lighting of the candles symbolizes the expectation and hope surrounding our Lord’s first coming into the world and the anticipation of His second coming to judge the living and the dead…”
http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0132.html
Downloadable the USCCB Family Advent Calendar Here: Advent Calendar
Downloadable the USCCB Family Advent Calendar Here: Advent Calendar
Don't forget to join us at 7:40 AM every AM during Advent (other than on Wednesdays) for our lighting of our Advent Wreath and our Jesse Tree celebration!
AdvancEd School Survey and YOUR Participation
Every five years, it is an honor to welcome an AdvancEd (formally known as NCA) evaluation team to CCCS to determine our level of accreditation Your teachers, staff, the Home and School Association Board and the School Advisory Council are well on the way in preparing for this team to arrive here on March 17 and 18, 2014.
We need your input as stakeholders in our school! If you were not able to complete the parent survey during Parent/Teacher Conferences, please access our school parent survey at AdvancEd Parent Survey and complete our survey. Your input is greatly needed and will be used in determining the next steps we take as a school! Thank you!
St. Nicholas Day - December 6th - Elves Needed!
St. Nicholas needs some help with collecting all of these special treats for our students! If you are able to send in a few bags of candy or other items you think our students may enjoy, he will get them to them that morning!
Also, if you are not familiar with this tradition, which is most customary in European countries, Google St. Nicholas Day Celebrations and be ready for December 6th in your own homes! It is a great way to remind our children that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus not about Santa Clause!
With the growth of our Preschool and Pre-K, we are looking for a very special person to fill the shoes of ANOTHER Preschool Teacher! Please go to the diocesan website at www.catholicschoolsrock.org, click on the Employment tab at the top and then click on the Employment Opportunities tab on the side to access the job posting. Please note, this job requires all candidates hold a current Group Leader qualified state certification. If you know of anyone that meets this criterion and would love to work with our sweet babies, please encourage them to apply!
Get TEXTS from CCCS!
We are really excited to offer a new tool to our CCCS community! We are inviting parents, students and staff to subscribe to a program called SchoolTextLine so we can share announcements and reminders via text message!
To subscribe, you simply text: CCCS27 to: 96298 to start receiving text announcements and reminders from our school!
PE Shirts from Dennis
As Middle School students are allowed to wear CCCS PE Shirts with their solid black shorts or black sweats, we have been asked if we have extra PE shirts. We do not keep these in stock here at school but they are available free of shipping charges through Dennis Uniform Company. Please call 303-738-2255 to order a shirt. Please note if you order from their website, shipping charges are added.
NEW PRESIDENT OF THE USCCB
The Rev. Joseph E. Kurtz, Archbishop of Louisville, was elected President of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at the Catholic Bishops General Assembly in Baltimore on Tuesday. He succeeds New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan who is ending his three-year term. The conference president is the main spokesman on national issues for the Catholic Church in the United States and acts as a representative of the American church to the Vatican and the Pope.
He’s there in the stillness. He’s there in the chaos. Our call is to seek Him, find Him, and serve Him…Put your faith into action today with Christ’s constant invitation to discern His presence in the ups and downs of our live.”
Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan
We are so proud to announce that we have hired our new PE teacher - Mrs. Valerie Wetta! Please welcome Mrs. Wetta to our school when you see her! We are SO excited to have her!
Mrs. Wetta will be taking the athletic director role as part of this job but we will be looking for a person to serve as our facilities manager during athletic events held in our gym - ie, CSAL Basketball, Volleyball, Wrestling etc.
Mrs. Wetta will be taking the athletic director role as part of this job but we will be looking for a person to serve as our facilities manager during athletic events held in our gym - ie, CSAL Basketball, Volleyball, Wrestling etc.
- On Tuesday and Friday evenings the gym will need to be opened by 5:00 to let players and coaches in
- Additional hours are required for beginning and end of season tournaments
- Games and clean-up are done by 9:00 PM - depending on the CSAL schedule.
- The gym would need to be set up for games and cleaned up following games
- Any "rowdy" behavior would also need to be addressed by this individual
- A prayer and introduction of players is also led by this person
We have the blessing of having the opportunity to offer free and reduced lunches to many families in our school through the USDA food program. Not only does this program support those eligible for the services but our school also received 36 cents per lunch sold for all regularly priced lunches. This means the cost passed on to full pay families is greatly reduced.
As you may or may not be aware, Mrs. Dawn Ambuul took over the responsibility of running the lunch payment program at the beginning of this year and her job thus far has been to ensure all accounts have correct accounting, etc. Even with the government shut-down, she has brought our school lunch payment system to a VERY good place and we are very comfortable that accounts are accurate now.
All this to be said, we are now at the place where we can no longer allow students to continue purchasing lunches if their accounts drop below Negative $6. Mrs. Ambuul sends out a notice every Friday to communicate low balances and on Wednesday of this week, she sent a note related to need for payments to be made to all families with more than a Negative $6 balance.
Please note, on Wednesday, October 31 we began the process that any student who has less than Negative $6 in their account will receive graham crackers and be charged for a milk. They will not be able to have a full hot lunch until payment has been made. If you go to www.teacherease.com and click on the FEES tab, you can see up to date information on your child's lunch account. If for any reason, you believe there is an error, please contact Mrs. Dawn Ambuul at ext. 100.
If your family has been approved for Free or Reduced lunches, please be aware that extra milk (without a lunch) will be charged at regular price. Also, if you have a balance on your account, please submit it to the office as soon as possible. Families with outstanding fees of any kind will not be eligible for re-enrollment for the 2014-2015 school year until these are paid.
Thank you for your help with this. :)
Corpus Christi Annual Giving Tree
Once again this year, Corpus Christi Catholic Church and School are sponsoring an Advent Giving Tree! Please see the flyer titled - GIVING TREE available in the digital locker of www.teacherease.com for more information. Let's let our light here at CCCS shine for others!
NEW SAC MEMBERS and SAC Meeting Notes
Our October SAC meeting agenda and last month's meeting minutes are now posted in the digital locker of www.teacherease.com as well as available on our website - www.corpuschristicos.org! :)
Please note: The SAC now has two new members - Cris Schoon and Jason Homec. Cris is a
Vice President at CB Insurance, earned his law degree and MBA from University of Iowa, and will be instrumental in many areas covered by SAC. Jason is a CPA with the firm Erickson, Brown & Kloster, has one child at Corpus Christi, and also serves on the Bishop's Diocesan Finance Council. Please welcome them both!
8th Grade Babysitters Needed
8th graders do you have the ability to sparkle when a young child sits in your company? Do you like to read to young children? If so, the Adult Dinner for 8 Social Club at Corpus Christi Catholic Church is in need of two babysitters for Sunday, December 1st at Corpus Christi Catholic Parish Hall from 4:30-8:00 PM. Please contact Cherith Marchase (Mr. Marchase's wife) at 265-0034 if interested. Tip jar will be provided for you to split the money!
The UNIFORM CLOSET is having a SALE!
- Black nylon-mesh Athletic CC SHORTS - CLEARANCE $2.00 A pair. In stock sizes only....no special orders.
- Any NEW Dennis shorts or pants or Nylon Jog pants BOYS or GIRLS - limited sizes available in stock ONLY. CLEARANCE $5.00 each
Donations needed for the Uniform Closet : Clear plastic pant hangers & top hangers: with the medal hook! (If your Christmas shopping....PLEASE ask to keep the hanger...Donate it to our Uniform Closet!)
Get your Yearbook for 2013/2014
Check it out! On line ordering for the first ever, student-produced Corpus Christi Yearbook is now available. Please follow the links below to order books, purchase an ad to promote your business or pay tribute to your child. You can also upload your favorite photos from school events for inclusion in the yearbook; action sports pictures are especially needed!
Secure on-line ordering via our publisher’s web site
Cost is $25.00 per book
Deadline for orders is March 31, 2014
To buy a yearbook: https://yearbookforever.com Type in: Corpus Christi Catholic School
Both business ads and personal ads are available
Full Page $60, Half Page $30, and Quarter Page $15
Deadline for orders is March 1, 2014
To buy an ad: https://yearbookforever.com Type in: Corpus Christi Catholic School
Submit your school event photos – Our yearbook team can’t be at all school events. Please upload only clear, sharp images.Our yearbook team will select and edit images as required - thanks for sharing!To upload photos:
- Go to: https://yearbookforever.com
- Type in: Corpus Christi Catholic School.
- Look for: Community Upload (lower right corner of the Corpus Christi page)
- You will need our access code to upload: CCColts (case matters)
Thanks to those of you who have already purchased your yearbook and uploaded photos using the PDF in the digital locker.
KoAm Needs Host Families
We have more students who would like to come in January and some who are available to come right away! Here is a cool piece on this wonderful opportunity! A student ready to come right now is a 3rd grade male. The KoAm coordinator expresses that he is a delightful boy. The plan is to allow him to come for the semester and then go back to Korea during summer break and likely come back for the fall semester. The host family doesn't have to commit to a whole year. He can come any time if we have a host family. Please see Al Chomy for more information!
Escape from the Normal, the Mundane into Peculiar
I Peter 2:9 (KJV) calls us 'a peculiar people'....how peculiar are you? Escape from your normal routine by inviting a Korean exchange student to temporarily reside in your home. Our students arrive ready to learn and partake in the American experience! Host families provide the opportunity for exchange students to learn and experience America first-hand by living with an American family, attending an American school, and enjoying American life at its fullest. By hosting, families are able to bridge the gap with Korea in a very personal way.
To apply to be a KoAm host family, please contact KoAm's Local Coordinator Choungin Gilbert at 719-637-3584/719-201-7685 or
SCRIP PROGRAM
In January of 2013, CCCS joined our other diocesan schools in requiring purchase of SCRIP per diocesan agreement. Our other schools are presently requiring $275 in percentage profit.
How Does SCRIP work?
SCRIP is basically a program where families purchase gift cards and a percentage of the funds paid are given to the school. Each type of gift card pays the school a different percentage rate from normally 2-10%. CCCS is putting this program in place via a 3 year implementation. In 2013, $75 is required. In 2014- $175 and in 2015 - $275 in percentage profit is required.
What Happens If I Don't Participate or Do Not Make $75 in Profit?
So in January 2014, during our yearly school re-registration period, parents that have bought SCRIP cards that have profited the school $75 will have nothing due toward the SCRIP commitment Families that have not met the $75 profit requirement will have the remainder of the balance to pay.
What Is Happening in Years to Come?
In January 2014, the required "profit" will go up to $175 and then in 2015 to $275. In 2015, when CCCS has gotten to the same requirement of $275 as our other Catholic schools, any percentage profit above the $275 will go back to the family as TRIP (Tuition Reimbursement Incentive Program). Families in other schools that participate at this level get $600-$800 back in tuition assistance.
Who Is in Charge of SCRIP?
Scrip is a volunteer based program. Mrs. Kelley Edwards is our lead volunteer that handles purchasing of SCRIP gift cards, organizing volunteers to sell SCRIP and keeping SCRIP accounts accurate. She is not in charge of answering the "whys" or collecting money from families who choose not to participate. The regulation behind SCRIP is a diocesan initiative that all schools in our diocese have agreed to participate in. As CCCS is new to this mandate, we are implementing the program over a 3 year time period. Questions or concerns about the requirements of SCRIP should be directed to Mrs. Schindler or Mike Novak, our business manager.
We NEED VOLUNTEERS! :)
We are looking for parent (or grandparent) volunteers to sell SCRIP on the following days during drop-off and pick-up on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and after mass once or twice a month. If you are interested in volunteering please email Kelly at mail4corpusscrip@gmail.com . Thanks!
Safe 2 Tell
Sometimes it is hard for students to report to teachers and parents when there is something going on in their lives that they know is not ok and they don't know what to do about-abuse, suicide, etc. Corpus Christi Catholic School is now partnering with a wonderful organization formed here in Colorado Springs called Safe 2 Tell. Safe 2 Tell - http://safe2tell.org/ is an organization designed to allow youth to anonymously report events that they may not be willing or able to report to adults in their lives. These reports are then sent to the school where we can contact local authorities or parents to get students the help they may need. Please access the website above or call 877-542-7233 for more information.
Here's What Happening The Week AFTER Thanksgiving Break:
Sunday, November 24 – End of the Year of Faith Mass- see your parish bulletins for times!
Monday, November 25-Friday, November 29 - THANKSGIVING BREAK! :)
Sunday, December 1 - First Sunday of Advent
Monday, December 2 - Friday, December 20 - Advent Celebration in Gym EVERY Morning (other than Wednesdays) at 7:40 AM; Everyday Uniform for K-8
Tuesday, December 3 - Everyday Uniform for K-5; PE Uniforms for 6-8; Advent Celebration in Gym at 7:40 AM
Wednesday, December 4 - Mass Uniform for K-8; to classrooms at 7:40; 1:45 - School Mass
Thursday, December 5- Everyday Uniform for K-8; Advent Celebration in Gym at 7:40 AM
Friday, December 6 - Everyday Uniform for K-8 - what a busy day - see below!
- St. Nicholas Day and Advent Celebration in Gym at 7:40 AM; Students put their shoes outside for goodies from St. Nicholas
- First Friday Adoration - 11:15-11:45 AM
- NOON DISMISSAL DAY - Staff PLC Day 1:00-4:00 PM
- Optional 8th Grade Explore Test at SMHS - make sure to sign up at St. Mary's
- SMHS Right to Life Rally (contact SMHS for more info
Monday, December 9 - Honey Baked Ham Sale kicked off Monday, November 11th! All orders due by TODAY!
Reminder of THINGS to DO:- Check out your classroom teacher's blogs! They are working hard to keep you in the loop of all that is going in in their classrooms! This is a great way to be in the "know" of what your students are learning in class! These can be accessed via our website or by following your teachers at the link they have shared.
- We have numerous families that have still not turned in their UNSOLD HSA Raffle Tickets - please turn these in ASAP as it is the law to collect all unsold tickets under our gambling license! Thanks!
EVENTS COMING SOON:
Wednesday, December 11 - Advent Confession Time - Begins at 10 AM - classes will be called beginning with 3rd grade and as is required until all can participate.
Thursday, December 12 - HSA General Meeting and Christmas Program - 6:30 PM
Monday, December 16-December 19 - Middle School Mid-Year Exams - more info from Middle School team to come! :)
Friday, December 20 - End of 2nd Quarter; Preschool-8th Grade - Christmas Parties - 11 AM; Noon Dismissal; Staff Christmas Party Sponsored by HSA - At 12:15ish PM in the Parish Hall
Saturday, December 24-January 6 - Christmas Break
Monday, January 6 - Staff Professional Development Day - Office is Closed and No School for Students
Tuesday, January 7 - Students return from Christmas Break
