Dear Families,

"Keep the lines of communication open!"  This is the mantra of good parenting.  In order to nurture our relationships with our children, we must communicate with them.  In the same way, we develop our relationship with God.  We communicate; we pray.  As we carry on along our Lenten journey, we seek to deepen that relationship with God, our father, and that means being more open to communicating.  We look for additional opportunities for talking with God, for telling Him about our days, for thanking Him when we have had a good day and asking Him for help when we need it.  That is prayer.  You are very welcome to join us on Monday mornings at 8:20.  The students lead us in prayer and song.  Thank you for making the extra effort to have your child here.  Praying as a community first thing Monday morning helps us to begin the week very aware of the presence of God among us.

Tomorrow, the primary students will lead us in the Stations of the Cross.  At the end of the week, we again make some time to remind ourselves of how much Jesus loves us.  If you can, take a break from your busy day and join us at 2:30.  Next week, students in grades 2 - 8 will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Thank you, Katie Franklin, for leading our middle school students in a spectacular performance of Beauty and the Beast, Jr.  You have a special gift for directing the students and encouraging them to display their talents.  You also directed a huge  support crew, who designed and built sets, made costumes, organized all the make-up,  and you kept it all flowing.   What a great night out we all had!

Yesterday, we experienced more excitement here at school as students joined their buddies and competed in World Maths Day.  Who knew math could be such fun!  Children were calling out for more.  See below for results.

Bennacht,

Bernadette O'Leary

Principal 

Thanks to the efforts of school parent Matt Lewis, St. John School's PE program received a grant in the amount of $1,500 from Matt's employer, UnitedHeathcare.  UnitedHeathcare sponsors local youth sports programs through it's mission of promoting healthier life styles. Thank you, Matt and UnitedHealthcare!

Each year Catholic Relief Services asks families to consider Operation Rice Bowl. Operation Rice Bowl invites us to pray and fast in solidarity with those who are hungry around the world and give sacrificial donations to help those in need. Once a week, your family can eat a smaller meatless meal and donate the difference saved to Operation Rice Bowl. Students were given cardboard Rice Bowls for collecting Lenten sacrifices. These sacrifices may be turned in at the Holy Thursday service, at the Easter service, or to the school office to be forwarded to CRS.  Visit www.crsricebowl.org for additional resources to use at home such as recipes, prayers and information on some of the countries supported by CRS.