Congratulations are extended to Saint Dominic's Confirmandi! Our eighth grade students received the Gifts of the Holy Spirit on Tuesday, October 28th, during a beautiful ceremony conferred by Bishop David O'Connell. Thank you, Saint Dominic's Parish and School community, for your prayers.

Last month Mrs. Tonkovich and I hosted our first Principal and Asst. Principal Coffee Hour. I wish to thank all of the parents who attended for spending their morning with us and the P.T.A. for their gracious hospitality. We enjoyed conversing about sacramental preparation, Common Core, professional development, security/emergency plans, transportation safety, and the digital techbooks used by our seventh and eighth grade students. Mrs. Tonkovich and I will host two additional coffee hours during the months of January and April. Details for each event will be posted in upcoming newsletters and news updates.

Our students have had a great academic start for the 2014-2015 school year! Our first trimester will come to an end on November 14th. Parents of children in third through eighth grade are asked to check the Parent Portal to make sure their children have completed all assignments that are due before the semester closes. Please be advised that the Department of Catholic Schools will close the Parent Portal on November 14th so that all teachers throughout the Diocese will be able to finalize grades and prepare report cards.

Parents will receive report cards and have the opportunity to discuss their children's progress during Parent -Teacher Conferences on December 5th. Appointment times will be emailed to all parents of kindergarten - eighth grade students during the first week of November. If appointments need to be rescheduled, parents are asked to contact their children's homeroom teachers directly.

Our third and fourth grade students are anxious to present "Disney Spectacular" to a packed house on November 17th at 7:00 P.M.! All are invited to attend!

Advent marks the beginning of the church calendar. I encourage parents to prepare for this special time in the Church by making a Advent Wreath with their family! On Sunday, November 23rd, the P.T.A. will supply all of the greens and candles to create a beautiful wreath during their annual Advent Wreath Gathering. This spiritual event is a great opportunity to learn the significance of the Advent Wreath and prepare for the birth of Christ. Families can register for this event and order materials by completing the Advent Wreath Gathering form linked to this newsletter.

Later this month we will celebrate Thanksgiving with traditional SDS events. Our third grade students will dress as Pilgrims and Indians and host a Thanksgiving Feast for their friends from the Harbor School on Monday, November 24th. The Harbor School, located in Eatontown, provides a safe and nurturing educational environment for students with special needs. On November 25th, we will hold a Thanksgiving Prayer Service at 2:00 P.M. in Saint Dominic's Church, and on November 26th, the annual pre-Thanksgiving Student Council Pep Rally will take place in the gym at 10:30 A.M. I encourage all of our families to join us for these holiday events!

Enjoy a blessed and bountiful Thanksgiving!