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December 2014 E-Letter

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December Dates
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For more information about the Office for Youth and Young Adults, visit
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Dear CYO Athletics Community,  

 

 

As I have shared before, the coming of Advent and the turning of the calendar to December means a heightening awareness of "gifts" and what critical needs will make the list to be sent along to Santa Claus in our house.  There is a great deal of anticipation from our 3 boys which leads to anxiety on my part as to whether Christmas will meet their expectations. 
 
In his recently published book, "An Advent Pilgrimage", Archbishop J. Peter Sartain recounts a story of some friends who before the birth of their second child were concerned about their capacity for loving their soon to arrive child as much as their first.

 

Of course, those of us who have kids know and as Archbishop Sartain relates, the couple found their capacity to love grew to encompass the new addition to their family.

 

And obviously, I know the material gifts under the tree are not the reason for the season so my wife and I do endeavor to teach our kids what Christmas is about by practicing the rituals and living out the traditions that provide the teachable moments during Advent and Christmas.

 

I was struck by something Archbishop Sartain reflected further, "To love means not to give something but to give myself.  And, most importantly of all, to love means to become myself completely."

 

As we examine this thought in the context of sports, I am struck by two things:

 

1.  In order for a team to become what it is capable of becoming; its team members must give themselves.  What in the beginning may start as a passion for a game or competing eventually transforms into relationships of respect, trust and love.  A great example of this is the movie, "Rudy" where the main character gives so much of himself it rubs some of his teammates the wrong way.  However, in the end his commitment and sacrifice convinces them of his value and contributions to the team.


2. The act of loving and giving of themselves to a team, something larger than themselves allows them to become fully who they are called to be and an inability to do so renders incomplete the fullness of who they are and therefore undermines the team's ability to reach its capacity.

 

The story of "Dylan's Gift" is another reminder the best gift is not something that can be put under a tree.  It is about a 16-year old who has cancer but whose love for his teammates and his team moves him to fully give of himself in spite of his sickness and perhaps inspires the team to more fully reach their capacity as a team which results in a state championship. 

 

May we be so inspired to give of ourselves fully to our loved ones so we become an example of God's love in our children's experiences such that they understand explicitly Christ's coming into their lives, the gift God gives to us all - so they might in turn learn to love God and may become more fully who they are called to be.

 

And during this time of Advent may we pray in the words of St. Thierry:
"[O God}, you first loved us so that we might love you - not because you needed our love, but because we could not be what you created us to be, except by loving you."

 

Advent Blessings,

 

~Tauno Latvala

Director of CYO Athletics  

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December - Important CYO Athletics Dates

  

December 5 - 3rd Grade Basketball Registration Deadline

 

December 5 - High School Basketball Registration Deadline

 

December 17 - High School Basketball Coaches Meeting

 

December 17 - PLACT Coaches Training after Coaches Meeting

 

December 26-29 - Knights of Columbus Basketball Tournaments

 

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LinkedIn

  

Our connections on LinkedIn are growing, and we want to see more!  Please visit www.linkedin.com/pub/seattle-archdiocese-cyo-athletics/a2/767/4b8/ to view and connect.  We look forward to connecting with current and former CYO Athletes, Coaches, and Administrators!! Contact Sean Barton at [email protected] if you have any questions.

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Amazon Smile - Support CYO Athletics!

  

With the Christmas season fast approaching, almost all of us will be making more purchases than usual as we seek to find the perfect gifts for our loved ones.  With Cyber Monday sales quickly overtaking Black Friday, many of us are also choosing to make these purchases online.  But did you know that a portion of the money that you spend online at Amazon can benefit the Archdiocese of Seattle with no additional cost to you?  AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support CYO.  Every time you shop, Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price straight to CYO! 

 

Click Here to select CYO as your charitable organization, and the Archdiocese of Seattle will directly benefit from your online shopping.  Remember, this extends beyond the holidays as well!  You may continue to use AmazonSmile for your purchases year round, and thus continue benefiting the Archdiocese!  We thank you in advance for remembering us while making your online purchases!

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Seattle U - Rudy's Kids Club Pass

  

Seattle University Athletics:  "Rudy's Kids Club pass" with lanyard acts as your season ticket. 

 

FREE admission to all home Seattle University athletics regular-season ticketed events.

  • Ticketed sports include: Baseball, Women's Basketball and for the first time this year, the membership includes Men's Basketball at Key Arena! (General admission seating for each sport. Post-season play not included.)
  • Redhawk Sports Pass is a season pass for those over 12 and are $50 to all events with the exception of men's basketball.
  • Men's basketball season tickets for Rudy's Kids Club members will be sent via mail. To purchase additional general admission season tickets for the whole family, they start at $78 per ticket.

Exclusive Kids Club VIP events. 

 

Autographs from Seattle U coaches and student-athletes post-game. 

 

Special e-news from Rudy! 

 

Entry to Rudy's Kids Zone at men's basketball games (located at section 103 on the concourse of Key Arena for fun games, sign-making, etc.) 

 

Please feel free to register your child for his/her free Rudy's Kids Club membership at http://www.goseattleu.com/quest/Questionaire.dbml?QID=263221&DB_OEM_ID=18200 

 

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Thank you for your commitment to CYO Athletics. If you have not received past E-Letters, they can be found on our website by clicking here. Please also send us stories at [email protected], the moments of grace that make our program special, and remind everyone why we do the work we do.

 

Sincerely,

CYO Athletics
Office for Youth & Young Adult Evangelization, Archdiocese of Seattle