The Phoenix Flyer: St. Thomas More School Newsletter
October 16-26, 2023
Principal’s Message
New Beginnings
Jeremiah 29:11 “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’
Dear Parents and Families,
On Friday, the STMS staff gathered for our annual Christ in the Classroom (CIC) retreat. This year’s theme was on a stronger life of prayer to grow in relationship with God. We examined questions including who is God and who are we in relation to Him, as well as our mission as Catholic educators to help our students explore different types of prayer. The major takeaways were that God wants us to seek Him as we are now, and that prayer is our personal communication with God, and like we are not perfect, our prayers do not need to be perfect and can take on many forms. We look forward to helping our students to find ways to communicate with God that are personal and meaningful to each of them.
On Sunday, our 3rd grade class hosted the 8:30 Mass. They did an amazing job! Thank you to Mrs. Del Rio for preparing her students so well!
Don’t forget picture day is this Friday – I look forward to seeing our students looking their best for their photos.
In Christ,
Elizabeth Glaze
Dates to Remember
10/19 Blue Thursday (since Friday is picture day)
10/19 Student Picture Day (Preschool 3 only)
10/20 Student Picture Day (Individual) – Free Dress
10/25 James Knight event (more details below) – Rescheduled for Early 2024
10/ 26 Noon Dismissal, Parent/ Teacher Conferences (Extended Care until 3pm only)
10/27 No School, Parent/ Teacher Conferences
10/28 Trunk or Treat. St. Thomas More Parish & School (see details below)
10/31 Halloween Fest and Parade
11/1 All Saints’ Day Mass, 9am
Hot Lunch
Hot lunch is back!! Please see the link to the printable monthly Hot Lunch form, or stop by the school office for a hard copy.
Please note: The deadline for all hot lunch payments is Thursday. We are not able to accept payments sent in on Friday morning.
We need volunteers! Please use the Sign Up Genius link below to earn volunteer hours by helping us with our hot lunch.
James Knight – Rescheduled for Early 2024
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Dr. Knight will not be able to make to the Seattle area this month. Once we have a date confirmed, we will communicate that to our St. Thomas More School and Parish community.
Local Area Events
The STMS Music program is proud to announce our partnership with Phil Onishi from Lynnwood High School. He has a given us a class set of Tubano Drums to use this year, that will help our students grow in their rhythmic and group playing skills.
A fun fact is that Mr. Onishi was Mr. Ocfemia’s elementary music teacher back at Sherwood Elementary back in between 2005-2010 and was a big inspiration for Mr. Ocfemia in becoming a music teacher.
Trunk or Treat
Please see the link to the flyer for information on this year’s Trunk or Treat with St. Thomas More Parish.
Halloween Party in Dalton Hall
Please sign up to help with decorations, donate a pizza, popcorn, games, cookies, candies, and drinks to count towards your volunteer hours requirements (see the form for specific volunteer hours for each item)!
Parent Club
SAVE THE DATES!
It’s almost time to deck the halls with wreaths and poinsettias! The Annual Poinsettia and Evergreen Fundraiser will begin on Monday, October 30th and run until Thursday, November 9th. The beautiful poinsettias, garlands, and wreaths will arrive on Wednesday, November 29th, just in time for the Advent Season!
Brochures and order forms will come home with each family on Monday, October 30th.
50% of your sales will count towards your $700 Fundraising Commitment!
Cookie Dough Fundraiser
We are half-way through our cookie dough fundraising so please make sure to get your cookie dough orders in. The fundraising ends on October 24th. If you have any questions please reach out to Brigitte Poole (mbc@poole.bz), Melanie Abigania (melanie.abigania@gmail.com) or Lynn Benares (jovelyn.salinas@gmail.com).
Auction News
Hot Off the Press: First Auction Newsletter
Please see the link below for the first Auction Newsletter for 2023-24. Auction Newsletters can also be found on the Spring Gala Auction page under the Fundraising tab on the website.
STMS Gala Auction Newsletter – Vol. 1
Start Procuring Now!
Procurement packets will go home the week of October 24-27. You can find tips on procuring in the Auction Newsletter (see above). Please see the link below for the Procurement Letter as well as Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities Flyer.
Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities, p. 1
Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities, p. 2
Save the Date – Gala Auction March 9, 2024
We need parent volunteers! Please let us know how you would like to support our Gala Auction, our largest fundraiser of the year. Contact the school office at (425)743-4242.
Patrol
Please see the link to the current Patrol schedule.
Scrip
Satisfy your sweet tooth and raise more towards your $700 commitment with Dairy Queen. The rebate percentage went up to 6.5%. Start thinking about snacks after school, upcoming birthday parties that need a delicious ice cream cake, or even for Halloween!
WE STILL NEED MORE HELP! You don’t need to be on a set schedule, but we are looking to build our on-call/substitute roster. We are looking for Wednesday morning or Friday afternoon availability. Please contact Therese Sarr (sarrtherese206@gmail.com) if you are interested.
We are looking for more Sunday Sellers! Please help Therese and consider selling on Sundays to get your Volunteer Hours. Sign up below-
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4AA5AB2AA1F5C70-fall
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Here is where and when you can buy Scrip:
✨️In the timed parking lot-Wednesdays 8am-9am and Fridays 2:45pm-3:15pm
✨️In the Breezeway-Sundays (every other; 10/1, 10/15,etc.) 9:30am-10:30am
✨️Anytime, via the Raise Right app.
Questions, Comments, Concerns? Contact Your Scrip Admin Team:
-Gemma Ardiente (ordering & inventory) gemma_ardiente@comcast.net
– Rachel Rogers (bookkeeping) rrodgers517@gmail.com
-Therese Sarr (volunteer selling coordinator) sarrtherese206@gmail.com
-Nick Golla (communications) nngolla@gmail.com
CYO
Basketball registration is now!
4th-8th grade boys and girls register now! League games are from Nov. 18-Jan 28th. Practices can begin as soon as we have a team, coach, and gym space reserved. We are hoping for boys teams for 4th-8th grade! Girls will likely combine with Holy Rosary. So spread the word and sign up now!
3rd grade boys and girls will register starting Jan 1st.
Register at:
https://www.teamsideline.com/sites/seattlecyo/current-programs
Contact Laurel Pehanich or Mr. G if you have any questions (or want to help volunteer)!
Coffee & Donuts
Do you need volunteer hours that can be done outside of the regular work week? Come Set up, Serve, and Clean up on Sundays for Coffee and Donuts after both the 8:30am and 10:30am Masses. It’s easy and fun and a great time for fellowship and fun with our community.
Bring kids with you. Have them dress up in Full Dress and help greet and serve. They can earn a Free Dress Pass!
Click the link below. Please print and fill out and return to the office.
Extended Care Donations Needed
Some of our games and activities in Extended Care are missing items, in poor condition and rather outdated. Some of the items that need replacing include:
Games – (e.g.) Monopoly, Life
DVD’s (G rated only, please)
Crafts (any)
For your donation, you can receive 1 volunteer hour (per donation, not per item). Check back in this space for an updated list of items we still need as we begin to receive donations.
Stewardship Hours Opportunity
St. Thomas More Parish is looking for a family to put together this year’s Stewardship mailing to all Parish families. If interested, you can pick up the materials from Cathy Bellande in the Parish Office by no later than Tuesday, October 24th. The whole project should take no more than 2-4 hours, depending upon how many people in the family are involved. When completed, the envelopes, in the bins provided, need to be returned to Cathy so she can mail them, thank you.
Contact Cathy with any questions at (425) 743-2929 Ext 100
Volunteers
Current Volunteer Opportunities
Check back in this space for current volunteer opportunities.
Requirements for Parent Volunteers
Parents who wish to volunteer will need to be current on their Virtus Training, Protecting God’s Children and complete the Volunteer Handbook acknowledgement form.
Online sessions are also available in English and Spanish. Visit Virtusonline.org and click on the Current Registration tab. Trainings are good for 3 years. If you need to renew your status, you can do so online at Virtusonline.org.
For information on how to create your profile and register for a class, please click on the link below and look for the Registration Guide under Adult Employee Information and Resources, or contact Heather Anderson at heather.anderson@stms.org or (425) 743-4242.
Archdiocese of Seattle – Safe Environment
We want to help all of our families meet their volunteer hours and become more engaged with our amazing STMS community. Please complete the survey below so we can better understand your talents and interests in volunteering.
Volunteer Talents, Interests and Needs
Guidelines for COVID, Flu and RSV
St. Thomas More School is following the COVID guidelines published by the Washington State Department
of Health and the Snohomish Health District*.
The Snohomish Health District has recently revised their guidelines. The link to the guidelines can be found below:
NEW
Snohomish County Health Department COVID Guidelines – PDF with Barcode
WA State Department of Health Guidelines
NEW
CDC recently made an announcement sharing the news below (see links).
Every U.S. household can receive four free COVID-19 rapid tests delivered to their home through USPS beginning Monday, September 25, 2023.
COVID.gov – Free at-home COVID-19 tests
Important Updates to STMS Guidelines
- If your child tests positive, the quarantine period is 5-10 days. If after 5 days, your child is symptom free and has not had a fever within the last 24 hours, he/she may return to school and will need to remain masked through day 10.
- Day 0 is the first day of the onset of symptoms, or if asymptomatic, the first day of the positive test.
- If your child was previously asymptomatic before testing positive, but starts to exhibit symptoms after testing, day 0 is the first day of symptoms (the 5-day count starts over).
- Siblings of a child who test positive, or if a child is exposed to someone else in the home who tests positive, may return to school as long as there are no COVID-19 symptoms and remain masked through day 10 of exposure of anyone in the household testing positive for COVID.
- If your child exhibits symptoms of illness at school, they will be asked to wear a mask, and we will call home. We have COVID-19 testing available at school – please email or call the office if you would like your child tested.
If students have active symptoms from any respiratory infections and/or have a fever, they should not come to school.
*If you have any questions regarding STMS guidelines, please contact the school office at (425) 743-4242. Please note that although STMS guidelines are based on the Washington State Department of Health and the Snohomish County Health District, we reserve the right to add extra precautions.