The Phoenix Flyer: St. Thomas More School Newsletter
November 13-17, 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,
I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend. On Thursday our 4th, 5th and 6th graders honored our veterans at our annual Veteran’s Day assembly. We had to make a quick pivot to the STM Church due to our construction project – as is usually case with our amazing staff and students, no one missed a beat. I think the assembly had a more reverent feel – maybe a permanent switch to the church might be in order. One of my favorite (and most moving) parts of the assembly is when as ask the veterans in the audience to stand or raise their hands to be recognized – I’d like to work on getting more folks in the school, parish and greater community invited to be a part of this recognition, not only for the chance to express our gratitude but for our students to see just how many service men and women we are indebted to for our country’s safety. I welcome your feedback and ideas.
Thank you, as always for the many ways your support the students and staff at STMS.
In Christ,
Elizabeth Glaze
Dates to Remember
11/18 School-led Mass, 5pm (Grade 5)
11/18 STM Christmas Festival, 2-9pm
11/19 STM Christmas Festival, 9:30am-1pm
11/22 Thanksgiving Mass, 11am and Noon Dismissal
11/23-24 No School – Thanksgiving Holiday
11/27 End of Trimester 1
Speech Tournament
So proud of all of our Speech Team that competed today at Archbishop Murphy High School.
| 6/7 Grade Team 1st Storybook Nina A 3rd Storybook Maddie T 1st Ed. Com Isabella T 1st Impromptu David S | 8th Grade Team 2nd Dramatic Interpretation Sara R 1st Humorous Interpretation Mia A 2nd Ed. Com Sara R 3rd Ed. Com Olivia H 1st Impromptu Shannon M 2nd Oratory Mia A Most Inspirational Speaker: Shannon M |
1st and 2nd placements for 8th graders earn scholarships to AMHS too. WAY TO GO PHOENIX!!!
STMS Referral Program
Would you like to get a month’s tuition for free? When you refer a family and they enroll their child(ren) at STMS grade K-8, once that family completes their first year with us, both the new family and the referring family will receive the equivalent of one month’s tuition (single-child tuition).
Thank you to the Ibarra family (Emilia is in 3rd grade) who referred the Palacpac family (Irie is in Kindergarten).
Who could you refer to STMS?
Please contact the school office with any questions, (425) 743-4242.
WSCC Newsletter
Please see the links below for the quarterly newsletter for Catholic Schools from the Washington State Catholic Conference, provided in both English and Spanish.
Extended Care Access
Due to the construction project, for the next few weeks please access Extended care through the West door (on the Parish side).
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.
STMS Spirit Wear
Don’t forget to order your STMS Spirit Wear. Use the link below.
Shout out to the new STMS Spirit Wear “early adopters”:
Angelica Mora Jimenez (first purchaser), Nicole Griego, Gretchen Neale, Carrie Verge and Gemma Ardiente.
Please note: Only clothing available in the Uniform Code Approved section are to be worn at school.
Local Area Events
St. Thomas More Christmas Festival
Saturday, November 18th, 2:00-9:00pm and Sunday, November 19th, 9:30am-1:pm. Please see the flyer linked below for details.
St. Thomas More Christmas Festival
AMHS Clean Out Your Closets Fundraiser
Have you recently cleaned out your closets? Archbishop Murphy is in need of clothing donations for their senior fundraiser. Please see the flyer below for more information. Margie Jimenez is our STMS contact and can help coordinate pick up.
AMHS Clean Out Your Closet Fundraiser
Thanksgiving Food Drive
It’s time for the annual STM Food Drive. Please see the flyer linked below for information on what each grade level is collecting.
Parent Club
Community Building Family Event – Save the Date
STMS is having a movie night! Please reserve Sunday, December 10, 5-8pm for a fun night of building community with our STMS families. [Check back here for the flyer with more information.]
Cookie Dough Fundraiser
If you placed an order for cookie dough please pick it up on Monday, November 20th at 3 pm in the Renggli room. We still need one more volunteer to help distribute. Please use the sign up genius below if you’d like to earn some volunteer hours.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040A49AAAE2EA0FC1-46084580-cookie
Poinsettia and Evergreen Fundraiser
Thank you to those who participated in our Holiday Poinsettia and Everegreens Fundraiser! We were roughly able to raise $4400.00. Great job, Team Phoenix!
The beautiful poinsettias, garlands, and wreaths will arrive on Wednesday, November 29th, just in time for the Advent Season! Pick up this year will be in the Renggli Room.
Let us know if you have any questions.
Have fun selling and Happy Holidays! -Nick & Anna Golla (thehbgollas@gmail.com)
Thanksgiving Chili Bar for School-Parish Teachers & Staff
The chili bar for STM teachers and parish staff was a huge success and everyone appreciated the delicious warm chili (not to mention the delicious sides) on such a cold day (perfect chilly/ chili weather). We appreciate our parent volunteers: Francesca Abellera, Carrie Verge, Fadia Kassab, Gemma Ardiente, Brigitte Poole and Mike Hequibal!
Auction News
DID YOU KNOW…
You can find all of the Auction Forms that you need on the link below.
To access form, click on:
You can also access these forms on the STMS Auction Page on Instagram@stmsauction. Click on
https://www.instagram.com/stmsauction/.
We hope you find everything you need from these resources. If there’s anything you’d like to see added, just let us know!
Patrol
Please see the link to the current Patrol schedule.
Scrip
RAISE DAYS ARE COMING UP ON THE APP NOVEMBER 16-17!
It’s almost here– get ready for the biggest eGift card bonus event of the year! Earn more with 100+ bonuses from brands you love, just in time for your holiday shopping. Find out which brands will be on bonus on the 15th, exclusively on the RaiseRight mobile app.
The St Thomas More Christmas Festival is coming up and we need your help!
We will be selling scrip at this time. Please see the sign up genius below. It’s been broken up into shifts, but if you want to bust out a good chunk of your Volunteer Hours, sign up for multiple shifts, or all day!
The event will be on Saturday, November 18th from 2pm-9pm and Sunday, November 19th from 9:30am-1pm.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4AA5AB2AA1F5C70-45754032-christmas#/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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
CYO Needs You!
CYO Needs You!
CYO needs a parent volunteer! Laurel Pehanich stepped in for soccer and basketball, but only as an interim. Mr. G will continue helping, but we need a parent volunteer as well. Responsibilities this year include handling team registrations and on-line sign-ups for track and volleyball. Please let us know if you are interested or can suggest someone who might be!
CYO Basketball Update
This weekend’s games: 4th grade boys – 9am at Evergreen, 5th grade boys -10:15am at Holy Rosary, middle school boys -bye week.
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.
Volunteers
Current Volunteer Opportunities
We need a few muscles to help us move a tv from the library and install in our preschool room. You may need a few of your own tools to remove the brackets and reinstall on the preschool wall. If you are interested, please call the school office at (425) 743-4242.
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.
