Tiger Talk! March 17, 2017

Tiger Talk!

March 17, 2017

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! It is the one day of the year when we are all a little Irish, even in this traditionally Italian parish. I am Irish by marriage only and I always tease my husband and children that St. Patrick was actually Italian. I did my research, of course, to prove to my family that Patrick’s father was Roman. Patrick’s life was very interesting; from a slave to a prophet. He studied religion in Rome. He was sure that God was calling him back to Ireland to bring people together and make Ireland a Christian land.  After doing wonderful things in Rome, Patrick was sent to Ireland to spread the message of the Gospel. He was an asset because he was able to speak Celtic and could communicate with the Irish. Father Nick also spoke of St. Patrick and his teachings today during the homily, mentioning St. Patrick’s use of the shamrock to teach about the Holy Trinity. The leaves of the shamrock were used to represent God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I recently learned something new in a beautiful calendar illustrated by Brother Michael McGrath and published by Clear Faith Publishing, LLC. I learned that, “St. Patrick was one of the greatest missionaries and evangelizers in Church history. Instead of condemning the practices of Druid religion in Ireland, hebaptized them by adapting them to Christian teachings and customs – such as the Easter fire.” He is a fine example of acceptance and tolerance in this often intolerant world. I love Irish blessings. If you do an Internet search, you will find hundreds of sweet and inspiring sentiments.

I am reminded today of a secular and not-so-kind Irish Blessing that hung proudly in my husband’s home growing up. I feel compelled to share it, in memory of my mother-in-law. For those of you who know my husband and I and our sense of humor, this explains a lot!

“May those who love us, love us. For those who don’t love us,

May God turn their hearts.

And for those whose hearts won’t turn,

May the Good Lord turn their ankles

That we may know them by their limping.”

Thank you! – I know I already said thank you, but it bears repeating. Our families outdid themselves in modeling our February Fruit of the Spirit, Generosity! You donated $3,000.00 to Nick Mercanti and his family for home renovations. The family is eternally grateful. Grandmom keeps asking me if I have thanked all of you and shared her love and appreciation, so I am doing so once more. Thank you!

  • Thank you also for your generosity with food donations for the St. Patrick’s Center. We collected over 400 pounds of food to help those less fortunate than us.

Terra Nova Testing – Testing begins on Monday and will take place all week. Testing starts promptly in the morning. Please be sure your child arrives to school on time. If they should arrive once a class has begun testing, they will not be permitted to enter the room until that section of testing is complete. If a student is absent during this week, there is no guarantee they will be able to take the test.

  • Please be sure they are rested and have eaten a healthy breakfast to give them the best chance for performing to the best of their ability.
  • Students need to bring plenty of sharpened number 2 pencils for the testing.

It’s Academic – St. Anthony’s hosted “It’s Academic” last Saturday, March 11th. It was a great success, with 10 schools attending. Mr. Shields coordinated this event. We want to give a huge “thank you” to our teachers who worked very hard to see this through. Thanks also to the students who helped that day!

Group Picture Retakes – 5th Grade was on a field trip the day group photos were taken. For this reason, we will be retaking pictures this upcoming Monday, March 20th, in the afternoon. Students are to wear their full school uniform as always. Thank you very much to Mr. Jim O’Brien and to Mrs. O’Brien for volunteering their time to take the special group photos.

Barksdale Spring Pictures – Barksdale will be here to take Spring Pictures on Thursday, March 30thThis is a dress up day, not a dress down. Jeans/sneakers/boots/shorts/t-shirts/sleeveless shirts are not permitted. This is an optional picture day. Students may only dress up if they are ordering pictures.

Congratulations to Jade Amato. Jade is a Kindergartner who is a big sister to a new little brother, Carter Ollie. God Bless Carter Ollie!

Bertucci’s Night – St. Anthony of Padua Grade School is holding a Spirit Day on Tuesday, March 21st, at Bertucci’s Italian Restaurant. The event will be held at both locations: Christiana and Concord Pike.  This Spirit Day will last all day and is good for dining in or carrying out. The flyers were sent home this week. Please present the flyer when you pay, and we will receive 15% of the proceeds. Come out and enjoy a delicious meal and support our school. We hope to see you there!

8th Grade Lenten Pasta Dinner – Please join us on Friday, March 31st to help the 8th grade class raise money toward their class trip to New York City in May.  A flyer was sent home last week. Just an FYI – The Holy Name Society generously donated $500 toward this class trip. However, the 8th Grade class asked me if they could give that donation directly to the Mercantini Family. After checking with the HNS, I did agree to do that. It seems the generosity trickles down to your children! Let’s return that kindness by supporting their event!

Stations of the Cross/Via Crucis

  • Please join us every Friday at 2:00 P.M. for the Stations of the Cross. The children do a beautiful job reading the Stations, one class per week. It is a nice way to end our Fridays during Lent.
  •  If you miss the daytime stations due to work, feel free to see the beautiful Via Crucis. I have many years of fond memories participating in these living stations. Consider having your child participate next year. Rather than giving something up, encourage them to do something meaningful. It is one thing to read about the life of Jesus, it is another to walk in his footsteps and to follow along with his friends and feel his pain and that of his mother and friends. It is a truly unique experience. I was fortunate enough to play many roles over my grade school, high school, and even college years. I remember the emotions of each character played. It is a sacrifice of time, but it is a great thing to do during Lent.

Parish Easter Egg Hunt 2017  – The annual Parish Easter Egg Hunt will be held on Palm Sunday, April 9th, after the11:00 A.M. Mass (approximate start time is 12:30 P.M.) in the Ballad Room of the Grade School.  There will be categories for the following age ranges: up to age 2, ages 3-5, and ages 6-10.  There will be a prize basket for each age category.  A special appearance by a certain bunny is scheduled!  Enjoy the full array of delicious refreshments offered at parish socials (Serpe’s donuts and tomato pie, Degnars’ breakfast pizza, and much more)! Please RSVP with the number of children, the children’s names and ages, and a contact phone or e-mail by Thursday, April 6th to Anthony Albence via e-mail to cua20064@aol.com or via phone at (302) 983-3200.  (Please leave voicemail if there is no answer.)

  • AGAIN THIS YEAR: all participants and their families are invited to attend the 11:00 A.M. Mass and bring their Easter Baskets to Mass, where they will be blessed.
  • ALSO RETURNING THIS YEAR: The annual Scholastic Book Sale benefitting the Grade School library will be open during the event.  A perfect place to pick up an Easter gift that will also help our school!  A social will also be held after the 9:00 A.M. Mass on Palm Sunday.

Rice Bowls – Remember to donate spare change during Lent into your child’s Rice Bowl, reinforcing our Lenten theme of “Pray and Give!”

Free Conference Hosted by Red Clay – Red Clay will be hosting a regional conference for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. Because of the importance of this topic and our desire to keep all our children safe, we wanted to invite each of you. The conference is FREE and open to the public. Please share with anyone you know that wants support and strategies on keeping all children safe and free from harm.  Details are below, contact is April Anderson 302-552-3714.

Conference: Red Clay Regional Conference for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect

DateSaturday, April 1, 2017

Time7:30 A.M. -12:00 A.M.

Location: CAB Calloway School of the Arts

Cost: FREE!!!!

Online Registrationwww.rcchildabuseprevention2017.com

Important Dates – Please continue to check our school website (https://sapgs.org) for upcoming events and information.

  • March 20th –March 24th – Terra Nova Testing Week
  • March 20thStudent Council Meeting – Preschool Room – 3:00-3:30 P.M.
  • March 21stSpirit Day at Bertucci’s – Concord Pike and Newark locations – All Day
  • March 28th Reconciliation – 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Grade – Church – 9:30 A.M.
  • March 29th Reconciliation – 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th Grade – Church – 9:30 A.M.
    • 2nd Grade Field Trip – Alpine & Rafetto Orthodontics – 9:50 A.M. –      12:30 P.M.
  • March 30thSpring Pictures – DRESS UP DAY
  • March 31st Noon Dismissal – No AfterCare
    • 8th Grade Lenten Spaghetti Dinner – Ballad Room
  • April 3rdStudent Council Meeting – Preschool Room – 3:00-3:30 P.M.
  • April 4th 8th Grade Fundraiser for NYC Trip – Café Napoli/Café Riviera – All day
  • April 8th CYM Pilgrimage
  • April 9th Parish Social – Ballad Room – After the 9:00 A.M. and 11:00 A.M. Masses
    • Parish Easter Egg Hunt – Ballad Room – 12:30 P.M.
  • April 10thA Door of Hope Presentations – 7th and 8th Grade
  • April 13th April 23rd – Easter Break – No School
  • April 23rd – Home and School Designer Bag Bingo – Gym – 2:00 P.M.

To redeem myself from the last blessing, I will share my actual favorite Irish blessing…

“May God give you for every storm, a rainbow,

For every tear, a smile,

For every care, a promise,

And a blessing in each trial.

For every problem life sends, A faithful friend to share,

For every sigh, a sweet song.

And an answer for each prayer.”

We are so blessed to be part of such a loving parish school. Thank you for your continued generosity and for sharing what you have with others in our school and parish community. Thank you for the continued prayers for Father Nick and Nick Mercantini!

Irish Blessings,

Mrs. White and Mr. Shields

“Christ beside me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me.”

~ St. Patrick

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