Family Messenger November 25, 2008

Generous and loving God,
Our hearts overflow with gratitude
as we celebrate your unending goodness to us.
May we always remember who has given us
everything we can see or touch or hold, including our lives!
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
Last Friday, Incarnation School had its 24th annual Jog-A-Thon. It was an afternoon full of energy and enthusiasm as well as a great community-building event. We were blessed with beautiful weather as the sixth grade class led us in the first lap. Kyle Bennett, sixth grade, won the logo design contest for the t-shirts, therefore his class won the privilege of kicking-off the event. Congratulations, Kyle!

I would like to thank Mrs. Ann Marie Guinane, Mr. Robert Mahan, and all of the parent volunteers who helped make our Jog-A-Thon a success. With the help of our students, parents, and sponsors, we are another step closer to keeping the school cool! Fundraising totals will be published soon.

On Friday morning, a few students from Incarnation accompanied eighth grade parent volunteers in delivering your donated food items to St. Columbkille. Our students and parents were greeted with smiling faces, and they were much appreciative of our support. Our own Coach Briceno was also there –St. Columbkille is his parish and he teaches P.E. there! Thank you for your generous donations and for your flexibility with the change in deadline for the collections.

As we approach Thanksgiving, I have much to give thanks for, but I am especially grateful for all of the children that you send to us each day. You are all in my thoughts and prayers, and I wish you a safe and blessed weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ms. Olivia Carrillo


Important Dates
• 11/26 – Noon Dismissal; Parent-Teacher Conferences; No hot lunch served
• 11/27 – 11/28 – Thanksgiving Vacation
• 11/30 – First Sunday of Advent
• 12/4 – Awards Assembly 10:30 a.m.
• 12/5 – Pictures with Santa
• 12/6 – Barnes and Noble Book Fair @ the Americana


Scrip Tip from Jennifer Bunt
Only 16 more scrip shopping days before school lets out. Be sure to place your orders early.
If you are needing a large amount of one particular scrip, please know that we may not have it all in stock and that it will need to be ordered. During the Christmas season, we will order more frequently as needed.

The following retailers are also increasing their profits for you:
Lowe's 5% from 11-29-08 to 12-12-08, normally 4% (a great place to get your Christmas tree)
Borders 11% from 11-29-08 to 12-12-08, normally 9%
California Pizza Kitchen 5% from 11-29-08 to 12-26-08 normally 4%

On December 6th, Mrs. Hihn is having a "Fun" raiser at Barnes & Noble at the Americana. Scrip can be used for your purchases. From 11-22-08 to 12-19-08, Barnes & Noble is giving 10% profits on the scrip purchase. What an incredible opportunity to double dip. I know that I will be there with my kids, meeting friends for lunch, and purchasing books for our Christmas list. Join the fun!!


Library Labeling Party
You are invited to come to the library on Thursday morning, December 4, for a labeling party! The time is 7:45-10:30 a.m. Coffee and cake will be served. I have over 200 new books for the library that need labels, so we can put the books on the shelves for the kids. Bring a coffee cup. Stay for an hour or the whole time. Small children are welcome, as the library will be closed to students until 10:45. Please remember that you must be Virtus trained, and participation hours will be given. Hope to see you there!
--Mrs. Hihn

Coaches Needed – Participation Hours Opportunity
Receive 40 hours automatically…become a coach! We are looking for A and B level basketball coaches for our spring sports season. If you are interested in coaching (boys or girls), Virtus training, fingerprinting, and CYO certification is required. We need you right away in order to have Incarnation teams represented in the CYO! Contact Jimmy Mueckay, PTO Commissioner of Athletics, if you are interested in coaching. (moykai@charter.net)

Family Messenger November 12, 2008

God, our loving Father,
Your churches are where we gather
to stand in your presence and serve you.
Make us always worthy for this holy and awesome task.
We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ the Lord.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, we remember to give thanks for our abundant blessings. We also remember those in need and our call to help others. Our eighth graders will be sponsoring the annual collection of food for St. Columbkille parish. A flyer is enclosed in this week’s envelope outlining the items that each grade will collect. This is wonderful opportunity for our students to practice one of Incarnation’s schoolwide learning expectations: serving the community according to God’s call as evidenced by local and global outreach. It is important that our students, no matter what the age or grade level, take advantage of any chance to serve. Thank you for helping your child in this critical area of development.

As you know, all adults working in schools or parishes when minors are present are required to take a VIRTUS class. Incarnation is once again offering this training on Sunday, November 16 from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. If you have not already attended a live training session, please plan on attending this Sunday. The class will be held in the Central Ave. property basement. Please call the school office at 818-241-2269 to register. Remember to submit a copy of your certificate to submit to the office as proof of attendance.

Have a wonderful week!

Ms. Olivia Carrillo

Important Dates
• 11/13 – Great Southern California Shakeout 10:00 a.m.
• 11/16 – Virtus training – Incarnation 12:00 p.m.
• 11/17 – First grade field trip
• 11/19 – Third grade field trip; See’s candy sale ends
• 11/21 – Jog-A-Thon (12:00 p.m.); Report cards go home
• 11/24 – 11/26 – Noon Dismissal; Parent-Teacher Conferences
• 11/27 – 11/28 – Thanksgiving Vacation
• 11/30 – First Sunday of Advent


Upcoming VIRTUS Training Sessions
Sunday, November 16 @ 12:00 p.m. – Incarnation

Visit www.virtus.org for other locations in the San Fernando, San Gabriel, San Pedro, and Our Lady of the Angels regions. Please be sure to turn in a copy of your Virtus certificate to the school office.

Parent-Teacher Conferences
Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held from November 24-26. Please call the school office to sign up with your child’s homeroom teacher. If you need to meet with any other teacher, please contact them directly via email to arrange for an appointment. At conference time, you will receive your child’s ITBS score report and will be able to discuss the first trimester report card. Conferences are limited to 15 minutes to enable the teachers to meet with each child’s parent(s). If, after the conference, you find that you need more time to discuss your child’s progress, please schedule another appointment with that teacher. Please make every effort to arrive on time. Teachers’ schedules are quite full; therefore they may not be able to accommodate late-comers. For parents who work, please note that the Federal Law requires employers must give you time off from work to handle school-related matters.

Scrip Tip from Jennifer Bunt
Attention Gap and Bath and Body Works shoppers!!! From November 8 -December 5, Gap is increasing their contribution by 2%, bringing your profit earned total to 11%. Bath and Body Works is being even more generous and increasing their contribution by 5%, bringing your profit earned total to 18%. Run, don't walk, to take advantage of this limited time offer. Beginning November 15-December 12, Macys wants to get into the action and will increase their contribution by 2%, bringing your profits earned total to 12%. Not to be trumped, Sears (Special Order Scrip) wants to increase their contribution by 6% bringing your profits earned total to 10%. Sears Scrip also is accepted at OSH and The Great Indoors. For you internet shoppers, Zappos AND Overstock.com are now available for Special Order Scrip.
Both come in $25 increments with 8% profits.

Finally, there are only 10 more school days before Thanksgiving Break. Be sure to pick up Scrip for your Thanksgiving needs and Christmas Shopping over the Thanksgiving Break. Your wallet can't afford not to!

Thank You
Last week, the third grade class dressed up as saints and led the All School Mass in honor of All Saints Day. They looked fabulous and did a wonderful in job in presenting symbols related to their saints. Thank you, third graders! We also thank the sixth grade class for sponsoring last Sunday’s 9:00 Mass.

Visitor Sign-In
All school visitors must first stop in the school office. No matter how short the visit, everyone on school property must sign-in and indicate the location of the visit. It is important for us to know who is on school property at all times. This is for the safety of the children and for your safety in case of an emergency. All classroom visits must be confirmed with the teacher ahead of time. Thank you for your cooperation.

New Sound System
Incarnation School and Parish have installed a new sound system in the school’s auditorium. The sound can project clearly into the auditorium without feedback. It can also project into the kindergarten yard and the lunch area as needed.

Mrs. Regan-Smith Visits
Last week, Mrs. Regan-Smith, the former principal of Incarnation School came to visit. Mrs. Regan-Smith is now the principal at All Souls School in Alhambra. She brought along some of the All Souls staff to see how our library and Accelerated Reader program are run for implementation at their school.

Incarnation Varsity Football
The football team won both of their playoff games last weekend against Sacred Heart Los Angeles and against Beatitudes. The Eagles are now one of the top 16 teams in the CYO and will play again next Saturday. Congratulations and good luck!