Family Messenger, September 25, 2012

Lord God,

Help us to trust in the power of love to bring us close to you.

Help us to choose forgiveness over resentment and anger,

So that your peace, alive in our hearts, may draw others to you.

Amen.

A Message from the Principal

In the Roman Catholic tradition, October 4 is the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. Among many other things, St. Francis was known for his special connection to animals and is therefore the patron saint of animals and the environment. This year, Incarnation will be celebrating the Blessing of the Animals on Thursday, October 4 at 7:50 a.m. with a prayer service prepared by Mrs. Lomasto and the third grade class. Animals are welcome provided they are accompanied by an adult. Parents and pets may begin arriving at 7:40 a.m. (please, no earlier!) and are invited to assemble in the kindergarten yard. Please be sure animals are properly restrained and that you bring the necessary supplies to clean up after your pets! Animals, regardless of size or species, will not be allowed in the classrooms. If you are unable to bring your pet to school in the morning for the blessing, students may bring a photo of their pet(s). 

After the blessing, parents with animals will then proceed to the carpool area.  Please note that the school yard will be open for parking at 7:30 a.m. Your child should be dropped off first as usual. Then you may park and take care of your pet.

We look forward to seeing our animal companions next week!

Sincerely,

Diana Girskis

Principal

Important Dates

September 28 - Teacher in-service – NO SCHOOL

October 3 - International Walk to School Day

October 4 - Blessing of the Animals

October 12  - Progress Reports go home – NOON DISSMISSAL- ASP AVAILABLE

International Walk to School Day

Incarnation has registered for International Walk to School Day on Wednesday, October 3. Join us on our “walking school buses” departing from two locations that morning. Please see enclosed flyer for details. Thanks to Erik and Joanna Hovland for helping to coordinate this community activity!

Jog-a-thon

The Jog-a-thon is scheduled for Friday, November 16, 2012. More info to come...

Book Fair News

Thank you to everyone who supported the book fair and helped the library earn $2,743.26 to buy new books for the library and the classrooms!!!  Thank you to all of the volunteers who helped at the fair.  The students love when the book fair comes to school, and we could not have a book fair without our parent volunteers.  SAVE THE DATE!  Our Barnes and Noble book fair at the Americana will be on Saturday, December 8, 2012.  More to come…

Music News

A huge THANK YOU to all who participated in the Jeans Day music fundraiser!  We collected $298.  Ms. Rickert will be utilizing these funds for the music curriculum and a class set of individual music staff (lined) whiteboards for the students to use during class.

SCRIP Tip

Please check out the Scrip flyer attached to today’s Home Messenger for profit bonuses!  On-hand specials include:  Chevron 1.5% to 3% until 9/28/12;  Gap/Banana Rep/Old Navy 14% to 16% until October 19;  iTunes 5% to 10% until 9/28/12;  Smart & Final 3% to 5% until 9/28/12.  Once the Chevron, iTunes and Smart & Final are gone this week the profits will return to their original %.  Also check out the Scrip special order bonuses.

From the Business Office

The mandatory $250 SCRIP fundraising invoices will be e-mailed next week; payment is due by Monday, October 15.  Please note:  ALL families must submit payment even if you are purchasing SCRIP.  The mandatory donation will be refunded to families who reach the $250 in profit by May 31, 2013.  It’s easy to get there if you purchase every week and take advantage of special promotions.

Family Messenger, September 18, 2012

Holy God,

You sent your son, Jesus into the world

to be the light of the world.

May this Christ light burn brightly

in all we do and say, so that your love

may be known on earth as it is in heaven.

Amen.

A Message from the Principal

Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate the 75^th Anniversary of Incarnation School! We had a wonderful time at Mass on Saturday with Bishop Wilkerson. Thanks to the families and students who came to show support for the school. It was a beautiful Mass with the choirs and the children serving and reading. The dinner was so lovely, and we all had a nice time.  The artwork the children did was beautifully displayed in the gym. The children did a great job with their descriptions of the school.

The Picnic on Sunday was excellent!  Thanks to everyone who helped out, especially   Mrs. Alonso, Mrs. Dumansky and their crew-they really know how to make the school look fabulous! I had a great time in the dunking booth. Thanks to all who came!

Thank you parents, students and teachers for all you do for our school. If you have any questions or concerns about anything, please come and see me. My door is always open.

Sincerely,

Diana Girskis

IMPORTANT DATES

·  September 17^th -24^th - ITBS testing

·  September 26^th- Mandatory General PTO meeting – 7 p.m.

·  September 28^th- No School -Deanery Meeting for the Teachers

Carpool

Due to the heat, we will be continuing with “rainy day carpool.” Please park your car and go to your children’s individual classrooms to pick them up, as the auditorium is busy for this week.

Please Help with Photos on Our Website

Whenever you attend INCA events and take pictures, if you would like, please send them  to Dennis Doyle. He can post them to our INCA website, and you can get service hours! 

His email address is ddoyle@glendale.edu

Help Needed on Sundays

We need help for selling donuts on Sundays. Please call the school office and give us your name and phone number. Yes, you get service hours!!

ITBS Testing

The Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) is being administered beginning Monday, September 17^th through the 24^th to the students in grades 1-8. Students in grades 3, 5, and 7 will also take the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT). Testing will take place daily, and most testing is scheduled in the morning hours. Please do not schedule any appointments for these dates so that your child is present to take the full battery of tests.

From the Business Office

There have been several questions regarding not receiving an e-mail from the business office last week.  Please note: September statements were e-mailed; if you did not have a balance you did not receive an e-mail.  Invoices for September ASP have not been e-mailed yet. They will be e-mailed at the end of the month.  Please contact Mrs. Fenton if you have any questions.

SCRIP Tip

Don’t forget to re-register your Ralphs Rewards card. If you are not sure if you re-registered, please look at your cash register receipts—Incarnation School should be listed at the bottom.  Also, if you have recruited your family and friends to register their Ralphs Rewards cards, please submit their names to the Business Office to ensure you receive credit for their purchases.

Reminder:  bonus profits for the following on-hand Scrip continues as follows:  California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) until 9/21/12; Chevron, iTunes, and Smart & Final until 9/28/12.

Please remember to use your blue SCRIP envelopes when ordering SCRIP.  Thanks!!

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From the Librarian at Casa Verdugo Library

The Casa Verdugo Branch is about two blocks north of Incarnation School.  We were closed for several months and we would like to let the community know that the library is now open for business.  If possible, would you be able to include our reopening information in your online newsletter to families?  On our website, we do ask that patrons please enter from the front of the building; there will be no parking in back of the building until further notice.  For more information, visit glendalepubliclibrary.org. 

If you have any questions, then please feel free to contact me at Casa Verdugo at 818-548-2047.

With gratitude,

Vivian Dulay

Family Messenger, September 4, 2012

Lord, our God, Help us to be people of prayer, turning first to God when we have decisions to make. May God’s work be done through us. We ask this through Jesus’ name. Amen.

A Message from the Principal
As we begin our second week of school, this is a great time to for you to help your child succeed this school year. As your child’s first and most important teacher, you pay an important role in supporting your child’s learning at school. The beginning of a school year is a great time to review rules together. Discuss school and classroom rules, and use this opportunity to talk about home rules too!
I am eager to be involved in your child’s learning this year!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Diana Girskis


Important Dates:

September 4th- Preschool First day- Noon dismissal for two weeks 

September 5th- PTO Board meeting at 6pm 

September 6th- Back to School Night, Grades K-8th only 

September 12 – All School Mass 8:30 a.m.; dress uniform required, dress shoes, no sneakers, no hoodies, or sweatshirts 

September 14th- Half Day 

September 15th- 75th Anniversary Celebration Mass, 5:30pm I am asking if everyone can please come to represent our school unity. 

September 16th- Catechetical Mass for the teachers, Picnic at 1pm 

September 17-24- ITBS testing September 26th- General PTO meeting September 28th- No School Deanery Meeting for the Teachers

  Welcome Preschool!
This week our preschoolers as they begin classes. We are happy to welcome their smiling faces to our school. Preschoolers will dismiss at noon for the next two weeks.

 Directory Information
 We are currently preparing an updated School Directory for distribution in the next few weeks.  Please complete the form, and turn in as soon as possible. It will be due on September 27th. Additional forms are available in the School Office.  Thank you!

75th Anniversary Picnic
Mark your calendars for our Sunday, September 16th from 1-4pm. Join Incarnation families as we celebrate the Anniversary of Incarnation. Alumni will also be joining us in the festivities. Be sure to get there early, as food will be served at one and Inca's own band, The Breaks will be playing at 12:30. The book fair will also be open that day. Hope to see you there!

 Box Tops for Education 
Turn your everyday grocery purchases into cash for Incarnation School! You can clip 10¢ Box Tops coupons from hundreds of products such as Cheerios®, Betty Crocker®, Juicy Juice®, Ziploc®, Kleenex®, Hefty® and more! Start clipping now and send them to the school office. Visit HYPERLINK "http://www.boxtops4education.com"www.boxtops4education.com for more ways to earn.

 P.E. Uniforms
We have made the mesh P.E. shorts available for ALL students. If your items are backordered, students may wear their regular uniform shorts or blue/black athletic shorts while you are waiting for your order to arrive.

 We need Volunteers!
The Fall Scholastic Book Fair is around the corner and we are looking for volunteers to help make it a great success! This year the book fair coincides with the 75th Anniversary of Incarnation School. The book fair will be open on Sunday, September 16th after Masses in the morning and during the picnic in the afternoon. It will also be open Monday, Sept. 17th through Thursday, Sept. 20th. Thank you to all who have already expressed an interest to help, by signing the sheet on the first day of school. Included in your packet today is a new sign up sheet with dates and times when we need parent participation hours. Please remember that all volunteers working on campus need to be Virtus trained. Please indicate on your volunteer sheet if you have also been fingerprinted. Mrs. Hihn will contact you by email to verify all times

 Homework Website- School notes Homework Website 
Parents now have access to the homework link, School Notes Homework, on top of the Incarnation School Webpage. Not all teachers have entered their homework as they are still being trained on how to set up, so please be patient as they will have it done by this week, if you have any questions please email the individual teacher. Thanks for your understanding during this transition.

 From the Business Office Reminder:
Book Fees for 2nd and 3rd child were due last week. A $25 late fee will be assessed if payment is not received by tomorrow, Wednesday, September 5. September statements will be e-mailed this week. Please contact Mrs. Fenton if you have any questions.

 SCRIP Tip
Our SCRIP Vendor, Great Lakes, has quite a few bonus profits this month. Attached is a flyer with details. Volunteers are still needed for Sunday sales; please contact Mrs. Fenton for more details.

 HOMEWORK CLUB STARTS NEXT WEEK!

 **Parents Authorization Form to Use the child’s image slip is due this Friday. You may locate the slip on the back of the parent student handbook on the INCA website.