Family Messenger May 3, 2011

A Message from the Principal
The month of May is a special time when we honor Mary, the mother of Jesus. Mary showed courage when she put her trust in God and said yes to His plan for her. At each Monday assembly in May, the fourth grade class will lead us in the crowing of Mary. As we honor her this month, we remember that we are also called to say yes to God.

This week we celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week. This is the perfect time to show appreciation to teachers for the work that they do each day (and often nights!). This is my opportunity to thank the teachers and staff at Incarnation for their commitment to our students and to Catholic education. Thank you, teachers, for all that you do!

Finally, as Mother’s Day approaches, I wish all mothers and grandmothers all the best on their special day!


Sincerely,

Ms. Olivia Carrillo
Principal


Important Dates

• May 6 – Noon Dismissal; ASP available
  
• May 7 – First Communion
  
• May 9 – 5th Grade Field Trip
  
• May 10 – All School Mass 8:30 a.m.
  
• May 11 – 6th Grade Field Trip
  
• May 14 – Auction Dinner 6 p.m. – midnight
  
• May 17 – 5th Grade Field Trip; General PTO Meeting 7 p.m.
  
• May 18 – Kindergarten Field Trip; Spring Sports Banquet
  

Question of the Week
In each Home Messenger, there is a Question of the Week for reflection from Sunday’s readings.
Use the Question of the Week to engage in discussion with your child(ren)!

NOON DISMISSAL THIS FRIDAY
Please note that there is noon dismissal this Friday and lunch will not be provided by M&F Kitchenette. For your convenience, ASP will be available free of charge until 1:30 p.m.
After 1:30, the regular hourly rate will apply.

Business Office Closed
The Business Office will be closed this week and will re-open Monday, May 9.

Zoomerang Survey
As of yesterday we had 58 completed online surveys. The survey is anononymous and should take no more than 5 minutes to complete. Your input is important, so please take the time to complete it by tomorrow, May 4th. If you did not receive the email with the link to the online survey, please request it from Ms. Carrillo at ocarrillo@incaschool.org.


First Communion
Beginning this Saturday, our second graders and Religious Education students will receive their First Holy Communion!
We wish them many blessings as they receive this special sacrament.

Scrip Tip from Mrs. Bunt
We're in the final stretch. You should be receiving in the home messenger your report of profits to date. You have until May 31st to continue to contribute for this calendar year. PLEASE NOTE we are having a little difficulty with eScrip reporting from September and no profits earned during that time have been included in this report. We are working on it and will have it resolved before May 31st. Please see me if you have any questions about this. REMINDER, we are an all-volunteer workforce and we do our best, but we make mistakes. If you feel that your profits are misreported, please come to the scrip desk (with your back-ups) and we will work to correct the error(s).

Teacher Appreciation Week and Mother's Day are upon us. Don't forget to purchase scrip to show your appreciation and love for your teachers and moms in your life. Bath and Body works has sent us some $10 off coupons when you spend $30 that I will hand out until they are gone.

Catholic Schools Night at Dodger Stadium – May 13, 2011
Families who ordered Dodger tickets for Catholic Schools Night can pick up tickets from Mrs. Fenton the week of May 9.

Swim Team News
It’s getting warm outside and time to think about summer and swimming! We will be holding an organizational/pre-registration meeting for Swim Team this Thursday, May 5 at 7 p.m. in the School Auditorium. All interested families, please attend to talk about our summer practices, Car Wash fundraiser, 2011-2012 practices and meets. Coach Brandi is attending this meeting. Swim Team is open for all students K-8. For more information contact Co-Chairs: Laura Fabian Medina at: fourpups@live.com or Juliet Mazza Mendoza at: jmazza@mendozaassociates.com. THANK YOU!!!

Prayer Request
Just before the Easter break, Mrs. Gwen Rodela lost her father, Ernest Hernandez. Please keep her and the Rodela/Hernandez family in your prayers. We also ask for your prayers for Ms. Louiza Petrosyan and family and for Mrs. Leti Fenton and her family as the anniversaries of the loss of their children, Haik Vardanyan and Gina Fenton, approach this month.

School Survey

Dear Incarnation School Parents,

Parent input is important to us as we determine the direction for Incarnation School. As we plan ahead for 2012-2013 and beyond, we ask for your participation in a Zoomerang survey. The survey includes questions about the general program Incarnation offers, as well as questions about the possibility of extending the school day/year. Please note that this is a survey to gather your input about the total school program and is not a vote or ballot. Survey results will be one component of the decision-making process. Please look for this survey in your email inbox. Note that the survey is anonymous and should be completed by parents only. We appreciate your responses by Tuesday, May 3rd. Thank you for your participation!

Please click on the link below to begin.

http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/WEB22C8NJS6T2A/


Thank you,

Olivia Carrillo
Principal
Incarnation School
Ph: 818-241-2269
Fax: 818-241-4734

Family Messenger, April 5, 2011

Holy God,
Help us to listen to your word
with open hearts and minds.
May our study lead to prayer
and our prayer lead to good
works and praise.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
Our computer lab upgrade is well underway! Using approximately $40,000 in SCRIP funds, we have ordered 35 Mac mini computers, additional monitors, and additional furniture to accommodate a full class in the computer lab. We expect to have the lab completely transformed by the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year!

The fundraising efforts continue with the spring auction just a little over a month away! Please see the various inserts in this week’s envelope with updates regarding the auction. Thank you for your continued support of our fundraisers. Remember that dinner RSVPs are due April 15th.

Sincerely,

Ms. Olivia Carrillo
Principal



Important Dates

• April 4 – 6 – Confession grades 2-8
  
• April 10 – 1st Grade School Sponsored Mass 9:00 a.m.
  
• April 12 – All School Mass 8:30 a.m.
  
• April 15 – Progress Reports; 4th Grade Bake Sale
  
• April 17 – Palm Sunday
  
• April 21 – Holy Thursday – Noon Dismissal (ASP available until 6 p.m.)
  
• April 22 – Good Friday – No School
  
• April 25 – April 29 – Easter Vacation
  

Auction Volunteer Meeting
If you are helping with Auction Dinner planning in any way, or if you will be helping the day of the event, please plan on attending the final auction volunteer meeting on Wednesday, April 13 at 6:00 p.m. in the Computer Lab. We will discuss how to get auction items to the hotel the day before and the day of the event. We will also review the schedule and help that is needed the day of the event. If you have any questions, contact Susan Theiring (stheiring@earthlink.net).

Catholic Schools Dodger Night
Enclosed you will find an order form for Catholic Schools Night at Dodger Stadium on Friday, May 13th at 7:10 p.m. The discounted rate for Lower Reserve seating is $13 per person, with a portion of each ticket going to support earthquake victims in Haiti and Japan. In order to receive the discounted group rate, we must have an order of at least 30 tickets. Please turn in your orders with checks payable to Incarnation School no later than Friday, April 8. If at least 30 tickets are not ordered, your check will be returned to you. Thank you for your support!

Altar Server Meeting
There will be a meeting for all current altar servers this Thursday from 12:30 – 1:00 in the ASP room.

From the Business Office
The March 2011 ASP, Homework Club, and Morning Care invoices are enclosed in today’s Home Messenger. Please contact Mrs. Fenton if you have any questions.

Graduation Fee
The invoices for the 2nd installment for the Graduation Fee ($110) are enclosed. Please note the due date: April 15, 2011.

SCRIP NEWS:
Good news, profit increases are being given for the following; Shutterfly additional 5% April 9-29; Bath and Body Works additional 5% April 2-29; Home Depot additional 2% now-April 15. AND don't forget Gap/Old Navy/Banana Republic/Athleta/Piperlime has an additional 5% until the end of the school year.

Now's the time to plan for your Easter purchases. We will be selling our normal days/hours now to Holy Thursday, but no sales on Easter Sunday or the week of Spring Break. Sales will resume after masses on Sunday, May 1st.

Remember, the scrip profit year ends on May 31st, so keep buying and selling to your friends/family/neighbors/co-workers.

Family Messenger March 29, 2011

God of Mercy,
How often you have forgiven us!
Help us to be more forgiving of others.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
Thank you to all who supported the auction free dress day last Friday. It was a great success! As you know, the money earned at this year’s auction will be allocated to our air conditioning fund. Prior to 2007, plans for the electrical upgrade and air conditioning project were put in motion and at that time it was estimated that each project would cost approximately $300,000 for a total of approximately $600,000.

With air conditioning there are several options to consider. It is estimated that the cost of air conditioning will cost between $13,000 - $20,000 per classroom (total of 14 classrooms, not including ASP room). We currently have $90,000 set aside for air conditioning to begin phasing units in. The more we money we make at the auction, the more we can do. Keep selling raffle tickets and soliciting donations!

This week I am serving on a WASC Accreditation Committee. I will be out of the office through Thursday, March 31.

Ms. Olivia Carrillo
Principal

Important Dates

• April 10 – 1st Grade School Sponsored Mass 9:00 a.m.
  
• April 12 – All School Mass 8:30 a.m.
  
• April 15 – Progress Reports; 4th Grade Bake Sale
  
• April 17 – Palm Sunday
  
• April 21 – Holy Thursday – Noon Dismissal
  
• April 22 – Good Friday – No School
  
• April 25 – April 29 – Easter Vacation
  

Talent Show
Our annual talent show last Friday was a great success! Thank you to all students who shared performances with us. We also thank all of our parent volunteers for making this show possible: Marcellina DeSousa, Vanessa Hindman, Ligia LeFranc, Jonson Mallari, Yvonne Mallari, Laura Medina Patty Olona, Gail Roque, Cathleen Terrazas, Patricia Tiu, and although not a school parent, Mrs. Rodriguez with the 8th grade class!

LACOE Art Contest
The Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) selected two Incarnation School students as winners of their art annual contest. Congratulations to Mariam E (gr. 3) and Michelle G (gr.8)! The students attended a LACOE Board Recognition Event, and their art work will be permanently displayed in the Office of Education.

YEARBOOK Deadline TOMORROW!!
The deadline to order the 2010-2011 yearbook and to place an ad/dedication page in the yearbook is tomorrow, March 30th!! Please note that these are two separate forms.

Family Messenger, March 22, 2011

Holy God,
During this Lenten season
help us to become more trusting, more prayerful,
and more open to your grace.
Amen.


A Message from the Principal
This Friday many of our students will share their talents with us at our annual variety show. The show will be divided into two acts:

-Act I – K-4th grade from 10:00 – 11:15
-Act II – 5th – 8th grade from 11:45 – 1:15

We are grateful to our students for their willingness to perform for the student body, and we invite you to join us on Friday. We also thank the parents who have helped organize the show: Marcellina DeSousa, Patty Pulido-Olona, and Cathleen Terrazas.


Ms. Olivia Carrillo
Principal


Important Dates

• March 23 – Kindergarten Field Trip
  
• March 24 – 6th Grade Bake Sale
  
• March 25 – Variety Show/Auction Free Dress Day
  

Dennis Uniform – March Promotion
March is “Double Punch Month.” Earn 2 stamps for every $10 purchase on your Dennis Advantage Card. Offer valid for in-store purchases only. Remember to buy Dennis Uniform SCRIP before you take advantage of this offer.

From the Library
Thank you Parents and Students of Incarnation School for supporting the recent Scholastic Book Fair! We earned a cash profit of $853.98 and an additional $1,006.98 in Scholastic dollars to buy books at the fair and from the Scholastic catalog! That’s a total of $1,860.96 to spend on new books! The funds from this fair bought new books for the library, new books for the classroom libraries and new DVDs for classroom instruction. Thanks again for continuing to buy books at the book fairs to support the library.

Auction Dinner
Our annual Live/Silent Auction is just over a month away! We are continuing to collect items for the auction. This Friday is a free dress day for students who bring an item/gift card/cash worth $5 or more (see flyer enclosed). The proceeds from this auction are going towards the air conditioning fund. Thank you for your support!

SMART Boards
SMART Boards have now been installed in the kindergarten through eighth grade classes. The teachers are very excited about the new technology. On behalf of all of them, thank you for your support of the SCRIP program, and thanks again to our SCRIP Coordinator, Jennifer Bunt, for her dedication to SCRIP and helping make this vision a reality!

Scrip Tip
Gap/Old Navy/Banana Republic/Piperlime/Athleta have added an addition 5% to the profit bringing it to 14% until the end of the school year. Perfect time to buy you or your kids spring/Easter wardrobe. Also, iTunes have added an additional 3% bring the profit to 8% until the end of April.

Family Messenger March 15, 2011

Holy God,
Grant us grace to stand on the firm ground of faith.
Give us hope to shelter us from every storm,
and feed us daily with your life-giving love.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
On Friday, our teachers and the Incarnation Religious Education staff will attend the annual Religious Education Congress in Anaheim. The Religious Education Congress offers workshops to those in catechetical and related ministries focused on the Catholic faith and personal growth. This is the largest annual gathering of its kind with approximately 40,000 attending each year. The Religious Education Congress focuses on teaching more about the Catholic faith and offers workshops on personal growth. The school office will be closed on this day.

Sincerely,

Ms. Olivia Carrillo
Principal

Important Dates

• March 15 & 16 – International Days
  
• March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day
  
• March 18 – Religious Education Congress – NO School/NO ASP
  
• March 23 – Kindergarten Field Trip
  
• March 24 – 6th Grade Bake Sale
  
• March 25 – Variety Show (time TBD)
  

Catholic Education Foundation Tuition Awards
The Catholic Education Foundation (CEF) offers tuition assistance to elementary school students and their families each year. In previous years, the CEF has posted income guidelines to determine eligibility for assistance. This year, the CEF is not posting income guidelines and is encouraging any family in need of assistance to apply. If you would like to obtain a CEF application, please contact Mrs. Fenton in the business office. All applications and supporting documents must be received by the school no later than Monday, March 21, 2010 for processing.

Dennis Uniform – March Promotion
March is “Double Punch Month.” Earn 2 stamps for every $10 purchase on your Dennis Advantage Card. Offer valid for in-store purchases only. Remember to buy Dennis Uniform SCRIP before you take advantage of this offer.

International Days
Today we began our 2-day celebration of International Day. Students may come dressed in traditional cultural attire or national colors tomorrow. These 2 days of celebrating cultural diversity would not be possible without the help of our chairperson, Mrs. Tricia Chin-Besson and all parent volunteers. Thank you for making this learning experience possible for our students!

Online Giving Comes to Incarnation Church
Incarnation Church now provides Online Giving – a convenient and safe way to make recurring and one time donations. Try it!

• Safe – meets the highest banking level security standards set forth by the Payment Card Industry (PCI)
  
• Easy – just visit our website (www.incaglendale.org) and click on the link: Register for Online Giving. There are also links for an informational video and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
  
• Secure – you manage your own account. Give any day of the week & as frequently as you wish. Adjust amounts or update account information any time you want. All major credit cards are accepted plus bank saving/checking debits.
  

Project Achieve Service Opportunity
Great LENTEN Service Opportunity - LOOKING FOR GUEST CHEFS
WHO: The Parish Outreach at Glendale Homeless Shelter
WHEN: Our Parish sponsors dinner every third Monday at Project Achieve (near Costco)
TIME COMMITMENT: Approximately 3 hours
No costs commitment - Just your time and love for others. Please contact Rosa Hohman if you would like to help (hohmanrm@gmail.com). URGENT – WE NEED VOLUNTEER(S) March 21st!!

Helping Earthquake/Tsunami Victims in Japan
Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic Church, is responding to victims of the massive tsunami in Japan. To donate, please call 1-877-HELP-CRS, donate online at www.crs.org or send a check to Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090, Baltimore, MD 21203-7090. In the memo portion of your check, please write: Japan Tsunami.

SMART Boards
Installation for the remaining classrooms is set for this week!

2011-2012 Start Date
The 2011-2012 school year will begin on Monday, August 29, 2011. Please mark your calendars.

From the Business Office
The March statements for all unpaid invoices are included in today’s Home Messenger. Please take a moment to review your balance. If you have any questions please contact Mrs. Fenton.

2011-2012 Re-registration
Included in today’s Home Messenger is a note to families who did not attach a copy of their Incarnation Church Parishioner contribution letter with their re-registration forms. If you receive this note, are parishioners and contributed a minimum of $500 from January 2010 to December 2010 please request a copy of the contribution letter from the church office at (818) 242-2579 and submit to the Business Office as soon as possible.

Family Messenger March 9, 2011

Lord God,
In this Lenten season of growth
teach us humility and help our love to grow.
May our faith grow stronger
and our selfishness weaker.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

A Message from the Principal
Congratulations to our Academic Decathlon team! On Saturday, the team competed with 102 other Catholic elementary schools in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and brought home the following individual awards:

• Religion – Carra L, 1st place
  
• English – Marcus C C, 6th place
  
• Current Events – Michael C, 6th place
  
• Math – Golddy S, 8th place
  
• Fine Arts – Matteo M, 2nd place
  
• Literature – August O, 2nd place
  

Incarnation placed 1st in Logic, and 8th overall!! We are very proud of you!

We give one more heartfelt thank you to our head coaches - Tim and Sandy Chan, our logic coach - Damon O’Beirne, and all other parents who supported the team by assisting with coaching or writing test questions. We appreciate all the time you gave so that our school could continue to be represented well at this event. THANK YOU!!

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the first day of the holy season of Lent. During Lent, we pay special attention to our relationship with God. Each year on Ash Wednesday, we receive a cross of ashes on our foreheads as a sign of sorrow for our sins. We set aside these 40 days for prayer, fasting, and doing good things for others. In this way we prepare for Easter, that greatest feast in the Church, when we celebrate Jesus’ rising from the dead. There will be an all-school Ash Wednesday Mass tomorrow at 11:00 a.m.

Sincerely,

Ms. Olivia Carrillo
Principal


Important Dates

• March 9 – Ash Wednesday – All School Mass 11:00 a.m.
  
• March 11 – Report Cards
  
• March 13 – 3rd Grade School Sponsored Mass 9:00 a.m.
  
• March 14 – Trimester 2 Awards Assembly 8:00 a.m.
  
• March 15 & 16 – International Days
  
• March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day
  
• March 18 – Religious Education Congress – NO School/NO ASP
  

Catholic Education Foundation Tuition Awards
The Catholic Education Foundation (CEF) offers tuition assistance to elementary school students and their families each year. In previous years, the CEF has posted income guidelines to determine eligibility for assistance. This year, the CEF is not posting income guidelines and is encouraging any family in need of assistance to apply. If you would like to obtain a CEF application, please contact Mrs. Fenton in the business office. All applications and supporting documents must be received by the school no later than Monday, March 21, 2010 for processing.

Americana Fundraiser
Thank you to all who submitted receipts to the Concierge Desk at the Americana during the holiday season. Incarnation School received a check in the amount of $1,171.00

International Days- Student Map of Countries & Cultures
International Days is now one week away and our hope is that as many families as possible can be represented
on our Student Map of Countries & Culture. Our map is going to start installation this Friday and the students are working with Mrs. Cuevas in Art class to decorate their cards this week if already turned in. If you mistakenly threw your card away please ask the office for another copy, or Mrs. Cuevas also will have some available when the students go to art. If your student had art on Monday they may be bringing a card home which will need information & family photo included.

Please submit provided card by this WED March 9th in an envelope with your student/students names & grade levels to home room teacher.
-Family photo or photo of students no larger then 4” x 6” (1 per family OK if multiple students)
-1 interesting fact about your country/countries or culture.

I hope that we will see all of our families and different cultures represented. Please contact Monique Moore at 213.268.1591 or moniquemmoore@me.com with any questions.

Trimester 2 Awards Assembly
Please join us for our Awards Assembly on Monday, March 14th. The assembly will begin immediately following our morning assembly (approximately 8:00 a.m.).

SMART Boards Update
Our SMART Boards have arrived and are expected to be installed in the remaining classrooms during the week of March 14th!

Dennis Uniform – March Promotion
March is “Double Punch Month.” Earn 2 stamps for every $10 purchase on your Dennis Advantage Card. Offer valid for in-store purchases only. Remember to buy SCRIP!