The Principals and Senior Administration met at the Sudbury Diocesan Centre on Thursday, February 11, 2010 to celebrate their faith and share best practice. The group was very honoured to start their day with a Mass led by His Excellence Bishop Noel Simard. During the mass, the principals listened to the Bishop’s message of the importance of Catholic education. “ We have to be proactive in proclaiming and showing the importance of Catholic Education.” said the Bishop. “Catholic education will allow our students to become people full of compassion and this is our challenge – to be strong and unite in the celebration of our faith.” When speaking of the sacrifices the principals as leaders face, the Bishop asked the question is it all worth it? He answered his own question very simply but emphatically – “you bet!” The group was asked to act as pillars of strength in their own school communities and were given the task of taking their inspiration back to their staff and students to engage them in their renewal of their faith.
Category: Community
Two Thumbs Up for “The Nickel Stops Here”!
“The Nickel Stops Here” is a play written and produced by Marlene Lee, the Grade 6/7 teacher at St. Paul Catholic Elementary School.This musical/comedy is an original script and score that Lee wrote about the Greater Sudbury area. As someone who moved here from southern Ontario, Lee wanted to give her perspective on life in the North. The play includes the Grade 6/7 class playing the parts of the leads, the JK/K class as the black flies and the JK FI class as the blueberries. The story is about King Inco and Queen Nephawin who need their son, Moose, to take over the throne of the Kingdom of Sudbury. Moose only wants to hunt and fish. His sister, the Princess Laurentian, is eager and willing to put Sudbury on the map environmentally and to rule it. According to the kingdom’s constitution, however, she must be married to do so. Laurentian must battle the two princes from Espanola and Wahnapitae in a game of Jeopardy to see who wins the throne. The students have been working for months in preparation for their show and it is very evident that the hard work has paid off. The play deserves two very big thumbs up for the efforts of the students and Marlene Lee for their outstanding production!
Pius XII Holds First Annual Bluez Brothers Dinner and Show
Pius XII Catholic Elementary School held its first Bluez Brothers Dinner and Show on February 4, 2010. The stage and gym were set to amaze and entertain audiences. The Heroes Rock Band and the Restless Group Syndrome (RGS) Dance Band opened for the Bluez Brothers. All three bands had the audience grooving to the music. It was an awesome evening put together by many hands from Pius XII School. Funds raised from this benefit performance were collected for two worthy causes: the Haiti Relief and the Pius Ottawa Trip.
Elder Visits St. Benedict Students to Share Culture
On Thursday, January 11, 2010, students at St. Benedicts participated in a traditional smudging ceremony led by Elder Vince Pawis. Afterward, Mr. Pawis shared several traditional teachings such as the medicine wheel and clan names. The students learned how important it is to be respectful of others and of their connection to Mother Earth.
Bishop Alexander Carter Launches 2010 Heart and Stroke Campaign
Students at Bishop Alexander Carter gathered on February 5, 2010 for an assembly to launch the school’s Heart and Stroke campaign. The school had several guests speak to the importance of fundraising and awareness of Heart and Stroke issues. Michelle Toner, spokesperson for the foundation talked of the personal family members that have had heart disease or strokes and the impact it has had on her. “Great things can happen if you put your mind to it.” said Toner. “Go get ’em Gators and do the best you can to raise as much money as you can for Heart and Stroke!” Deputy Mayor Ron Dupuis also told the students of the importance of this campaign to the city of Sudbury. As a survivor of a massive heart attack back in 2006, Dupuis knows that the community of Sudbury has top-notch doctors,in fact, he believes “the best cardiologists in the world.” By raising funds, he explained how this money was put right back into the community with dollars going to research, medical technology and support. He thanked all of the students for their past donations and told them that they were heroes for so generously giving their time and funds to support such a worthy cause. The students will have several ways to raise money for this year’s campaign. First, the students have been asked to go out and canvas their communities for donations. As well, the students have the opportunity to participate in a co-ed ball hockey tournament on February 18, 2010 as either a player or a spectator by buying into the game or as buy out of class to cheer on the teams. The students will also have a dress down day they can buy into on February 24, 2010. The students hope to beat their donations from last year which were close to $3000.
St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School Launches New Breakfast Program
On Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010, St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School opened the doors to its new Breakfast Club. The program is a partnership between Breakfast Clubs of Canada, the Human League Association and the Sudbury Catholic District School Board. The Breakfast Club provides a healthy breakfast for the students in a relaxed environment and is operated by volunteer staff members and students. The club is open five days per week in the morning and allows students to help themselves to menu items such as fruit, fruit juice, yogurt, cereal and whole wheat bagels to name a few. This is the forth breakfast program operating in the SCDSB secondary schools. The primary goal of the program is to feed students who do not have the opportunity to have breakfast, allowing them to focus on their academics rather than being distracted by hunger.”
St. Ben’s in Pink to Support Janis Foligno Foundation
On Friday, February 5th, 2010, students and staff at St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School donned pink to show their support in the fight againstt breast cancer. The students were encouraged to replace some or all of their uniform with a pink item. Those who participated paid a toonie for the opportunity to shed the uniform for the day in support of breast cancer research. All money raised will be donated to the Janis Foligno Foundation. Janis is the mother of two former St. Ben’s students – Lisa and Marcus. The proceeds will be presented to Marcus when he speaks at St. Benedict’s Open House on February 16th. It was a fun day to replace the uniform and raised money and awareness to support research for breast cancer.
Marymount Launches Their 2010 Heart and Stroke Campaign – “Strokes for Stroke”
Students at Marymount Academy launched the official kick off to their 2010 Heart and Stroke Campaign on February 3, 2010. The theme for the school’s campaign is “Strokes for Stroke” as the main fundraiser will involve the girls paying for a dress-down day and will be going to the Laurentian University swimming pool to enjoy an Olympic themed pool party. This theme was chosen for several reasons. Firstly, the girls wanted to promote exercise and a healthy lifestyle and swimming fits the bill. Secondly, they wanted to tie the event to the Olympics so the pool party will include several Olympic themed games and events with the several prizes to be won. On hand for the launch were several community partners including Mayor John Rodriquez and Police Chief Frank Elsner. Mayor Rodriquez spoke to the girls about the importance of community involvement and physical fitness. Rodriquez said that he was always delighted to visit Marymount as it is a school of heart and spirit. As February is Heart month, he stressed the importance of giving from the heart to support this mementous campaign and their involvement “says a lot about who you are as a individual, as a school and as citizens of Sudbury.” Chief Elsner also spoke to the girls about how he his family has been personally affected by heart disease and stroke and stressed that one of the main initiatives of the Greater Sudbury Police Service was getting involved with youth initiatives. Elner told the girls that he loved visiting Marymount because it is the school with the most spirit and he knows that with the students getting involved in this campaign, it shows that “our future is in good hands.”
Several other business were on hand as they have already begun to donate to the campaign. Lise Callahan, a teacher from Marymount who organized this event spoke to the girls about the importance of what they were undertaking. “We need to make the community aware that this is a problem for people of all ages. It does not just affect older adults, in fact, heart disease and stroke causes one in every three deaths in Canada every year.” The students will also be raising funds through raffles and other school events to support this significant campaign
St. Andrew’s Grade Three Class Raise Funds for Haitian Relief
The grade 3 students of St. Andrew School and their teacher Mr. Laurin held a bake sale on February 2nd in support of the Red Cross efforts to help the people in Haiti. To make this a learning experience for the children the teacher had each child be their own salesperson and several grade 6 students helped with the money counting. The students brought in tasty treats and also had a snowman cake to raffle. They raised $298.42 in their one day project.