For the past nine years, students and staff of St. Charles Catholic Elementary have taken part in the Johnathan Hetu walk. Johnathan Hetu was an exceptional student at the school and passed away in 2004 after a two-year battle with leukemia. Teacher David Nicholls, who was to have Johnathan in his class that next year, felt compelled to do something to honour Johnathan’s memory – thus the creation of the Johnathan Hetu walk. Students were asked to raise funds, and all the monies were donated to the Northern Ontario Families of Children with Cancer (N.O.F.C.C.). This year, students and staff once again participated in the walk and raised an outstanding amount of $7112. 77 bringing their grand total to close to $60,000 for their ten year anniversary of the walk. Once again, Johnathan’s family joined the school for the walk and the entire school community celebrated Johnathan’s spirit and inspiration.
School principal, Dave Soehner, was overwhelmed with the school’s spirit once again. “I am extremely proud of my students and staff for continuing to honour our former student and his family through this walk and their donations,” Soehner stated. “The Johnathan Hetu walk brings us closer as a school community, allows us the opportunity to celebrate one of our own, as well as give back to our own city in a very positive and direct way through N.O.F.C.C.”
Category: Community
Bears Soccer Finish 4th in Ontario
The St. Benedict Bears Sr. Boys Soccer team finished 4th at OFSAA in London, Ontario (June 5-7, 2014). This is the second straight final 4 appearance for the team at the provincial championships. The squad won their round-robin pool with a perfect 3-0 record. The squad then won the quarter-final 3-1 over Port Hope. Unfortunately, the Bears would fall 2-0 to Glegarry SS from Ottawa in the semi-final, who eventually went onto win the gold medal. The Bears lost a close 2-1 match to Ridley College from St. Catharines in the consolation game. The team finished with it’s best results in program history and a season record of 13-2 (only losing on the final day of the season). Coaches were Giuseppe Politi, Giorgio Urso, and Aaron Dent. The squad members include: Brad Mansfield, Brandon Moxam, Cody Boyle, Cody Nkongolo, Cody Piche, Connor Vande Weghe, Curtis Carpino, Elliot Swan, Jon Zanini, Josh Rancourt, Matthew Bertuzzi, Nathan Shane, Nick Filippetto, Nick Hechler, Rudy Giusti, Ryan Keenan, Ryan Phillips, Shawn Wilcox, Josh Girolametto, David Portelance, and JC Carriere.
St. Benedict Graduate Now a Published Author
St. Benedict graduate, Michaela Smet is now a published author. Available through Friesen Press, Smet’s novel, Promise, tells the story of a girl who has big ambitions and overcomes many obstacles to keep a promise to herself for a better life. According to the website, Smet’s desire to become an author “stems from her passion for writing and a desire to share her dreams and memories. She is currently dividing her time between writing and completing a degree in Architecture.”
Author Chad Solomon visits St. John/ St. James School
Graphic novelist and creator of Rabbit and Bear Paws, Chad Solomon visited both St. John and St. James Catholic Elementary Schools. The Rabbit and Bear Paws series involves heroes that share humourous adentures based on tradition Aboriginal teachings. The students at both schools had an opportunity to learn some traditional Aboriginal teachings, as well as, the creativity and innovation that is involved with designing graphic novels.
Art Club Blossoming at St. David School
The teachers and staff at St. David Catholic Elementary School appreciate that good education is based in holistic instruction. Art develops the whole brain. Art strengthens focus and increases attention, develops hand – eye co-ordination, requires practice and strategic thinking and involves interacting with the material world through different tools and mediums. Art builds self esteem, increases motivation and can strengthen our relationship with the environment.
Mrs. Elissa Zuliani, the school’s primary prep teacher offers her time each week after school for those students interested in expanding their knowledge of visual arts. The St. David School Art Club is offered every Wednesday from 3 – 4 pm. Participating students work with various mediums (paint, oil pastels, marker, etc.) and learn about famous artists and their styles. All students bring their artwork home at the end of the program in a portfolio after it is showcased in the school. Healthy after school snacks and drinks are provided to all student participants each week. To date, the students have learned about Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinski, and various Inuit artists.
According to Mrs. Zuliani, “Art is good for the soul and anyone can paint. This is our motto. We welcome all grade 2 and 3 students at all levels of ability and celebrate each other’s talents”.
Upcoming Event – Johnathan Hetu Memorial Walk/Fundraiser
Upcoming Event – Friday, June 6, 2014
1:30 p.m. -2:30 p.m.
Johnathan Hetu Memorial Walk/Fundraiser
Contact: David Nicholls – teacher at St. Charles Elementary
Phone: 705-855-4955
This Friday, June 6th, St. Charles Elementary will be hosting its 10th annual Johathan Hetu Walk. The walk will take place from 1:30 – 2:30 at St. Charles Elementary School in Chelmsford. The walk is in remembrance of Johnathan Hetu. Johnathan lost his life to cancer and the walk is held in his memory with all proceeds of the walk going to the NOFCC. St. Charles has been able to raise over $51,000 since the beginning of the walk. On the day of the walk Johnathan’s parents will award the Johnathan Hetu memorial award. This goes to a student who shows that they are happy to be at school, show a positive attitude and are active participants. These were characteristics that Johanthan showed while he was able to go to school during his cancer treatments.
Outdoor Learning at St. Bernadette
With the wonderful, warm weather arriving, why not teach outside? On Tuesday May 27th, the 5/6 French Immersion class from St Bernadette Catholic Elementary School took their learning to the pavement. After learning about variables in equations, the students solved algebra problems and communicated their thinking using sidewalk chalk. Teacher Chantal Therrien exclaimed that “The students thoroughly enjoyed working with their math partners to solve the missing variable under the sunshine!”
SCDSB Hosts Fifth Annual Turning Points Essay Contest
Students, parents, teachers and invited guests gathered at the Sudbury Catholic District Board office on May 7, 2014 to take part in the SCDSB’s fifth annual Turning Points Essay Contest Awards ceremony. This essay contest is an initiative that stems from the Learning Partnership, which is an organization that champions a strong public education system to deliver innovative programs, credible research, policy initiatives, executive leadership and public engagement across Canada. Turning Points is a character development and literacy program that allows students to reflect on their fundamental values and, through a process of self-reflection and dialogue, write a narrative essay about a significant event, or turning point in their lives. As it is the fifth year, student participation has continued to grow as teachers have continued to encourage their involvement with this rewarding program. The Turning Points Essay Contest is a powerful character development and literacy program that all 4 of our secondary schools, as well as the intermediate students at St. Anne participate in this year. There are 3 divisions, Grade 7/8, Grade 9/10 and Grade 11/12. The top three essays for grade 7/8 and 9/10 and the top 4 essays for Grade 11/12 were selected. There were also several honourable mentions for the 9/10 and 11/12 categories. Cash prizes were awarded for secondary essays. All essays will also be published in an annual anthology that will be sent to students and participating schools next year. The students that took part in this contest and authored the winning essays were awarded plaques, a copy of the publication, as well as monetary awards at the celebration. The students were honoured for their efforts and several students had the opportunity to read their essays allowed. The audience was visibly moved by these emotional accounts and several staff involved spoke of the courage and strength of their students to be able to write such heart-felt accounts of their experiences. Top prize went to Rilie Phillips of Marymount Academy.
Welcome to Kindergarten at St. Bernadette
Marco Curic and his parents left the St. Bernadette Catholic French Immersion School Welcome to Kindergarten event with a bag full of supplies to use throughout the summer in preparation for Full Day Kindergarten. St. Bernadette, which will be implementing Full Day Kindergarten in September 2014, partnered with Cedar Park Daycare, the New Sudbury Best Start Hub and the Greater Sudbury Public Library to offer newly registered students a hands-on opportunity to experience “a day in the life of a kindergarten student”. Children and parents circulated through stations where they were able to create and explore with Play Dough, use scissors, crayons and glue to cut out and decorate the first initial of their name and ask questions during storytime on the carpet.