To mark the 60th anniversary of St. Charles College, students at the school are aiming to collect 60 thousand cans for the Sudbury Food Bank this fall.
The school is collaborating with St. Andrew, St.Bernadette, Pius XII, St. Raphael, St. John, St. Paul and St. David schools. A kick-off is being held at each school to start the drive.

David DiBrina, the school’s Student Administrative Council president says, “The goal is to reach out into the community and get students, parents and teachers involved in feeding hungry families in our city this winter.”

The secondary school has been taking part in a community food drive since the mid eighties.

The food drive brings in upwards of 100-thousand cans for the local food bank each year.

St. Benedict students have been busy in Ms Dumont’s creative writing class after being inspired by Dr. Roger Nash’s poetry workshop at the school last April. Grade 12 student Emma Erikson said “his performance of a poem about a cricket was intriguing”. During a return visit to St. Ben’s this week, students performed a dramatic presentation of their own poetry for Dr. Nash. After each student’s enactment, Dr. Nash gave helpful suggestions such as including gestures, or props and people in their delivery. He stated he “enjoys working with young people, and that it is always good for students to experience poetry beyond the usual study of literature”.

Students in the St. Raphael Early Learning Kindergarten class participated in a very timely writing and drawing exercise. The students have been thinking about what makes their fathers so special in preparation for Father’s Day.

Student responses varied from “my dad takes me to the movies” to “my pops plays outside with me”.

St. Mary students had a first hand glimpse into the celebrations surrounding the recent Royal Wedding of Will and Kate when letters and pictures from their Pen Pals in England arrived. For the past two years, letters, gifts and even school apparel have been exchanged with St. Nicholas Church of England Primary School in Rayleigh, England (a distance of fifty-one kilometres from London, and a distance of 5646 kilometres from Capreol).

Last school year a link was made with Mrs. Lorna Pigman, Headteacher at St. Nicholas. Student letters were soon exchanged. Information about our Pen Pals was displayed on a central bulletin board so that all could read about our new friends. It was interesting to see that both schools have the same school colours, blue and gold.

This last set of letters included information about the Royal Wedding. The school had a street party in the playground. Students all brought food and were able to play party games. Everyone wore the colours of red, white and blue on the national holiday. St. Mary students will soon be writing about the end of year activities and their summer plans.

On Wednesday, May 18, 2011 it was all hands on deck at the Catholic Education Centre. For the second year in a row, the Sudbury Catholic District School Board celebrated Baby Day. Any staff who had a baby(ies) or grandbaby within the last year, was invited in for a celebration luncheon to reconnect with staff as well as celebrate the expansion of their families with their coworkers. The new moms, dads, and grandparents were presented with giftbags and had their name put in for draws. After introductions and prayer, the guests were treated to a full luncheon while other Board staff took care of the babies and allowed the parents and grandparents some restful time. “It is such a great way to celebrate as a Catholic community and build staff relationships,” stated Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for the Board. “ There is no greater miracle than new life and we encourage our staff and their babies to celebrate with us especially on this day as it brings co-workers together and lets them know that we appreciate them.” The babies’ photos were taken in a graduation cap and gown and were celebrated as the graduating class of 2028. Based on all the positive feedback, staff involved in the organization and planning of the day has already begun to plan for next year’s event!

On Wednesday May 4, Sudbury Catholic Schools presented a “Music Extravaganza” for students, parents and community at Marymount Academy. This event, organized by Sudbury Catholic teachers Leanne Urso, JoAnne Comisso and Brittany Goldsborough, was held during Catholic Education Week as a celebration of music education. Students from St. Francis, St. Raphael, Pius XII, St. Anne, Marymount Academy, St. Charles College and St. Benedict gathered together to showcase all their hard work and talent. There were several award-winning bands performing, fresh from competition at the Northern Ontario Music Festival and the Kiwanis Music Festival, as well as the cast of St. Charles’ production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. The night was such a great success that plans are already underway to make it an annual event!

Spring is an exciting time for kindergarten students.  It is an opportunity for them to look for signs of spring.  This month,  the Early Learning Kindergarten students at St. Raphael School were learning about the life cycle of these butterflies.  They even made one in art class.  The students learned that monarch butterflies begin to arrive in Canada at the end of May.  The bulk of them arrive in June.

The Spirit of God was alive at St. Christopher School during Catholic Education Week. Teachers and students took part in several activities that reflected the theme, “Celebrating the Spirit.” One of the highlights of the week was a presentation by the entire school to family and friends, which included songs, poems, cards and a video presentation. On Friday, the school created a beautiful depiction of a living Rosary. The activity began with all of our students circling the gym – the lights were turned off. As they prayed each part of the Rosary, candles were lit, and, ultimately the entire gym was illuminated in a representation of the Rosary. It was a glorious sight!

A special thank you to all staff and students for making Catholic Education Week a great success.