12/1/24
Dear School Families,

Today is the first Sunday of Advent. The beginning of our liturgical year. When reflecting on this week’s readings, I was most struck by this verse of the Responsorial Psalm (Ps 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14):

Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
   teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
   for you are God my savior,
   and for you I wait all the day. 
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul

May we all lift our souls to the Lord during this season of waiting.

On Thursday morning, I had the pleasure of attending Thanksgiving Mass at St. Clare. The students who participated in the Mass as Pilgrims and Native Americans truly made for a beautiful Mass. A special thank you to Charlotte, Gianna, Joey, Paul, Santino, Sienna, Tyler, Violet, Zachary Q., and Zachary W. for participating. 

Thank you to everyone who supported our Thanksgiving Pie sale! A special thank you to  Mrs. Vella and Mrs. Abruzzo for organizing the event so well.

This will be a busy week at St. Clare. We will usher in the Advent season with our first Jesse Tree service for Kindergarten, 6th, and 7th grade on Monday morning. On Tuesday, students will be able to retake their school photos. Please remember to send your student in with the photos they received from photo day if they are sitting for retakes. On Wednesday, our 8th grade students will have the opportunity to enjoy a Christmas movie in the school gym. Thank you to Mrs. Kneeshaw and Mrs. Miller for planning this special treat for our 8th graders. Our Christmas Fair arrives on Thursday. Students in grades 3 - 8 will receive Reconciliation on Friday. The week ends on Saturday with our Breakfast with Santa in the CCC gym. Truly a fun-filled start to the holiday season!

Our Christmas Fair will be open to the public from 3:00 - 8:00 p.m. this year. Students attending with an adult during those hours may dress down on December 6th. We thank the following for their hard work and support: Our class reps, Mrs. Fraschilla, Mrs. Carcione, Mrs. Canterino, Mrs. Savaggio, dedicated parent volunteers, Mrs. Gardella, Mrs. Smith, and our Christmas Fair sponsors, Christopher Fitzpatrick, Esq., Dr. Nicholas Szwaba, Drs. Olsen, Napolitano, & Cangialosi, Donovan Catholic, Healthy Smiles of SI, Joyce’s Tavern, Mchael Ficchi, Esq., New York Business Group, Richmond County Day Camp, Scarmadella, Gervasi, Kasegrande PC, Where Little Minds Grow, C&C HVAC Pros, and John Scalia Home for Funerals & Cremation Services.
 
Reminder, Christmas Fair pre-sale of pictures with Santa and personalized elves are available until December 2nd. While pictures with Santa will be available at the fair, there will be a limited supply of elves available. 

Raffle tickets for the Gucci Handbag are available for a pre-sale price of 2 tickets for $30 until 12/4. Tickets for the handbag may be purchased at the fair for a price of $20 per ticket.

We owe gratitude to our PreK class reps, Mrs. Persico, Mrs. Varvara, Mrs. Comello, Mrs. Emanuele, Mrs. Kelley, and Mrs. D’Angelo for their creative work on Breakfast with Santa. 

As always, we thank Mrs. Bongiorni, Mrs. Napolitano, and Mrs. Greenblum for their countless hours of work organizing our events. Thank you all for your support!

Sunday is December 1st. Please be sure to place Osteria Santina lunch orders for December by Sunday night.

During this season of giving, we appreciate not only the support of our school and parish fundraising initiatives such as our Memorial Christmas Wreath (shout out to Mr. Ficchi and the Dad’s Club for purchasing the wreaths!) and Christmas Tree programs, but also for your support of our community by participating in the Jr. Giving Circle Toy Drive (toys may be sent into school until December 10th) and the school and parish Confirmation students’ Baby Shower for Mary and Baby Jesus benefitting the Crossroads Foundation and the Sisters of Life (baby items, clothes, diapers, car seats, etc. may be dropped off at the Murphy Center on Saturday, December 7th from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.). Please consider supporting these worthwhile organizations if you are able. 

A special thank you to Mrs. Contino for spearheading the Christmas Wreath fundraiser. Thanks also to Bill Quirk and the maintenance staff for hanging the wreaths and installing the Christmas trees.

Amid the hustle and bustle of Christmas activities this week, I pray that we all find time to pause, reflect, and prepare our hearts in prayer for the celebration of the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ—the most meaningful and important focus of this season.

A list of upcoming events follows.

Have a blessed week!

Mrs. Olsen

Upcoming Events

Monday, 12/2/24 Jesse Tree service select grades
Tuesday, 12/3/24 Picture Retake Day
Wednesday, 12/4/24 8th Grade Christmas Movie
Thursday, 12/5/24 Christmas Fair
Friday, 12/6/24 Whole School Reconciliation
Saturday, 12/7/24 Breakfast with Santa
Monday, 12/9/24 10:00 Immaculate Conception Mass led by Grade 5
Tuesday, 12/10/24 Class Trip Grades 5 & 6
Thursday, 12/12/24 3rd Grade Show 8:30 School Auditorium
Friday, 12/13/24 PreK Pageant, PreK 3-9:00; PreK 4--12:00 CCC Gym
Tuesday, 12/17/24 Kindergarten Pageant 12:00 Church
Wednesday, 12/18/24 8th Grade Pageant 7:00 p.m. Church
Thursday, 12/19/24 Christmas Craft in the Classroom
Thursday, 12/19/24 Advent Prayer Service 1:00
Friday, 12/20/24 Christmas Class Parties, 12:00 dismissal
Friday, 12/20/24 No Aftercares, Last day of school before Christmas Break
Wednesday, 1/1/25 New Year’s Day Brunch, Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of our parish
Monday, 1/6/25 Return to school