Upcoming Dates of Importance
Tuesday, January 10th - One Hour Delay Students report to school by 8:50 a.m. [Diocesan Curriculum Time]
Monday, February 13th - One Hour Delay Students report to school by 8:50 a.m. [Diocesan Curriculum Time]
Thursday, February 23rd - Early Dismissal 12:45pm St. Charles hosts 5 schools for Diocesan Curriculum Day
Dear Parents and Students - Happy New Year! It was great to see all of the students the past two days after an extended break. I am definitely old and quite possibly crazy, but I would swear some of the students grew an inch or two just over the Christmas break!
New Year resolutions! As I was standing outside for arrivals on Thursday, in between greeting students with “Happy New Year!” and asking if they had a nice Christmas, I was thinking about getting used to 2023. For some reason I thought about the year 2100, only 77 years away, and I realized that many of our students, especially our youngest, would be alive to participate in that centennial celebration. Most of the faculty and staff (and parents) would not. Then in thinking about how old our PreK students would be in 2100, a new thought popped into my head - would I still be here when they are in 8th grade as I will be 66 at that time? Heavy thoughts for 7:30 in the morning! Thankfully another carload broke my contemplation and the familiar morning buzz reclaimed my brain.
Circling back to New Year resolutions. Life goes by quickly. God wants us to be the best version of ourselves physically, mentally, and spiritually, so what resolutions are we setting in these three areas for this New Year? To possibly help focus your spiritual goals for the New Year, I share with you seven quotes from Matthew Kelly’s book The Wisdom of the Saints - 365 Days of Inspiration.
January 1 Trusting God - St. Catherine of Sienna: “Be who God meant you to be, and you will set the world on fire.”
January 2 Life - St. Augustine: “Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you.”
January 3 Sadness - St. Thomas Moore: “Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.”
January 4 Life - St. Elizabeth Ann Seton: “Live simply so that others may live.”
January 5 Redemption - St. Basil the Great: “It is not he who begins well who is perfect. It is he who ends well who is approved in God’s sight.
January 6 Prayer - St. Vincent de Paul: “A man of prayer is capable of everything.”
January 7 Mercy - St. Faustina: “Mercy is the greatest attribute of God.”
As parents, as employees, as sons, daughters, friends, neighbors, etc. - when we are taking care of ourselves physically, mentally, and spiritually, then we do a better job of working with, guiding, and loving the others in our circle of influence. So, if you haven’t already, set those 2023 goals and resolve to face life with faith, hope, and love. Finally, I leave you with a ‘Parenting’ quote from St. Teresa of Calcutta: “If you want to bring happiness to the world, go home and love your family.” Sincerely - Rob S.
Congratulations Mrs. Thomas! Our SCBS Christ the Teacher Award Recipient!
We are very proud to have Mrs. Thomas as our recipient this year. Mrs. Thomas is currently in her 7th year teaching 3rd grade here at St. Charles and her 9th year overall in the Diocese. She is enthusiastic, kind, and caring to her students and models the light that Christ calls us to be for her students! As one parent wrote, “Mrs. Thomas is one of the most outstanding educators that I’ve ever known. For eight hours of every school day, she can be found totally engaged with her students. It may be a personal conversation with one student, a remedial lesson with a small group, full class instruction, or reading aloud a favorite book. Mrs. Thomas has high expectations of her third graders and her love and care for them is obvious. Mrs. Thomas goes above and beyond. She lives and models her Catholic faith every day and leads her students to Jesus. St. Charles Borromeo School is blessed to have her on staff.”
Mrs. Thomas graciously agreed to share a little of herself and her family. “I was born and raised in Ft. Wayne, the youngest of 5 children. I attended St Vincent and then Bishop Dwenger High School, and graduated from Purdue University with a degree in elementary education. My husband, Stephen and I just celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary and we have two sons, Brayton and Landon, who attend Bishop Dwenger. I taught fourth grade for two years at Benoit Academy before starting a family, and am now in my seventh year teaching third grade at St. Charles. My favorite things about teaching in a Catholic school are developing a classroom community, sharing my love of learning, and sharing our faith. When I am not teaching, I also enjoy reading, scrapbooking, and spending time with my family. -Again, congratulations Mrs. Thomas!
Click here for the rest of the January 6, 2023 SCBS Newsletter
