Dear St.  Katharine of Siena School Families,

At both the Christmas Concert last week and last night at Christmas Tableau, many parents thanked teachers and me for the reminder of the reason for this Advent / Christmas season.

Those two prayerful nights from the hearts of our students are a reminder of our faith, and helps us to keep our priorities as Catholics intact. With the hectic pace of life it is easy to get overwhelmed and lose focus on what’s most important.

As well, those two nights are a reminder as to why you send your child to SKS.  Nights like Tableau and the KG-4 Concert are a huge part of our partnership in raising the whole child and that begins with our faith.

This morning at prayers I read a letter of thanks to our students from an elderly, homebound parishioner. One of our favorite service activity traditions is to have all our students make cards for these parishioners and then have our 8th graders pair up in two’s and deliver the cards to their homes with a poinsettia, which they did last week.  In her letter of gratitude, the parishioner wrote:

“It makes me so happy and the students are so personable when they visit.  I loved every card I receive with each child’s unique decoration and best wishes. The cards are on display in my home and I will show them in each future Christmas.”

Yesterday Greg Grimm and Raffi Terzian, from our local chapter of the Knights of Columbus for our parish recognized several students for their award winning posters in the “Keep Christ in Christmas” contest.  I am glad I was not a judge, as there were so many well done entries at three different levels.  Once again, our own children have reminded us of the real beauty of this season.

On Tuesday, our faculty received their Christmas bonus from our SKS Families.  The kindness that you have showed, yet again this year, is amazing and your generosity is beyond words to express.  As a faculty and staff we know how fortunate we are to be recipients of so much kindness from you. Please know how much it is appreciated by everyone.

Christmas is always a bit bittersweet for me as my family and I fondly remember the goodness of my Dad. Christmas Day is his birthday. He is with us still, just in a different way, and I can still feel his presence within me. For anyone who has recently suffered the loss of a loved one, I am hopeful you will find peace in a similar way that I have.

On behalf of the SKS Faculty and Staff, please be assured of our prayers and wishes for a blessed Christmas season. May your families be blessed with peace, joy and good health in 2018.  May the blessings of the Christ Child be within all of our beloved SKS Community.

Love and gratitude,

Bud