Ecole St. John XXIII School News

March 3, 2025

“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

SCHOOL NEWS

Important Dates

• March 4- Shrove Tuesday – pancakes for all
• March 4 – Girls’ basketball quarter finals vs St. Brendan – home game
• March 5 – Ash Wednesday Celebration 9:00 for JH and 10:15 for Elementary – parents and grandparents are very welcome!
• March 6 – Time to sign up for Celebration of Learning – look for an email invite to Sign-up Guru
• March 6 – Kindergarten Special Event – visit to St. Thomas More
• March 6 – Girls’ basketball finals – TBD
• March 7 – Grades 4 – 6 Ski trip – payment and permission forms due
• March 7 – Teacher’s Pet presentation on Energy for all Grade 2 students
• March 10 – Lenten project with Catholic Social Services starts – information forthcoming
• March 10 to 13 – Book Fair – volunteers needed please – call the school office
• March 10 – Hot Dogs for Elementary students
• March 1 1 – Band Share Day at the Winspear – Mr. Goueffic takes Grades 8/9 band
• March 11 – Gang Awareness for Grade 9 students
• March 11 – Basketball City Finals – TBD, at Saville Centre
• March 12 – Alberta International Band Festival
• March 12 – Quebec 9C parent meeting in the library – 6:00 PM
• March 13 – Celebration of Learning – 1:30 to 5:00 and 6:00 to 7:30
• March 14 – Edo of Japan Hot Lunch for Elementary students
• March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day – Be seen in Green
• March 17 – Francophonie Day #1
• March 17 – Hot Dogs for Junior High students
• March 18 – Father Mike Mireau Youth Faith Day for all Grade 8 students
• March 18 – Francophonie Day #2
• March 18 – Grades 4 – 6 Ski trip to Rabbit Hill Snow Resort – volunteers needed to transport skis
• March 18 – Kindergarten full day field trip to TELUS World of Science
• March 19 – Hot Lunch for Junior High – McDonalds
• March 20 – It’s a Thursday but it’s a full day of classes and Kindergarten students come to school.
• March 20 – Junior High Spring Dance at 1:00 PM
• March 21 – Friday before Spring Break – No Kindergarten classes and a half day for all Grades 1 to 9 students
• March 24- 28 – Spring Break – Happy Spring Break!
• March 31 – Classes resume

Bottle Drive for 9C continues

Bring your empties to the Green Bottle Depot Windermere and request to donate the funds to École St. John XXIII Catholic School account. Please share this with your friends and family. They can support at any time by donating their empties from now until April. They only need to go to the depot and request to place the funds from their bottles under “St John XXIII School” account.

The depot is open every day from 8:30 to 7:00 pm. 

Congratulations to two of our students who performed with the Northern Alberta Junior Honour Band last week. Jad and Sophie (both percussion) we nominated by their teacher to be part of the band for this year, and they were accepted by an Alberta Band Association selection committee. They performed with 100 other students from northern Alberta on Saturday March 1. They performed six selections at the concert. Both Sophie and Jad had major roles within the percussion section – a testament to their capabilities as percussionists and performers. Bravo!

SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS

School Council news

Thank you to those who participated in the last meeting—your contributions truly matter and are greatly appreciated! We are currently looking for a Vice Chair; if you are interested or have any questions, please contact us. We look forward to seeing you at the next meeting.

The upcoming School Council meetings are scheduled for:

• April 16, 2025, at 6:30 PM
• June 11, 2025, at 6:30 PM

All parents and guardians are welcome to attend to stay connected and support our school community.

DIVISION NEWS

Chief Superintendent’s Message

click here to read Mrs. Anderson’s March message: March

ST. THOMAS MORE PARISH NEWS

Here is the latest bulletin from our church: March 2 Church Bulletin

Congratulations to Archbishop Richard Smith

Pope Francis has appointed Archbishop Richard W. Smith as the next Archbishop of Vancouver. 

In a heartfelt letter to clergy and Catholic faithful, Archbishop Smith shared: “I am grateful to his Holiness for the confidence placed in me to assume this new mission and ask for the assistance of your prayers.”

Since 2007, Archbishop Smith has tirelessly served our students, staff, and their families. He has been a part of school and site blessings, celebrated countless Eucharistic celebrations and liturgies in our schools, and guided our students through their journeys of faith. 

“We don’t know yet who the next Archbishop will be, but whoever it is, is coming into a beautiful portion of the Lord’s vineyard. He will be surrounded, as I was surrounded, from the very outset by a community of very faithful, confident disciples.”

His Grace will continue to serve in our city until May. Details on Archbishop Smith’s farewell and his successor can be found on the Catholic Archdiocese of Edmonton website. 

Edmonton Catholic School Division joins Edmonton’s Catholic community in congratulating Archbishop Smith on his new appointment. We thank you for your years of service and wish you blessings, success, and God’s grace in your new mission.