Portland St. Patrick Catholic School

(11/12)  Photos of Veteran's Day

Lots of new photos have been added to the Photo Gallery.

(11/12)  Teacher Feature!

Be sure to look at the Staff Members page for our new Teacher Feature.  This week, Ms. Jeanne Sokolowski is featured.

(11/12)   Win $25,000!

     By now you’ve probably heard about the new raffle entitled “Win 25 Large”. If not, you can find details on the raffle page on this website. Tickets for the raffle went on sale last week.
     The St. Patrick School Commission is sponsoring this new raffle, which gives you the opportunity to win big money.

    * Tickets cost just $20 each.
    * The top prize is $25,000 and there are several smaller prizes, too.
    * This raffle will run until the drawing date, which is set for May 16, 2010.
    * There is no limit to the number of tickets a person may purchase, but there will only be 3500 tickets sold altogether.

    This new raffle will take the place of the Shamrock Scholar raffle. The Scholar raffle served our school very well throughout the years. We certainly thank the people who created this fundraiser and those who worked on and supported it.
     The new raffle will provide a chance for a much bigger cash award, and will provide more net proceeds for the school.  So, while you will not receive a packet of ten tickets for the Scholar raffle next month, you are still very welcome to buy a big bunch of these new tickets!  And, be sure to spread the word about this raffle. $25,000 can really make a difference for someone.

(11/12)  School Newsletter Online
    This week's school newsletter is now available to read online.  Among the articles in this issue:

• Toys for Tots will be collected between now and December 17.
• Blood Drive was a huge success!
• Welcome to new science teacher, Jordan Smith.  He will begin on November 16.
• Lots of thank yous from Mr. Hodge

(11/12)  Another Powerful Testimonial
     Be sure to read the testimonial from Dennis and Victoria Klein about why they chose St. Patrick School for their two boys.

(11/12)  Remembering the Veterans
     The Veteran's Day program at St. Patrick School was a huge success!  The church and gym were packed with people who came to show their respect and appreciation for our veterans---past and present.  A special thank you to the veterans who came and spoke, to Rep. Brian Calley who took time out of his busy schedule to participate, and to the Ionia Sentinel Standard for their outstanding coverage.  Be sure to pick up a copy of today's paper and read all about it.

(11/11)  Late Nite Catechism 2---Sister Strikes Again!
     Tickets are now on sale for the off-Broadway play, Late Nite Catechism 2, which will be performed at the 2010 Parish Festival.  There will be just one performance, on Friday, June 25, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.  Ticket price is $30 in advance, $35 at the door.  Tickets are available at the Parish Office---and they will make GREAT Christmas gifts for everyone on your list!  For additional information, visit the Parish Festival website.  

(11/11)    Winter Sports Schedule
     The combined winter sports schedule is now online.  At this point, it covers all of the basketball games.  Bowling schedules will be added to it as soon as they are completed.

(11/11)    Reminder:  Sport Banquet Tomorrow
     The Fall Sports Banquet will be held on Thursday, November 12 at 6:30 p.m. at the K.C.Hall.  Families should bring a dish to pass and their own table service.  The main dish and beverages will be furnished.  A free-will offering will be taken, to help cover the cost of the event.

(11/11)    Why the Website Was Down
     You probably noticed that the school and parish websites were down all day yesterday.  Out west, where our web host is located, a fiber optic cable was accidentally cut, and needed to be replaced.  Thank goodness, it only took one day!  Things seem to be back to normal today.

(11/10)    Basketball Schedules Online
     The schedules for all of the 7-12 grade basketball teams have been finalized and are online for your convenience.  Click on Athletic Programs (on the navigation bar on the left side of the screen), then click on the program of your choice (boys basketball or girls basketball). 

(11/10)    Scrip Alert:  Gift Card Volume Promotion

     From Ralph Willemin:  With the holiday time approaching very quickly, we will start our annual Gift Card volume promotion.  This year we will run it through the end of the calendar year.  And because I forgot to get this announcement put together on time, we’ll make it retroactive to October 25th so purchases made then will count.
    The account with the highest overall dollar volume will win $150.00 in Gift Cards.  The winner gets to pick the cards they’d like.  There are many merchant partners offering higher than usual rebates during this time.  Too many to list in this space, but plenty of them are food related, so that is good.  Check out www.glscrip.com to see what is happening in real time with the over 600 partners.  Send any questions to ladybug48875@yahoo.com

(11/10)   Library Notes

• Amazon Wish List:  St. Patrick’s library Amazon Wish List is a hit already!  Thank you to Kelly Ward for donating two books from the online wish list.  The books are ready to be checked out by our eager student readers.  If you would like to donate to the library, go to www.amazon.com.  Type Portland St. Patrick in the “Gift and Wish List” search box.  Remember to include any memorial or other note when you check out.    
  
• Book Fair Donations:  Thank you to the PTO for the donation of books from the Scholastic Book Fair. 
• St. Patrick Library Christmas Project:  This year, you have two choices for the Library Christmas Project:  You can order from our Amazon wish list as described below, or you can purchase books from Rivertown Bookstore.  The bookstore is located in Raffaeles’ Marketplace on Kent Street in downtown Portland.  For your convenience, several discounted books have been set aside at Raffaeles’ for St. Pat’s Christmas Project.  You can choose from this collection or from the children’s section. 

(11/10)   School Commission Meeting Notes
     Notes from the November meeting of the School Commission are now available to read online.

(11/5)    More Photos to View
      More photos have been added to the Photo Gallery.  Look in the first two albums...2009-10 Photos & More Homecoming.

(11/5)    Veteran's Day
      Everyone is invited to St. Patrick School on November 11 at 10:30 a.m. for a special Veteran's Day program.  Complete details are available in a Veteran's Day Flyer.

(11/5)    Sentinel Standard Weekender
     Be sure to read the front page article in the Sentinel Standard this Sunday.  The feature story will be about St. Patrick School, written by a special subcommittee of the School Commission.

(11/4)    Athletic Association Minutes
     The minutes from Sunday's meeting are now available to read online.

(11/3)    Sanchin-Ryu Karate
     A new session of Sanchin-Ryu karate will be starting this Wednesday, November 4. These workouts are open to any student or staff member of St. Patrick School. Workout for ages 6-12 is from 6:15 to 7:15 and from 7:15 to 8:15 for ages 10 on up. Cost is $20 per student or $40 per family. Workouts are Wednesday nights in the multipurpose room for eight weeks (not including Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks). Payment is not required on the first night. If you have any questions, contact Paul Osbourne through the school office or at paulosbourne@portlandstpats.org.

(11/3)   Shamrock Grad Inducted Into Hall of Fame
     Karen (Kramer) Trierweiler, Class of 1983, was recently inducted into the Ferris State University Athletic Hall of Fame.  Karen tallied 1,467 points in 103 career contests (14.2 ppg) during her Bulldog women's basketball playing career. To read the complete story of Karen's accomplisments at FSU, go to:  http://www.ferrisstatebulldogs.com/information/releases/09hallinductees#.

(11/2)  Change of Time
     The fall sports banquet will be held on Thursday, November 12 at 6:30 p.m., not 6:00 p.m. as previously announced.

(11/2)  Win 25 Large!
      Would you like to win $25,000?  Click here to read all about the new raffle, Win 25 Large, sponsored by St. Patrick School Education Commission.

(11/2)   Volunteers Needed    
     From Stacy Russman:   We are looking for people to volunteer for the benefit breakfast for the family of Kelly Barnes on Sunday, November 22.  We are setting up two hour time frames for people to assist.  Please let me know when it would be most convenient for you.

• 7:00 am - 9:00 am
• 9:00 am - 11:00 am
• 11:00 am - 1:00 pm

    We will need assistance with the dessert table, drink table, food table, clearing off tables, cooking, and whatever else needs to be done.  If there is anything specific that you would like, just let us know.
    We are also looking for people to donate sheet cakes, Bisquick biscuits or 10 pounds of boiled sliced potatoes.  Please email me at stacyrussman@portlandstpats.org. 
     Thank you so much for volunteering for this worthy cause.

(11/2)    November Athletic Association Meeting
     The following items were discussed at the November 1 Athletic Association meeting. 

• Fall Sports Banquet.  The fall sports banquet twill be held on Thursday, November 12 at 6:00 p.m. at the K.C. Hall.  The main dish and beverages will be provided.  Families of athletes should bring a dish to pass and their own table service.  A collection will be taken up after the meal to help cover the cost of the food.
• Thank you to Denny and Victoria Klein for purchasing new football chains for use at Father Flohe Field.
• Welcome to new member, Teresa Schneider.
• Preliminary figures for the Fall Festival show a net profit of approximately $25,000.  This is up almost $7,000 from last year!  Thanks again to everyone who helped make it a success!
  
• Complete minutes from the meeting will be online within a few days. 
  

(11/1)    Varsity Volleyball Districts Schedule
     The Varsity Volleyball District bracket and game schedule is available on the Volleyball page.  Good luck girls!

(11/1)     Middle School Volleyball Schedule
     The Middle School Volleyball Schedule can be found on the Volleyball page.

(10/30)   Volleyball Schedule
     Coach Nicole Mosser announces the following schedule for 7th/8th grade volleyball:

• Sunday 8th grade practice = 1:00-2:30, Sunday 7th grade practice = 2:30-4:00
• Monday 7th grade practice 4:30-5:30, no 8th grade practice
• Tuesday 8th grade practice = 3:30-4:45, 7th grade practice 4:45-6:00
• Wednesday game at Saranac, 5:00 start time
• Thursday 8th grade practice = 3:30-5:00, 7th grade practice = 5:00-6:30
  

(10/30)   School Newsletter Online
     This week's issue of the school newsletter is now available to read online.  Among the articles that you'll want to read:

• Pay-It-Forward Day has been rescheduled for next week---weather permitting.
• Thank you and congratulations to our football teams.
• Next week's school mass will be held on Monday, November 2.
• And, much more...be sure to read the newsletter!

(10/29)   Thank You to Sentinel Standard
     A big thank you to the Ionia Sentinal Standard for the outstanding job that they do in covering school-related news.  Be sure to look at the Tuesday and Friday editions this week, to see two ads featuring our senior class...or click on these links to see them:  Ad #1       Ad #2

(10/29)   November Athletic Association Meeting
     The November meeting of the Athletic Association will be held on Sunday, November 1 at 9:00 a.m.  The center doors on West Street will be unlocked for the meeting.

(10/29)   Thank You
     A special thank you goes out to Jim and Carol Wilcox, who recently purchased new uniforms for our 6th grade girls basketball team.  Thanks so much!

(10/28)   Benefit Breakfast for the Family of Kelly Barnes
     A Benefit Breakfast for the family of Kelly Barnes will be held on Sunday, November 22, 2009 from 8:00 am-12:00 noon at the Portland Knights of Columbus Hall.  Click here for more information.  If you have questions, please  call Stacy and Pat Russman at 647-4942 or email stacyrussman@portlandstpats.org.

(10/28)   St. Patrick School Library Book Donations
     Now you can make book donations online.  St. Patrick School’s library has a WISH LIST on Amazon.com.  Simply visit Amazon’s website.  On the top, choose “Gifts and Wish Lists.”  A search box will open on the right side of the screen.  Type “Portland St. Patrick” in the search box.  A screen with the wish list will appear.  Once you purchase the books that you would like to donate, Amazon will ship them directly to the school.  You can also leave a message at checkout that will arrive with the book.  Such messages could include “In Memory of _____” or “Donated by the _____ Family.”  Remember that you can also donate to the special section of the library called “Curtis’ Corner” in loving memory of Curtis Schmitt.  This section includes an excellent collection of early elementary books and some upper level chapter books.  For more information, please call the school (517-647-7551) or e-mail annebennett@portlandstpats.org.

(10/27)     School Commission Minutes
     The minutes from the October School Commission meeting are now available to read online.

(10/27)     5th - 8th Grade Football and Cheer Thank You

     The final game of football for the 5th - 8th grade has been played! There were many volunteers who helped make this season possible and successful. Thank you to: the parents, the coaches, the players, the cheerleaders, the grandparents, the Athletic Association, the donors, the announcer, the clock operators, the chain gangs, the 50/50 workers, the concession workers, the spotters.........WE ARE SHAMROCKS and we all make a great team!

(10/27)     School Newsletter Online
     Last week's school newsletter is now available to read online.  Among the important articles that you'll want to read:

• Christmas Choir needs singers.
• Pay It Forward Day is coming up soon.
• ITBS Testing begins Nov 2 for students in grades 1-8.
• PFCU Student Branch opens on November 3.

(10/23)     Blood Drive
     St. Patrick School is sponsoring a blood drive on November 15 from 11:30-5:30.  All are welcome and encouraged to donate.  Feel free to walk in or call 1-800-GIVELIFE to schedule an appointment.  This will be the first of two blood drives to be held at the school to earn college scholarships to two lucky St. Patrick students!

(10/23)    An Easy Method for Ordering Yearbooks
     St. Patrick’s School is offering a great new way to purchase the best book-of-the-year, its 2009-2010 yearbook, The Shamrock.
     Students will be completing an order form at school on Wednesday, October 28th after Mass.  The forms are sent to our yearbook printer, Jostens.  A statement will arrive in the mail detailing the order placed by the student.  Parents will have the opportunity to add to or cancel any part of the order.  This simple method will eliminate the need for students to bring money to the school and allow parents the opportunity to discuss purchase decisions with students at home.  Yearbook payments can be made through the mail, internet, or by calling a toll-free service hotline.  Additionally, a special feature of this program allows parents the option of an installment payment plan.
     This is the only opportunity to purchase a yearbook this year, so be sure your student fills out the order form in school and then watch your mailbox for your yearbook statement.  The St. Patrick’s School, 2009-2010, The Shamrock is being produced by the yearbook staff under the direction of senior Editor-in-Chief Michelle F. and Advisor Mr. Holman.  For more information contact any member of the yearbook staff. 

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