In One Word, “Hope”
Well, I have to admit, I had my doubts about school opening on time this year! It wasn’t more than an hour after I announced that Saint Paul School had come through Hurricane Irene without losing power, that we had a transformer blow and knock out power to the school, parish center, friary and church! While this postponed our professional development sessions for teachers, it certainly did not diminish their excitement and enthusiasm for welcoming back all 238 students. I wish you could have seen our teachers setting up their rooms and putting up bulletin boards with flashlights!
Fortunately, the power was back up and running in time to get us off to a great start on our planned opening day. As the buses arrived and parents dropped off their children, many with teary eyes, I couldn’t help but to well up a little bit myself. I felt the tug at the heart strings of many of our parents, but I also felt an overwhelming sense of hope for a wonderful year. It is the kind of hope that comes with new opportunities for teaching and learning, the hope of a brand new year, and the hope that all of us – faculty, staff, teachers, and parents – will continue to grow in our Catholic faith this year.
Hope is simply a beautiful thing, and I am filled with it as we begin the 2011-12 school year! At this time, I wish to personally extend a warm welcome to all returning students and families and to all who are new to our Saint Paul School community. I know you have many options when it comes to your child’s education, and I thank you for choosing our school.
Virtue of the Month: Hospitality
As we welcome our students back to school in September, it seems fitting that this month’s virtue is hospitality. Our teachers have been busy preparing their classrooms, gathering together resources, supplies and putting up bulletin boards that will invite the students back into a welcoming environment. But hospitality is more than just a welcoming back. Our quote for the month is from Matthew 25:40, “Whatsoever you do to the least of my people, that you do unto me”. In our school community and in our homes we can discuss the concept of our people or strangers who need our hospitality, be it the newly arrived to the U.S.A. or the new student at our school.
Today, hospitality is more important than ever and it is only through a deep moral obligation to hospitality that we can transform our communities. This month at Saint Paul School we will be focusing on hospitality through the following activities: a welcome meet and greet for all new students for icebreakers and games, a bulletin board in our main foyer with every child’s name displayed and the opportunity for all students to participate in decorating it, and special preparations and invitations to our parish picnic!