November 12, 2020 REMEMBERING OUR VETERANS Vol. 10

WINTER COATS FOR ST. VINCENT DePAUL

Our November Corporal Works of Mercy are to FEED THE HUNGRY and to CLOTHE THE NAKED.

Please take this time to go through closets and donate any outgrown or unused winter coats and jackets

for the St. Vincent DePaul mission. We’ll put a collection box in the vestibule of the Parish Center door

(B1) for your drop-offs, and begin collection immediately, through November 23rd

. God bless you!

FEEDING THE HUNGRY

The 2nd

Grade class is heading our food drive this month, and we hope to fill many wonderful

Thanksgiving baskets for our friends at the Saint Luke Mission. We are asking each grade to bring in a

specific item for the baskets. If anyone would like to give a gift card to be put toward the purchase of a

turkey, that would be lovely also! We’ll be collecting your donations through Monday, November 23rd

.

Here are our classroom requests:

Montessori- canned fruit or honey

Kindergarten- canned carrots/mixed vegetables

Grade 1- canned green beans/baked beans

Grade 2- canned peas/olives

Grade 3- canned soup/cranberries

Grade 4- macaroni and cheese

Grade 5- stuffing (bag or box)

Grade 6- gravy- package or jar

Grade 7- potatoes- boxed

Grade 8- canned corn

NOON DISMISSAL TOMORROW:

This is just a reminder that we’ll dismiss tomorrow at noon to facilitate teacher meetings in the

afternoon. Therefore, no lunches will be served.

S A I N T MARY ’ S BU Z Z

NOVEMBER’S VIRTUE: GRATITUDE

OUR CORPORAL WORKS OF MERCY: FEED THE HUNGRY

CLOTHE THE NAKED

Help our children to live lives that are always overflowing with thankfulness

and always giving thanks to God, our Father, for everything,

in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 5:20, Col. 2:7

GIVE CAREFUL THOUGHT TO YOUR WAYS (Haggai 1:5)

SCHOLASTIC ONLINE BOOK FAIR OPEN UNTIL SUNDAY NIGHT!

Our Scholastic Book Fair went virtual and happening now! Join your kids in exploring titles and plots

and discovering inspiring characters. Empower them by letting them choose the books to purchase—and

bring on the joy of reading! Our virtual book fair is a convenient way to shop for holiday gifts for family

and friends. Be sure to visit the Fair during our allotted dates:

Monday, November 2nd to Sunday, November 15th http://www.scholastic.com/bf/stmaryschswormville1

LUNCHES FOR NOV. 23rd

and 24th

Be sure to go to our web page at https://stmaryschoolswormville.org/ and click on the icon on

the front page for your upcoming lunch orders. Please be sure to have your orders submitted by

Tuesday, November 17th

at midnight! Thanks so much!

Updates on Next Week’s Lunches: Sometimes, due to shipping delays, the Buffalo Public Schools

(BPS) must alter the lunch selection. Here are updates for lunches next week:

Monday’s entrée has been changed to French Bread Pizza

Wednesday’s entrée has been changed to Pizza Logs

MASS TOMORROW & VETERANS DAY REMEMBRANCE – LIVE STREAMED!

Our Grades 6-8 students will be attending Mass tomorrow at 9:00 a.m., followed by our Veterans Day

Remembrance! LIVE STREAMING is now available by clicking on St. Mary’s Parish Swormville

YouTube Channel or by going to our website at www.stmaryschoolswormville.org and clicking on

FRIDAY STUDENT MASS on the front page. Any parents who may want to join us are asked to sit at

the back of the church. The children will sit separately, with their classes.

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE IN THE YELLOW ZONE

Very little has changed since we updated you on Yellow Zone mandates on Tuesday. We do know that

testing will be done with rapid test kits, requiring a swab only in the nostril – or distal area – of the nose.

That means no deep diving!

HOWEVER testing can’t and won’t begin until the Erie County DOH (and NYS) make test kits

available to us. We have no indication as to when that might be. When we do receive the kits, we’ll

contact you for permission to test, and immediately proceed to arrange for rapid testing (at no cost) for

students, faculty and staff. I had originally thought that we’d move through the alphabet for kiddoes, but

we may opt to go class-by-class beginning with our oldest kiddoes. If anyone tests positive, we’d ask for

permission to test siblings.

It’s important to note that if we are unable to test 20% of the population, we’ll need to go into full

remote learning – no in-person learning. So we look for your support and permission throughout this

process.

Please also be assured that we’ll keep you posted with information as soon as we have it!

HSA NEWS

The St Mary School HSA is a parent/guardian organization whose mission is to coordinate fundraising

opportunities, connect families through social and spiritual events in our St Mary’s Faith Community

and to provide a forum of discussion between home and school which aids St Mary School in its mission

to benefit our children. The HSA meets the first Monday of every month and we hope to see you soon

at one of the meetings. We are exploring various opportunities to connect with all our families which

can be a challenge during these difficult times.

If you have questions, concerns or ideas, please feel free to reach out.

Teacher Lunches: A time honored tradition at St. Mary’s is hosting monthly teacher lunches. Our

teachers enjoy one lunch a month on us and each month is a different theme! We ask that each family

sign up to contribute for at least one lunch throughout the school year. All lunches are posted on Sign

Up Genius.

The September, October and November Teacher Lunch drives were all a success with full participation.

Thank you. Be on the lookout for future opportunities to thank our teachers.

A peek at a couple of our Holiday traditions:

Snow Me the Money:

There is always something fun to look forward to at St Mary School. Within the next couple of weeks,

you will receive more information on this fun event.

What would you do with $10,000?

Advent:

Advent is always a special time at St Mary School. The kids always enjoy the activities as they learn

about the meaning of Christmas. Our Spiritual Coordinator, Kathy Trigilio, is planning an Advent

calendar and keepsake box for the students and their families. More information will follow over the

next couple of weeks.

Support St. Mary’s with EASY Fundraisers!

Box Tops for Education – A NEW app makes “clipping” box tops a thing of the past.

Amazon Smile - Register your existing Amazon account with Amazon Smile and every time

you make an eligible purchase, Amazon will donate 0.5% to St. Mary’s! Amazon Smile is the

same Amazon you know and love - same products, same prices, and same service. Anyone can

register for the AmazonSmile program, so ask your family, friends, and everyone else you know

to sign up to help support St. Mary’s School!

Here is how to set it up:

Step 1: Go to https://smile.amazon.com/ For those with Amazon saved in your

bookmarks, replace your current entry with https://smile.amazon.com/

Step 2: Log in with your existing Amazon.com account or register for an account if you

do not have one.

Step 3: When asked to select your charitable organization, search for and select St.

Mary’s Roman Catholic Church Swormville.

UP AND COMING AT SMS

CLASSROOM VISITS & MORE!

CLASSROOM VISITS AND MORE!

Friday, November 13th …………………………………. LIVE STREAMED VETERANS DAY REMEMBRANCE

NOON DISMISSAL: TEACHER MEETINGS IN PM

Monday, November 23…………………………………. COATS AND FOOD GOODS DISTRIBUTED

Tuesday November 24th ………………………………...LAST DAY OF SCHOOL BEFORE THANKSGIVING

Wednesday November 25th - Friday 27th ……….THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY

Monday, November 30th ……………………………….SCHOOL RESUMES

MRS. B-LAKE’S 2ND GRADE PLANTED FALL

BULBS IN ANTICIPATION OF SPRING

FLOWERS… JUST LIKE MRS. BLOSSOM’S

SUPERKIDS CLASS.

OUR ILLNESS PROTOCOL

If a child presents with any of the following signs and symptoms:

Temperature of 100°F or greater Headache

Chills Loss of taste or loss of smell

Cough Sore throat

Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing Nasal congestion or runny nose

Fatigue Nausea or vomiting

Muscle or body aches Diarrhea

These signs and symptoms may be consistent with COVID-19 and will require immediate follow-up

with your child’s healthcare provider. In order for your child to return to school, medical documentation

must be submitted to the school nurse and he/she will need to meet the following criteria:

Students with any COVID-19 symptoms (above) should not be at school and should stay at home

until:

- A note from the student’s medical care provider with an alternative diagnosis is provided,

OR

- The result of a NEGATIVE COVID-19 test is provided, OR

- It has been at least 10 days since the individual first had symptoms; AND

- It has been at least 3 days since the individual has had a fever (without using fever reducing

medicine); AND

- The individual’s symptoms have improved, including cough and shortness of breath

If a student tests positive for COVID-19, the following criteria must be met before the student may

return to school:

- It is at least 10 days after COVID-19 symptom onset or 10 days from their first positive test

if asymptomatic, AND

- The child is fever free for at least 72 consecutive hours (3 days) without the use of fever-

reducing medicine, AND

- Respiratory symptoms are improving

FR. BRYAN WELCOMED FRIENDS

OF ST. MARY’S TO THE VIRTUAL

MEAT RAFFLE, RIGHT IN FRONT OF

OUR WELCOME POSTER!