St. Patrick's Blog Week of April 22nd 2014

St. Patrick's Blog

Week of April 22nd 2014

Easter Celebration

Our Holy Week observance at St. Patrick’s culminated in a very moving Holy Thursday presentation on the theme of Jesus’s last supper with his disciples.  Students presented each of the dinner participants with thoughts from their own perspective on this very meaningful event.  We witnessed the worry of Jesus, the misguided approach of Judas, and the conflict exhibited by Peter.  A big thank you to the students who gave of their time preparing and presenting, as well as Mr. Kozak and Mr. Leury who put in a great deal of time setting up the presentation.  The event was extra special in that we were able to access the theatre in what we are calling “building 3” that is owned by the Federal Government.  Through a partnership, the custodians of the government buildings have been very accommodating in allowing us to borrow the theatre space as well as the second gym in the area.  The theatre setting provides a very professional setting for our dramatic productions, and we look forward to using it more in the future.  Parents and Guardians will have a chance to see the space during Education Week activities (May 5th to 9th).

Me to We day

A group of approximately 50 students traded the classroom for the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata on April 9th to celebrate the National Me to We Day - a celebration of the charity work that students engage in both locally and internationally at St. Patrick’s School.  Many schools in the greater Ottawa region joined a large group from St. Pat’s to hear a number of guest speakers thank students for their participation, but also to encouarge them to find further challenges where help is needed.  We heard from Martin Luther King III as he encouraged us to take a stand as his father had.  Craig and Marc Kielburger, the co-founders of We Day celebrated the youth movement and challenged us to continue working hard.  We listened to Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan and National Chief Shawn A-in-chut Atleo – National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations who both provided inspirational messages of participation and further work.  Our students left feeling exhausted but further enagaged, and brought back the idea for our “We are Silent” day which we observed on April 16th where students were silent in between classes and at lunch to honour different issues such as poverty, rights of women, etc.  We are proud of the work our students do!

Grad Photos

Grade 8 students brought home information sheets regarding our “graduation” photos that will be taking place this week.  All students will have their picture taken for our grad composite picture - there is no initial fee for students to have their picture taken.  Additional information will be made available for parents/guardians to purchase pictures later in the spring.  Please review the sheet for clothing expectation information for students on the day they will be having their pictures taken.

Grade 8 Trip to St. Brigid’s

On May 28th, 29th and 30th, all grade 8 students will be travelling to St. Brigid’s for our annual school trip.  The format for the St. Brigid’s camp experience has changed somewhat - we are making this activity our year end celebration as a group of grade 8 students.  Information sheets will be going home this week outlining further information for parents/guardians.  The camp is subsidized by the Catholic Education Foundation of Ottawa, which allows us to provide the 3 day experience at a greatly reduced price of $75 per student which includes activities, accommodation and all meals.  If you have further questions about the camp please contact Mr. Walman at the school.

Shamrock Boys’ Basketball team goes to finals

Our St. Pat’s boys played in a hard fought final basketball game on Thursday, April 17th against a tough Notre Dame team.  The boys worked hard against a much bigger Notre Dame group, however, weren’t able to come out on top.  Congratulations on a great season boys, and I know you’ll be back challenging next season!  Special thanks to Coaches McKinnon and Card - great work!

Have a great week;

Sean Kelly