Knowledge Faith Hope Guidance

14355 Highland Avenue
Orland Park, Illinois 60462
708-349-0068
www.saintmike.org
KnowledgeFaithHopeGuidance
The Principal’s Notes
St. Michael School
November 13, 2014
Early Bird Winners
I am delighted to announce the names of our “early bird” winners from the 80 Grand
Raffle! Two of our finest veterans picked the winners during our Veterans Day Brunch on
Monday. The winners are:
Mr. Bill Ward
Mr. Justin Bittner
Each gentleman received one thousand dollars! Congratulations! Please purchase your
tickets ASAP so that they will be in the next “early bird” drawing on December 1st! The
tickets from the early bird winners are returned to the barrel immediately! Who says
lightening can’t strike twice! Good luck and thank you for supporting the 80 Grand Raffle.
Trot-a-Thon
In my ongoing attempt to highlight the importance of volunteerism, I am again delighted to
announce that as of today, Trot-a-Thon has brought in over $43,000! God bless you and
thank you to all who supported Trot-a-Thon. We are so grateful to you!
Mrs. Danielle Scheel chaired this very important event! The work that is required and the
time that is invested are overwhelming, but on the day of Trot-a-Thon, Mrs. Scheel makes it
look easy. The children absolutely love the day, and the excitement is palpable. Trot-aThon is a long-standing tradition that provides the school with much needed funds.
I know the question often asked is “What do they do with the money?” Every year the
School Advisory Board commits to fundraising $165,000. This commitment is
incorporated into the annual budget. We depend on this commitment as part of the
operational costs of the school. Furthermore, the board makes this commitment in order to
keep tuition costs down.
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Our major fundraisers are:
Fall Fest
Trot-a-Thon
80 Grand Raffle
Trivia Night
If people choose not to support these fundraisers, our tuition costs will go up considerably.
It is everyone’s responsibility to insure that this does not happen!
I always asked the question, “What are they doing with the money?” when I wrote out
sizeable checks to Providence Catholic High School! It was a sacrifice for us. I never
underestimate the sacrifices you make to send your children to SMS during their most
vulnerable years! I have had so many parents over the years inform me that their spouse
was educated in a public school and was very satisfied, but that both parents LOVE the
Catholic education their children are receiving. Catholic education is expensive but so
worth it. The return on your investment is priceless.
Back to my original topic! God bless the volunteers who planned and organized Trot-aThon this year! It was a beautiful day, filled with children’s laughter, joy and energy. And
the sun was glorious! Again, I thank you for your unending support. The committee
members:
Beth Ryan
Nicole McClain
Beth Kohlstedt
Rachael Mishka
Catherine Bonini
Jennifer Beeson
Kelly McHugh
Nancy Crnkovich
Academic Bowls
We continue to be amazed, excited and so proud of our 7th and 8th grade students who
participated in the St. Laurence/Queen of Peace Math Competition which was held on
November 8, 2014! There were 38 teams with 152 total students competing.
The Math Competition took place the same day as the Carl Sandburg High School placement
test so there were 2 eighth graders able to attend and the rest of the participants were 7th
graders. St. Michael sent 12 students to the competition. The students were:
Ayden Domico
Sean Harlin
Emily Patula
Jacob McClain
Declan Ryan
Drew Hnilo
Grace Hollowell
Pat O’Malley
Connor McNamara
Anna Piacente
Erin Depke
Ethan Violetto
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The students took individual tests and awards were given for 1st thru 3rd place.
Connor McNamara won 1st Place
Ayden Domico won 2nd Place
Ethan Violetto won 3rd Place
Teams of 4 also competed to complete a Team Test.
St. Mike’s team of Ayden Domico, Declan Ryan, Connor McNamara and Sean Harlin
came in 2nd place and also won the 2nd place OVERALL award after combining the
individual and team tests!
I could not be prouder of this group for the manner in which they have represented St.
Michael School! Congratulations!
Annual Food Drive
Ms. Mary Dapkus is coordinating the annual St. Vincent DePaul food drive! Please
contribute any food items you can. The St. Vincent DePaul Society is so grateful to the
school families who contribute to this worthy cause. The food pantries have very low
inventory at this time of the year. SMS is a major contributor to the Orland Park food
pantries.
Again, God bless the SMS families for living the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ.
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