HAPPENINGS I Know that my Redeemer Lives!
Transcription
HAPPENINGS I Know that my Redeemer Lives!
H OPE R EFORMED C HRISTIAN S CHOOL H APPENINGS V OLUME V, I SSUE VII M ARCH 2015 W ORDS FROM OUR P RINCIPAL “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!” Romans 11:33a “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1 “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord…” Romans 12:9-11 The Practical Principles of Flight As we continue through our theme of “Soaring Like Eagles”, in the month of March we looked at the Practical Principles of Flight. There are certain principles that must be in consideration in order to be able to fly; we used this analogy to see how we must soar like eagles in our lives. We looked to God’s Word in Romans and James, at the sections which really focus on Christian living and what it is to live as a child of God. As we have all year long, we have first established that it must always start with God. We can only soar like eagles through God. We must be clothed in Christ’s righteousness and trust in Him, which is the only way we will fly. We can have the shiniest airplane with the best aerodynamics and a super powerful engine but without the fuel of the Holy Spirit and Christ’s “wings” we will not fly. That is why we must start with the depths of God’s riches. Because of what God has done for us as His people, we are then called to live as living sacrifices to Him. In Romans we are reminded to show love and hospitality to one another, not seeking revenge, submitting to authority, and putting on Christ. The book of James also reminded us that we are to ask God for wisdom, the ability to live for Him, using His Word and applying it to our lives, and humbling ourselves before Him and others. We were reminded of this by Rev. Sinke who came and spoke at our March chapel on the “Meekness of Wisdom”. In James it mentions we are to show our faith by our actions. We are called to control our tongue. We are also reminded that we are still sinners and will continue to fall, but that we need to confess our sins to God and also to each other, and to pray for one another. As we look for the “Practical Principles of Flight” or the Practical Principles of Christian living we are always to look to Jesus Christ and what He has accomplished; then, from there, our deeds will flow from the well spring of His goodness, not our own. It is a wonderful thing to see these actions take place; it is sad when we as God’s people do not act appropriately. We need God’s loving hand of discipline and to heed His call to repentance, knowing that Christ has already received the punishment on the cross. As we enter the Easter season may we rejoice and celebrate and remember these wonderful truths of how God has shown His love to us as His undeserving people. I Know that my Redeemer Lives! Everyone is invited to attend Hope Reformed Christian School’s Easter Program Thursday, April 2 ~ 7:00 p.m. Zion United Reformed Church, Sheffield 331 German School Road • Paris • Ontario • N3L 3E1 • Tel/Fax: 519.448.9913 • [email protected] • www.hopercs.ca H APPENINGS P AGE 2 March started out like a lion where we had a half a snow day and then it went roaring by like a lion too; we will see if it goes out like a lamb. March was busy with the regular routines plus preparing for the Science Fair and the Easter program. By time you will have read this, the Science Fair will have passed, the displays and research completed, and the projects judged. The students will have experienced what it is to do research, compile it, display it and present the material. Also, hopefully, they will have a good sense of accomplishment and a greater appreciation for the topic they have chosen. We enjoyed a good March Break, many of the families were able to do different tasks and activities, and hopefully recharged to continue in our calling as teachers and students learning about God and His kingdom. Just before the break the teachers had a day to work on some Report Card details as we continue to work through the process of a new report card template and program. They also had a chance to do some Bible curriculum review and development. On March 21, the Student’s Fundraising Committee, with the direction of Mr. Wynia, organized a volleyball fundraiser for Word & Deed with the funds raised to go to the Adoration Christian Centre in Haiti. There was a great turn-out of players and cheering spectators, the day turned out to be a lot of fun, and it was blessed with funds that may be used towards Christian education in Haiti. A big thank-you to all the supporters and organizers of the day. For the month of April we have the Easter program and the Easter break to look forward to. As for the Easter Program, everyone is invited to come and celebrate with the staff and students of HRCS the fact that our Redeemer lives and what that means for us as His people. We look forward to praising God through songs of praise and hearing from His Word of His wondrous love and mercy that He shows us through Christ Jesus. We also hope to share some of our songs of praise at the benefit choir concert led by the Hosanna Choir, and are thankful for this opportunity as well. Report cards will come out on April 17 for all students. We hope to have Canada Test of Basic Skills done again throughout most of the grades in the later part of April. On April 24 we also hope to have our all-school, fun-activities afternoon organized by the Student’s Events Committee. In light of some of the recent news events that effect Christian Education and the world’s continued attacks against God’s Kingdom and His decrees, we have much to be thankful for with our Christian School, but we must be ever vigilant and diligent in the cause of training our children in the fear of the Lord. As our government and society stray more and more from the Christian foundations on which we have been established, we must more and more be on guard and prepared as His people, but never despairing, knowing that God is in control and Christ is victorious. There is a good article on Christian Education in the latest Christian Renewal where we are reminded as parents here in Canada to be thankful for the faithful Reformed Christian Schools that we are able to have and to look after what we have and appreciate it. We must give our thanks to God for what we have, remembering that while it does come with sacrifices we have also been called to present ourselves to God as living sacrifices. May we remember this as we raise the children God has entrusted to us and tell them of the glorious deeds of the Lord. Mr. J. Kikkert Hope Reformed Christian School is excited to present a spring evening with the Hosanna Choir with Guest Singers: The Students of HRCS Saturday, April 25, 2015 · 7:30 p.m. St. George Free Reformed Church No ticket purchase required. All free will offerings collected will go to the benefit of Hope Reformed Christian School. P AGE 3 H APPENINGS B OARD R EPORT The Board met on March, 2015. In the first part of the meeting, the Board conducted an interview with a prospective candidate. As it turns out, all of the current Hope staff have indicated their intention to continue to teach at Hope for the 2015/2016 school year, meaning no new teachers will be hired for the upcoming school year. After the interview, the Board held its formal monthly Board meeting. The meeting opened with the reading of Scripture, singing and prayer. The Board reviewed the minutes of the February 9 and 19, 2015 meetings and dealt with arising matters. The Board received information on the Canada Post Community Foundation grant, which is to be further investigated. Board matters included reviewing March items on the Board calendar. The Board reviewed matters for the Membership meeting scheduled for March 30, which included: Board nominations; motions to be included on the Agenda; correspondence received regarding the Guide and curriculum; and a final review of the draft Agenda. The Board received the Principal’s report, which included: a review of items to be discussed at the upcoming Education Committee meeting; staff plans for the upcoming P.D. day; update on the Principal’s and John Wynia’s visit to Providence to investigate collaborating on curriculum review processes; chapel schedules; further information received on distances travelled for class trips and other school outings; update on the Easter program; notice that a new Health curriculum is to be reviewed by the Education Committee; and further information relating to the Principal’s request to attend the Canadian Reformed Principal’s conference out west in September. The Board received the Treasurer’s report which included a review and discussion of the proposed 2015/2016 budget to be presented at the Membership meeting. The Board received the report of the Promotions Committee including an update on the school children’s participation in the Hosanna Choir fundraising concert. The Board received the Maintenance Committee’s drawing of the proposed bathroom/Special Education room renovation for information. The Board received the IT Committee’s update including the need for Windows 7 operating systems for installation on donated PCs. The meeting closed in prayer. Correspondence from parents and members is welcome. You may submit your written comments and/or concerns to the Board Chair in person or through email. Where possible, please provide your written comments at least one week prior to the Board meeting. Board meetings are generally held the second Monday of the month. The Board is scheduled to meet again on Monday, April 13, 2015, D.V. The Board asks for your on-going prayers as we move forward. On behalf of the Board, Teresa Douma, Secretary VOUCHER EXPRESS One satisfied customer said, “I can vouch for this program! It’s a great way to earn money for the school!” You can place monthly orders with our voucher order forms or use our Voucher Express! Vouchers are available in the secretary’s office every Tuesday morning from 8:15 - 8:45. If that doesn’t work for you, contact Sara Mannen at 519-414-0414 or [email protected] to make other arrangements. We want to make the program work for you! We have increased our inventory to serve you better and quickly! You can also purchase vouchers from our voucher reps: Hilary Vonk (519-448-4572) or Toni Van Noort (905-659-6968) P AGE 4 H APPENINGS P ROMOTIONS R EPORT As the high school new student day has come and gone, it is now time for the Promotions Committee to focus on our younger new students. On Friday, May 8 we will host our annual Kindergarten Day—an exciting opportunity for our new kindergarten students and their parents to come and enjoy some of the new experiences that they can look forward to in September. If you have a child registered for Kindergarten for the upcoming school year, look for an invitation in the next month. If you have not registered your child yet, but would be interested in doing so, please contact the school for more details. In other news, we have also been hard at work planning the Fall Dinner. Stay tuned for more information and details about our speaker and the date. We would also like to encourage those interested in registering their children as new students for the upcoming school year to please contact the school so that arrangements can be made. As well, we would like to encourage everyone to continue praying for and promoting our school. We certainly have been blessed by the Lord with a strong and vibrant membership and would like to see that continue for years to come! Please contact us if you know of anyone who is interested in our school, in becoming members, or being added to our mailing list. You can email us at [email protected] or contact the school so someone from the Promotions Committee can follow up with them. Thank-you for your support! James Vanoostveen Calendar of Fundraising Events Date Event Saturday, May 9, 2015 Pancakes & Plants @ Hope RCS starting at 8:00 am Saturday, June 20, 2015 7th Annual Golf Tournament @ Brant Valley Golf Course School Community Dinner @ School 4th Annual Bazaar Saturday, November 21, 2015 F UNDRAISING C OMMITEE R EPORT We need to give a warm welcome to our newest member... drum roll please... Mrs. Angela Vanoostveen!! She joins us with piles of experience "fun-raising" in the classroom. (Teacher joke?) We are excited to have this mathlete on the team! Welcome! Our committee is having a "fun-raising" time planning our next event... PANCAKES AND PLANTS!! Please keep your eyes peeled for our cool looking advertisements and be sure to order your annuals ahead of time using our EASY order form! The annual order form is attached to the Happenings this month, so be sure to open up Google images and search out the perfect options for your gardens! Contact Amy Verdonk either by email or phone with any orders you may have (519 – 774 – 9059 or email [email protected]). Please attach payment with your orders. Remember... it's the same weekend as Mother's Day, so plan to impress her. J In a few weeks, we will also be sending out an email looking for volunteers for the Pancakes and Plants event. Please consider volunteering as a set-up superstar, a cleanup celebrity, or a champion chef. (Disclaimer: You will become a superstar, celebrity, or champion upon completion of the aforementioned volunteer item. There is no need to currently hold this status.) We will also be needing some groceries and kitchen gadgets which will also be listed in the email. ALERT! We have started a new fundraiser this month. In a nut shell, you bring your used and empty print cartridges to school. Then, a man comes and picks them up, leaving us money. Sound too good to be true? It isn't. You may ask yourself, "Will he penalize us if we drop off any that he doesn't need?" The answer is: "No." So bring in every kind of print cartridge you can think of. Cartridges from your home and/or workplace. Please see the price list attached if you get an electronic version of the Happenings. Rumor has it that other schools have earned a few hundred dollars per month. Let's try it out! Hope Spirit Wear: We have a new line of clothing available for purchase! New hoodies, golf shirts, and t-shirts of all sizes have arrived! There has also been a reduced price on last year's clothing. Please check out the order forms at school, or talk to Allison Kikkert for more details. You know who loves Dutch food? Or could use a new doek? MOM, and I dare say, OMA! Pick up a few of her favourite items this month! It's the gift that keeps giving. Please order your Dutch Mark-it groceries with your regular monthly order forms, or pick one up at the school! Dutch orders are now due on the last Wednesday of each month. Contact Amy Scharringa with any questions! P P AGE AGE 5 5 APPENINGS H APPENINGS Knock! Knock! Who’s there? Ima. Ima who? Ima going to lower my tuition by buying lots of Vouchers! Let's take advantage of this easy money-making fundraiser! Continue to contact Sara Mannen (519-414-0414), Toni Van Noort, and Hilary Vonk if you have any questions about the program or to order your vouchers! You can visit the office on Tuesday mornings to purchase your vouchers! Our Scrap Metal Drive was very successful this fall! As of now, we have raised more than $10,100! Thank you to all who donated their metal! This will be an ongoing fundraiser, so please continue to bring your scrap metal to Woznuk's in Cambridge or GIS in Brantford and say you will donate your drop-off to Hope! For our annual Golf Tournament, we are asking our school community to look for sponsorship options. If you have any ideas as to businesses or individuals we can contact, please let Marie Brouwer know! If you are willing to donate either a door prize, money to buy door prizes, or a hole sponsorship ($300) please let us know! Also... new this year, is a LADIES GOLF TOURNY! A shorter 9-hole tournament for women only will be offered. Please see our school website for the latest player registration form and get your team registered. The prizes are too good to even start mentioning. Marie Brouwer E DUCATION C OMMITTEE R EPORT In our last update, we gave a brief rundown of many of the different activities that have kept our committee busy over the last few months. We’ve had only one meeting since our last update, so in this report we hope to give a little bit more specific information about a couple of our bigger, ongoing discussion items. One of the projects we’ve been putting a lot of energy into as a committee is the curriculum evaluation process. This is an important discussion that has involved a fair bit of our energy and consideration. The goal is to develop both the process and the tools for reviewing curriculum at HRCS. Something that we’ve sought to clarify is the definition of curriculum. Typically when people think of curriculum, they think of textbooks and teacher’s manuals. However, the truest understanding of curriculum is much bigger – it includes all parts of a student’s education. We recognized that, though it is much more challenging, it is our mandate to evaluate curriculum in its truest sense as an education committee, though of course, our mandate limits our responsibility to the student’s activity and education that happens at HRCS. Once we had this realization we began to put together a policy that addressed the basic process of evaluating curriculum as well as the roles of committees, members, and staff throughout the process. The policy creates a process that identifies four key steps in overseeing curriculum: (1) reviewing existing physical curriculum (the textbooks and teacher’s manuals, etc. that we already have in place at the school); (2) reviewing incoming/proposed physical curriculum; (3) developing new taught curriculum (i.e. the truer sense of curriculum, including teacher’s year, unit, lesson, and day plans), and; (4) reviewing taught curriculum. We’ll continue to work on our policy as we seek to further clarify the tools that are being used for evaluating curriculum and the roles of the various committees and stakeholders in the process. Another major undertaking for our committee was the hosting of a Post-Secondary/High School Information Evening on Thursday, February 26. Earlier in the school year we canvassed parents to determine if there was interest in an evening for parents and students to hear about their post-secondary options. The feedback we received was that parents were looking to hear both about postsecondary options and about how high school works at Hope Reformed Christian School. Thus, we set about to plan an evening that fulfilled those expectations. On a chilly Thursday evening, more than 40 people, including some parents, board and education committee members, and staff gathered in one of the portable classrooms. For the first half of the evening, parents heard about the high school program at HRCS. We presented a very similar package of information to what is presented every year at New Student Day. We detailed the Ontario Secondary School Diploma Requirements, the HRCS Diploma requirements, course scheduling and course options, and some of the other parts of the high school program at Hope that make us unique. In the second half of the evening we gave a brief overview of some of the timelines and program requirements for University, College, and Apprenticeship options. This was followed by a guest speaker, Mrs. Miriam Brouwer, who spoke about her experiences applying for, and working in, a postsecondary environment. Mrs. Brouwer encouraged the audience by sharing how the schools and professors she has worked in recognized her hard work and self-motivation. She reminded us that while our students may not have all of the options that are available to them in other, bigger high schools, they are not at a disadvantage when it comes to applying to, and performing at, the university level. All in all, we had a good evening and feedback was overwhelmingly positive. In our next update, we will give more information about our work on developing course rationale statements, a volunteer policy, and a new Grade 11 Bible course. John Wynia P P AGE AGE 6 6 APPENINGS H APPENINGS School Wish List External hard drive Good laptop to use in Special Education Good laser printer for the Computer Lab Parallel Bibles, Study Bibles, Bible commentaries and concordances for the Library Many thanks to those who have donated needed items! L IBRARY C OMMITTEE R EPORT Here is a brief update about the many things that are happening in the Library: Donations are always welcome! First of all, we received several notable donations including a set of John Calvin’s Commentaries. These kinds of donations are wonderful, and we are always looking for more. If you have any good used books or commentaries that you would like to donate to the library, you may email us or drop them off on the desk in the library. We have an email address. Some of you may have questions about our library and we would love to hear from you. Please email us at [email protected]. Our volunteers are amazing! Keeping a library running takes work! Our librarians Catherine Nenadov and Gretha Koonstra are in every Tuesday, and they do a lot of work helping students select books, re-shelving materials, and checking books in and out. We also have a number of volunteers who do a lot of extra work, including Trudy Bos and Wilma Gringhuis. They proof-read, buy books, mactac, and much more! Proof-readers are always needed! As a growing library, we have piles of books just waiting to be proofread. If you are a book lover, or just want to help out the school, we would love to add you to our list of proof-readers. You can send us an email, or talk to any member of the committee for more information. We now have magazines. Books are not the only thing we carry in our library. You can now find copies of Creation Magazine and The Journal of Creation. We also have DVDs and CDs as well. If you haven’t checked one out yet, please come and take a look at our selection. We have bi-weekly displays. Every two weeks our librarians put a number of books on display. Our display for the next two weeks is “Try Something New”. We would like to encourage you to try something new and come check out our library! We have a New Member. We are pleased to welcome Leah Sieders to the Library Committee. We would like to welcome you and we wish you God’s blessing as you serve our school in this way. Our committee now consists of Wilma Gringhuis, Gretha Koonstra, Leah Sieders and Alexandra Van Zanten. As you can see, there is a lot going on in our library! If you are looking for a good book to read with your child(ren), come and see what our library has to offer. Perhaps we have just the book you are looking for for that bedtime story, school project, or maybe just for something interesting to read. Alexandra Van Zanten Enjoy some great food & fellowship and a night off from cooking and dishes! The Student Fundraising Committee is hosting a Spaghetti Dinner Friday, April 17 • 5:00 - 7:30 pm • School Gym All funds raised go toward year end school trips P P AGE AGE 7 7 APPENINGS H APPENINGS S POTLIGHT ON THE S TUDENT F UNDRAISING C OMMITTEE It’s that time of year again for me to give an update on what’s been going on in my classroom at Hope. Rather than give an overview of my homeroom – the grade 11 and 12 class – I thought I’d give a brief update on the activities of the Student Fundraising Committee, which I oversee and which meets weekly in my classroom. This year our Student Fundraising Committee is made up of six members: Simone Bos (president), Sam Kikkert (vice-president), Talitha Wielinga (secretary), Gracie Pennings (treasurer), Michelle Noordam (tuck shop coordinator), and Christianna Bout (vice-all). We have a great committee, and, I’m happy to say, a very ambitious one! Our mandate as a committee is to raise funds for year-end trips for students in grades seven through twelve. This year the high school year end trip is a retreat to Campfire Bible Camp in the Owen Sound area. We basically have all the funds in place for this trip already, which is a blessing. Another blessing for us this year is that we have funding in place to rent vans to take to Campfire, which will make coordinating transportation and fitting all of the students and their gear much less burdensome. Because the funds were essentially in place at the beginning of the year, the students have turned their energies to other projects. The first of these projects was to raise funds for a new piano for the school. To date, more than $1200 has been raised, and a digital piano has been purchased for the school. We decided to use any funds that were generated from the tuck shop (our bi-weekly candy store that we run), hot lunches, and bake sales toward this goal. All of these specific sales are run by students to students, and so we thought it would be good for students to be able to see the “fruits” of their spending. The second major project the students wanted to try was a big fundraiser for another charity. After discussing a number of different student suggestions, the students settled on attempting to host a volleyball tournament on behalf of Adoration Christian Centre in Haiti. The biggest reason for choosing Adoration was that we sponsor a child there as a school, and we were able to hear a presentation about the work going on at Adoration at an assembly in January of this year. We scheduled our volleyball tournament for March 21, and booked the gym at Redeemer University College. Once we had those basics in place, we put advertisements in local United Reformed, Canadian Reformed, and Free Reformed Church bulletins all across South-western Ontario. We had a total of twelve teams sign up, and we put together a schedule. We had Mr. and Mrs. Vanoostveen, and Mr. Marvin Kikkert volunteering as referees, and the students acted as our score-keepers. Everything went really well at our tournament, and we raised a total of more than $8000 for Adoration! We gave a prize to the team that made the most money – congratulations to Bernita Pennings’ team, which raised over $6000 – and to the team that won the tournament – Brady DeBoer’s team from Wyoming, Ontario! I’d like to congratulate the students on their hard work, and their ambition in organizing and hosting the tournament and all the other fundraisers that go on throughout the year! I’d also like to thank the parents who work behind the scenes and who continue to send their sons and daughters with one or two dollars to every tuck shop, bake sale, and hot lunch! That money really adds up over time, and it’s nice for students to see how that money “gives back” to the school. We are truly blessed as a community, as we see how God continues to provide for us and give us all that we stand in need of! Our greatest thanksgiving is, rightfully, to Him for His gracious gifts! One last note/plug: coming up in the end of April, we have our Spaghetti Dinner! Please come and enjoy a delicious meal (and an evening off of dishes!), and support these students in their hard work! Mr. Wynia The Staff & Students of Hope RCS are happy to have a new digital piano! Funds were raised with tuck shop sales, hot lunch purchases, and bake sales. We also had an anonymous donor make a sizeable donation toward our fundraising! Thank you! If you receive a paper copy of Happenings and would prefer to receive it via email, please send a quick note to [email protected] and we will be happy to accommodate your request. H APPENINGS P AGE 8 Community Business Advertise your business here! For more information, contact Sara Mannen at [email protected] or 519-414-0414. Tim Sieders Owner, Design & Sales [email protected] 1.866.864.0829 P AGE 9 H APPENINGS P P AGE AGE 10 10 HHAPPENINGS APPENINGS APRIL 2015 School Board Mr. Richard Scharringa (2015) Chairman Mr. John Slotegraaf (2017) Vice-Chairman/Education Liaison Mr. Nathan deJonge (2017) Treasurer/Finance Liaison Mrs. Teresa Douma (2016) Secretary Mr. Scott Struyk (2015) Fundraising Liaison Mr. Andre VanDixhoorn (2017) IT Liaison Mr. Martin Van Noort (2016) Promotions Liaison Mr. Dan Veldman (2015) Education Liaison Mr. Jeff Pennings (2016) Maintenance Liaison Teaching Staff Mr. Joe Kikkert Principal Sun Mon Tue Library Staff Mrs. Gretha Koonstra Mrs. Catherine Nenadov Office Staff Mrs. Karen Noordam Mrs. Evelyn VanSchepen Tuesdays Financial Administrator 5 12 19 6 7 Easter Monday Voucher Express Fri Sat 1 2 7:00 pm 3 4 8 9 Good Friday 10 15 Voucher 16 17 Report Board Mtg. Orders due Cards, Spaghetti Dinner 22 Parent- 23 24 Voucher Express 21 Teacher Voucher Express Conferences 26 27 28 11 P.A. Day 137:30 pm 14 20 18 25 Hosanna Choir Benefit Concert 29 Dutch 30 Mark-it Orders Voucher Express due Indicates no school MAY 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 High 2 School Student Work Day 3 4 5 6 7 Voucher Express 10 11 7:30 pm 12 Ascension 13 17 Mrs. Antoinette Van Noort Custodian Mrs. Karen Noordam Thu Easter Program Mr. John Wynia Vice-Principal Mrs. Jessica Frank Ms. Alisha Jonkman (PSW) Mrs. Cassandra Marskamp Mrs. Leah Sieders Ms. Karen Vander Deen Mr. James Vanoostveen Ms. Alexandra VanZanten Mrs. Corianne Westerterp Wed 24 31 Board Mtg. Day Chapel Voucher Express 18 19 Victoria Day Voucher Express 25 26 8 New Kindergarten Student Day 9 8—11am Pancakes & Plants 14 Voucher 15HS Stu- 16 Orders due dent Work Day NO SCHOOL 20 21 22 27Dutch 28 29 Track & 30 Mark-it Orders Voucher Express due Field Day 23