APRIL 2023
St. Augustine School
NEWSLETTER
Principal's Message
Dear St. Augustine School Parents,
Winter can offer challenges, not only in daily life, but also in our spiritual life. Now that we are on the other side of the pandemic and spring has begun, and if our health permits it, we should be intentional about atttending mass in-person, particularly during Holy Week and as we enter into the Easter Season.
We celebrate Easter this April. Lent officially ends Holy Thursday. That is when the "Triduum", the great three Days of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday occur leading to Easter. Easter, not Christmas as some mistakenly think, is the principal feast of the liturgical year. For Catholics, it is THE greatest feast, and it is not isolated to Easter Sunday. The Easter season lasts 50 days, ending with Pentecost on May 28!
As a faith community, let’s once again make this year’s Easter Triduum sacred and focused. Let’s find ways to remain close and to not be distracted, and let’s spend Easter present to our families. April 9 is Easter. Let us fill our churches and let us continue to fill our homes with prayer and worship and hope.
Happy Easter, St. Augustine families! He is Risen! Alleluia!
Mr.Yaptinchay
SCHOOL MASS April 21
Join us for our monthly School Mass, which will be at the end of the month instead of the beginning of the month. We will celebrate as a school community on Friday, April 21 in the afternoon at 1:15pm.
HOLY THURSDAY SCHOOL RETREAT April 6
After 4 years, our Holy Thursday school retreat will finally once again be in-person on April 6. The retreat will consist of four sessions throughout the day in the gym and in classrooms. Regrettably, we will not be able to invite parents to come participate in-person, as we have done in the past. We have simply run out of room as we are now fully double-streamed. On this day, we ask that students wear full-uniform, as there will be no PHE classes.
NO SCHOOL April 7 and April 10
There is no school Good Friday, April 7 and Easter Monday, April 10.
DIVERSITY AWARENESS MONTH & ASSEMBLY April 12
April is Diversity/ Autism Awareness Month for us at St. Augustine School with a focus on bringing attention to diversity. To celebrate together, we will be holding a special assembly Wednesday, April 12 at 9:00am led by Ms. Siy's Kindergarten class. As announced by our acting Principal-for-the-Day at the end of March, this day will also be a NON-UNIFORM day, as well; all students are encouraged to wear ANY COLOUR to celebrate uniqueness and all their differences. The month is aimed at teaching all learners the values of friendship, empathy and inclusion.
SEXUALITY & YOUR CHILD PARENT EVENING April 20
This annual Grades 4-7 Parent Evening is Thursday, April 20 at 7:00pm. At least one parent is asked to attend this special evening. Parents are asked to go to your child's classroom, where you will be viewing a special screening of the documentary "Screenagers: Growing Up in a Digital Age" as a class.
EARTH DAY ASSEMBLY April 19
Our school community will learn about Earth Day and ways to help care for and clean up our environment Wednesday, April 19. Our Earth Day Assembly will be at 9:00am, led by Ms. Kennedy's Kindergarten class. For a week after the assembly (April 19-26), classes will be engaging in a neighbourhood clean-up throughout the week!
STUDENT-LED CONFERENCES
April 14
Student-led Conferences will be held Friday, April 14. Sign-up forms were sent home the week of March 27, and the deadline for return is Monday, April 3. Assigned conference times will be confirmed Holy Week. This is the first time in 4 years that we will be doing Student-led Conferences IN-PERSON. Please, ensure that at least one parent is present on April 14 for the 45 minute timeslot when your child(ren) will be showcasing all their learning and work in-person. This is not a regular school day, and student/parent(s) only need to attend during their scheduled timeslot.
HOLY WEEK MASSES
Holy Thursday - April 6
Mass of the Lord’s Supper - 7:00pm
Procession of the Oils, Liturgy of the Word, Liturgy of the Eucharist and Procession to the Altar of Repose in the Parish Hall which will be open until 11:00pm to enable the faithful to remain in prayer and meditation.
There is no 8:00am Mass
Good Friday - April 7
Celebration of the Lord’s Passion - 12noon & 3:00pm
Liturgy of the Word, Veneration of the Cross and Communion
Stations of the Cross - 7:30pm
Stations of the Cross with St. Eugene & the Oblates
Holy Saturday - April 8
Blessing of the Easter Baskets - 2:00pm
Bring your unique family basket(s) to the church for a brief blessing service. Do come and share in this beloved custom with your parish community or make this the start of a new Easter tradition with your own family and friends.
Easter Vigil -8:30pm
The Church and Parish Centre will be closed on Easter Saturday (Excluding 2:00-2:30pm Blessing Service) until 7:30pm so that the people of God can remain in recollection at the tomb of the Lord, meditating on His sufferings and death. Throughout the day the faithful are invited to continue the solemn paschal fast which they began on Good Friday.
Easter Sunday - April 9
Resurrection of the Lord - 9:00am , 11:00am & 5:00pm
Easter Monday - April 10
Easter Octave - 10:00am Mass only
No confessions in the evening.
The Parish office will be closed Good Friday and Easter Monday and will re-open on Tuesday April 11th at 10:00am.
