News for the Week of 5/16/18

Our congratulations & all God's blessings to the children of St. Mary's School
and Parish that received their First Holy Communion last Saturday.

Hot Lunch Order Period for June is OPEN NOW!  Orders for June hot lunches will be accepted until the end of the school day on Friday, 5/18/18.  All orders must be placed via the Educonnect Parent Portal.  Payment should be sent in as soon as your order is placed.  No late orders can be accepted.

Spring Band & Vocal Concert - Our Spring Band & Vocal Concert will be held on Monday, 5/21/18.  All students in grades K-8 perform in the vocal concert and attendance is considered mandatory since performance is part of a student's Music grade.  If your child(ren) will not be attending, please notify Mrs. Williamson and provide a reason for their absence from the event.  There will be a dress rehearsal of the Vocal Concert at 2pm.  The evening performance will be at 7pm.  Band students should bring their instruments, accessories and music to school on 5/21/18, for final practices.  Band Students should follow Mrs. Morse's directions regarding dress and arrival times.  Other students should wear "Sunday Best".  Sunday Best for girls means a dress, skirt, dress walking shorts or slacks or skort.  Shoulders must be covered and length must be modest.  No backless shoes or high heels, please. Sunday Best for boys means a collared shirt with walking shorts or dress pants.  No jeans for boys or girls.  If Sunday Best is unavailable, the relaxed uniform may be worn. 

Friday, May 25 is a 12:45pm Early Dismissal with NO PreK Enrichment or Aftercare.   Monday, May 28 school will be CLOSED in observance of Memorial Day.



The time to pack up the portable classrooms is here!  

As part of preparation for the Campus Connection construction, the portable classrooms will be leaving.  The classrooms need to be emptied and their contents relocated on Saturday, June 2, 2018.  The library's books and book shelves and the art room's supplies all need to be moved to the lower church and/or other storage areas.  The furniture from both classrooms needs to be moved to the lower church, the rectory garage and the rectory basement.

Your help is needed!  Many hands will make light work and your SUV and/or pickup truck or minivan will be a huge help.  Please consider signing up, even if you only have an hour or two to spare - your help will make a big difference!  Click here to sign up to help.

Please note - student help is welcome but all students must have adult supervision at all times.

It’s Almost Book Fair time!  Kids love picking out their own books to read, and this is the perfect opportunity. Everything is Buy One - Get One Free!  Our Scholastic Book Fair is a reading event that brings the books kids want to read right into our school. It’s a wonderful selection of engaging and affordable books for every reading level. Please make plans to visit our Book Fair or send your child with payment (cash, check to St. Mary’s School, or credit card) and be involved in shaping your child’s reading habits.  Please check teacher blogs for information regarding days and times for class visits.

Book Fair dates: Tuesday, May 29th - Thursday, May 31st

Shopping hours: Tuesday: 11:00 - 3:30

Wednesday: 8:30 - 3:30

Thursday: 8:30 - 3:30

We need your help! Please use this sign up link to volunteer: Book Fair Volunteers
Thank you so much!

Supporting the Class of '19! Our rising 8th grade is selling beautiful SMS logo bracelets and keychains.

Bracelets are $20 and keychains are $10. The colored crystal beads on the bracelet are clear and dark blue (brighter than indicated in the picture). Proceeds from this fundraiser will help these students begin to save for the expenses associated with their 8th grade field trip and graduation activities. Click here for order form. Payment may be sent into the school office. Checks should be made payable to St. Mary's School with "bracelet/keychain" in the memo section. Bracelets & keychains will also be available for "cash & carry" purchase at our Spring Band & Vocal Concert on Monday, 5/21/18.

CHOICE News - Please don't forget to pay your 17-18 CHOICE balance that was due on 4/30/18. Please contact Michelle Howard in the school office with any questions. NEW CHOICES! - The CHOICE box is now offering $10 & $25 cards to Chipotle (10%) and $25 & $100 cards to Nordstrom (6%). Click here for an updated CHOICE order form. All purchases made at this point in the school year are being credited to your family's 18-19 CHOICE obligation.

Grandparents' & Special Person's Day & May Crowning - We enjoyed meeting so many grandparents and special people last Friday and were so glad they were able to share some time in our classrooms and in our beautiful May Crowning ceremony. Our thanks to Mrs. Herron and her second grade class for such a faith filled and beautiful Crowning of Mary.

Alumni News - It's that exciting time of year featuring lots of awards, announcements, graduations, weddings & other celebrations. If you have alumni news to share, please send an email to smsoffice@stmarysimsbury.eduk12.net. We are always happy to learn about and share the successes of our alumni.

Our congratulations to Adrian Hatch, SMS Class of '09, on receiving his Master of Science in Information Management and Certificate of Advanced Study in Data Science from the School of Information Studies at Syracuse University. Adrian will now turn his full attention to his responsibilities as Chief Technology Officer for his startup company, Imajion.

Community News

39th Annual St. Mary's Spring Carnival
June 6 - 9, 2018
34 Hopmeadow St

The success of carnival depends on your volunteer support!  The school receives a very generous portion of the carnival proceeds and this money is critical to our operating budget.  This event is a fabulous community builder and a great opportunity for student service hours.  Please consider donating your time, even just for a shift!  Thanks!  Click here to volunteer.

Carnival Hours

Wednesday (June 6)    6-10 pm
Thursday (June 7)       6-10 pm 
Friday (June 8) *        6-10 pm
Saturday (June 9)    5-10 pm

* We're excited to share that on Friday night, Matt Forneris' band SoundRisk will be performing.  Matt is the father of Greta (Gr. 3)  and Noelle (K)!

Ride all night!
$20/person Wednesday & Thursday
$25/person Friday and Saturday
(Individual ride tickets also available)


Win $10,000!! 

or some other fabulous prizes.

Raffle Tickets $20 each 
Click here for Raffle information
Must be 18 years or older to purchase raffle tickets. 

Register now! Vacation Bible School will run from Monday, June 25 through Thursday, June 28 from 8:45-12:15 PM at Saint Mary's School and Parish Center. There will be live music, outdoor games, and more! Campers (those who have completed Pre-K3 through grade 6) will enter Babylon to experience life in Biblical times. To register or learn more, click here.