February 2019

Bobcat Buzz Mark Your Calendar ...

Feb. 5 Chinese New Year Celebrations

Feb. 8 5th Grade Field Trip to

“Jackie and Me”

Feb. 13 Class and Staff Picture Day

(Full Dress)

Feb. 14, 2:00pm Valentine’s Day Parties

Feb. 16 Steps for Students

Feb. 17, After 10:15 Knights of Columbus

and Noon Spaghetti Lunch benefiting

Masses the 8th grade trip to D.C.

Feb. 18 President’s Day, No School

Feb. 20, All Day Spirit Day at Chili’s

Feb. 22 Go Texan Day, Chili Cook-off

Feb. 28 Spring and Sports Pictures

Mar. 3, 10:15am First Sunday Mass

Mar. 6, 8:30am Ash Wednesday Service

(Full Dress)

Mar. 11-15 Spring Break

Check the online calendar at stmarylc.org for the most up-to-date information.

Race Day Schedule:

6:30am Catholic School Village Opens. Join us at the SMCS tent!

6:30am Mass at the Co-Cathedral

6:30am-7:30am Race Day Registration

7:45am Presentation of the David Guite Spirit Award

8:00am 5K Run/Walk Starts 9:00am Post Race Party

Saturday, February 16, 2019

Current Number of Registrants: 181 Current Pledge Total: $5064

Top Fundraisers Family: The Arevalo Family, Top Girl:

Chloe Seiver, Top Boy: Michael Arevalo

Classes with all students registered will have a choice of lunch provided by SMCS!

Classes almost at 100% participation: Mrs. Keaton and Ms. Richardson!

Register now! Can’t Attend? Register with the “snooze” function or make a pledge to

a St. Mary team member. 100% of contributions benefit

St. Mary Catholic School!

Order your SMCS team T-shirt here, or order forms are available in the

school office. Questions? Contact Coach De Leon.

February 13 is class and staff picture day. Students should wear their full dress uniform to school.

February 14, students can wear red shirts or Valentine’s Day shirts with school uniform bottoms.

February 22 is Go Texan Day! Students can dress in their best western wear. Students will be attending Mass this day.

Thank you, First Responders!Thank you, First Responders!Thank you, First Responders!

St. Mary Catholic School Spring Gala St. Mary Catholic School Spring Gala St. Mary Catholic School Spring Gala

April 27, 2019 April 27, 2019 April 27, 2019

This year’s theme features a

Derby Gala Night!

We need your help

with auction items! Please consider approaching

places that you frequent - dance studios, spas, gyms,

movie theaters, jewelry stores, hair salons, etc.

Business managers are often more than happy to

donate! Also, timeshares, weekend getaways, or

trips are always top sellers at the auction. All

donations are appreciated! We are always in need of

volunteers. Contact Patricia Richards via email,

phone, or text (214-674-6827), with any ideas,

questions, comments, or to join the auction team!

VIRTUS training is being replaced with CMG Safe Haven online

training. This program consists of 3 vignette-style online

training videos and includes a criminal background check.

Live training will no longer be offered. All Safe Environment

training will only be available online.

All school volunteers, chaperones of field trips, and others

who have regular contact with students (eating lunch on

campus, visiting the classroom) are required to have Safe

Environment training.

All up-to-date VIRTUS trained individuals are covered

with their training. The 5-year anniversary date is still

valid - when your anniversary date is met, you must go

through CMG Safe Haven training.

As the VIRTUS 5-year anniversary date is met, you will

need to log in to CMGConnect with your previous

VIRTUS user ID and 1234 as the password.

All new (non-VIRTUS trained) volunteers or regular

visitors will complete the Safe Haven online training

program instead of VIRTUS PGC training. You can access

the training program at CMGConnect.

Safe Haven Online Training

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the

Archdiocesan JH Science Fair:

We had several students place!

1st Place, 7th Grade Physical Science:

Brenna Fledderman

3rd Place, 7th Grade Physical Science:

Jeanette Smith

1st Place, 8th Grade Earth Science:

Thomas Peterson

3rd Place, 8th Grade Physical Science:

Julianna Lamboy

if you arrive to school after morning

prayer, please drop off your student(s)

at the front of the school.

Registration for the 2019/20 school year has begun.

Register by February 15 and families will receive a

$100/student discount off of their registration fees.

SMCS will pay the FACTS enrollment fee.

Register by March 18 and families will receive a

$50/student discount off of their registration fees.

SMCS will pay the FACTS enrollment fee.

Questions? Contact Janet Ellison in the school office.

Bobcat Spirit Shop Spirit shirts, Steps for

Students shirts, and other spirit items can now be ordered online! Check

out our Bobcat gear here!

February 24 Coach De Leon

The Little Bits Engineering and Robotics Club

needs to purchase robotics kits, and is seeking

sponsors who are willing to make donations.

We need four sets with battery chargers, which

will run approximately $300 per kit. If you have

questions, or would like to make a donation,

please contact Karen Pate by email or phone at

281-332-4014.

Track meets, with the exception of the

championship meet, are held at Barnett

Stadium (6800 Fairway Dr. Houston, TX 77087).

Elementary track runs from 8:00-10:00am. The

Junior High schedule varies depending on the

events chosen by the participant.

Meet Dates: February 23, March 23, April 6, April 13 (Prelims) and *April 27 (Finals)

*Championship Meet. Junior High Level Only. Meet location is Strake Jesuit (8900 Bellaire

Blvd. Houston, TX 77036). Go Bobcats!

Children’s Rosary Prayer Group The Legion of Mary invites

children to a Rosary Prayer

Group, which exposes

them to the devotion of

the Holy Rosary. The next

meeting is February 2,

3:00pm in the Church

Chapel. All children ages

4-14 are welcome!

Concessions Sponsored by the Belles

Saturday, February 23

Cargill Hall 5:00-8:00pm

SPAGHETTI LUNCH

February 17, 2019

After 10:15 and Noon Masses

Eat in or take it to go!

Tickets $8.00 per plate Purchase after Mass on

Feb. 10 or 16 or at the door.

This event is sponsored by the Knights

of Columbus and benefits

the 8th

grade class trip to

Washington, D.C.

Thank you for your support!

Teacher

Spotlight Mrs. Melinda Bryan-Graham Teaches: 6th-8th grade Science 6th-8th grade Technology

Education: Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies

Mrs. Bryan-Graham is in her seventh year at St. Mary, where she has taught classes at the early childhood, elementary, and junior high levels. She says of teaching junior high, “My favorite part is being able to focus on one subject and incorporate God into it. I feel blessed to be a part of these students’ lives and hope that I help them grow academically and spiritually.” Prior to here, she taught multiple grades at other private and public schools. “I came to teach at St. Mary because it was important to me to work where God was welcomed. From the first day I walked in to St. Mary I felt like I was where God wanted me to be.” In her free time, Mrs. Bryan-Graham likes to read, go shopping, go to painting classes, and spend time with her husband, her daughter, a St. Mary 2nd grader, and her sons.

Mrs. Kathy Whatley Teaches: Kindergarten

Education: Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education

Mrs. Whatley began her career as a Kindergarten teacher at Our Lady of Fatima in Galena Park. After seven years there, she came to St. Mary to teach first Pre-Kindergarten and then Kindergarten. She has enjoyed working here for over 20 years now and loves to see how excited the students get about learning. Also, Mrs. Whatley is pleased to be able to “give them a strong foundation that they can build on.” She credits a close friend with encouraging her to become a teacher. When not working, Mrs. Whatley likes to read or shop with friends and family. Her grandson attends St. Mary, and she is extremely proud to be able to watch him grow daily.

… Mrs. Taylor for organizing the

restaurant fundraisers

… Mr. Fledderman and Mrs. Ellison for

coaching the basketball team

… Mrs. Steinberg for creating the vinyl

stickers that are on display in all of the

school bathrooms

… Mrs. Shain for leading First Sunday

Masses and to all the volunteers who

have assisted her

… Mr. Schwanbeck and Dr. Tambling for

volunteering as Watch D.O.G.S.

… All SMCS Families who created a family shield to display during CSW

… Ms. Garcia for assisting with

morning car line

Class Leading Class Leading Week Morning Prayer Friday Mass February 4-8 4th Grade 8th Grade

February 11-15 3rd Grade 7th Grade

February 19-22 2nd Grade (Flores) 6th Grade

February 25 - March 1 2nd Grade (Carr) 5th Grade

March 4-8 1st Grade (White) 4th Grade

HEB Promotion HEB is offering a great opportunity to raise

money for our school! Earn 80 bonus Box

Tops when you purchase 10 Box Tops for

education products in a single transaction

between Jan. 23 - Feb. 5! A certificate for the

80 Box Tops (a value of $8.00 for our school)

will be delivered to you instantly at checkout!

For qualifying items, look for the Box Tops for

Education logo on the product. Please turn in

the certificate along with your other clippings

to the school. Many of the Box Top products

are on sale this week at HEB, so it’s a great

time to restock the pantry!

St. Mary Spirit Day!

When: All Day on Wednesday,

February 20th

Where: Chili’s League City

2845 Gulf Fwy South, League City

Come help raise money for SMCS!!

to Samantha Cummings, Tristan Twardowski, and Alec Hrdina! Their art

projects were selected to represent SMCS at the “Catholic Schools Got Talent” Art

Walk this weekend!