December 21, 2011

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the city of David a Saviour has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger" (Luke 2: 10b-12).

May the joy of the Christmas season and the promise of the Lord's faithfulness be your source of guidance and inspiration during your Christmas vacation time and in the new year. The Lord bless you and keep you!

With Christian Love,

The John Knox Christian School staff

Don't Forget FREE DRESS, Helmets, Skates & Christmas Assembly on Thursday

Don't forget those HELMETS & SKATES for Thursday's Skating Party! It's always more fun when everyone stays safe and can participate!

It's also FREE DRESS so wear your jeans with something red & green and Christmas-y!!!

If you'd like to join us for our Christmas assembly before our skate begins, it will be held at 1:00 in the gym. You can hear the bands,the gr 5b recorder group play and enjoy a surprise from Mrs. Reid's class.

After that, at approximately 1:45 pm we will load the buses. The rink is booked from 2:15-3:15pm with grades 6,7,8 on RINK 1 and  JKs (and accompanying parents), SK (and accompanying parents), grades 1,2,3,4,5 on RINK 2. The 5/6 split class will be split onto the two different rinks. Please check the boards to see which changerooms our school has been assigned.

At quick reminder, that if you plan to take your child home directly from the rink, please let their homeroom teacher know in advance with quick email or note. All our teacher's emails can be accessed through the website under "Contacts" CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE CONTACTS PAGE.

Christmas Performance CD Available

Wasn't that a FANTASTIC Christmas performance on December 16?

If you'd like a DVD of the evenings presentations, please contact Jennifer Bergner at: jbergner@jkcs-oakville.org and a copy will be sent home with your child. A very special thank you to Waldemar Dalewski for producing this video!

See the video of just the black light presentation by our talented grade 7 class by clicking here.

Good News from our Christmas Performance

We were pleased to have had so many join us in the celebration of the birth of our Saviour during our December 16th Christmas Performance, and we want to sincerely thank you for your generous freewill offering.

We are excited to announce that we raised $6,672 as a result of your giving. A portion, $6,272 will go towards our annual fund campaign and $400 will be donated to EduDeo Ministries. "EduDeo Ministries is a Canadian, Christian, mission organization serving children in developing countries with quality education rooted in a Biblical worldview" (www.edudeo.com).

We thank our Lord for His blessings, and we thank you for taking part in expanding Christ-centered education here at JKCS and worldwide.

Our Students at World Vision

Juliana & Faith were invited to participate in World Visions' Head Office Christmas chapel for their employees.

The theme was Sowing seeds of hope and joy. Both girls did a great job leading in prayer and talking about hope and joy in our communities.

Here's a photo of the girls with the President of World Vision, Dave Toycen.

First Week in January Basketball Schedule

Just so you can be super-organized, here are the basketball practice times for our first week back to school:

• Sr. Girls - Mon. Jan. 9 at 3:40pm - 5:00pm & Wed. Jan. 11 & Fri. Jan. 13 at 7:15am 
• Jr. Girls - Tues. Jan. 10 at 3:40pm
• Sr. Boys - Tues Jan. 10 7:45am & Thurs. Jan. 12 at 3:40pm
• Jr. Boys - Wed. Jan. 11 at 7:30am (please note: here is now NO practice Mon. Jan. 9 in the afternoon)

Serving Opportunities in January for Whole School

During the month of January, as we continue to unpack our year's theme verse of 'love', we will delve into the meaning of loving one another through servanthood. Our Servant Team has been a wonderful example of loving people through their service to others. So, following their example, our whole school will be involved in various "Servanthood" activities throughout the month of January. Watch the parent update and your inbox for details.

We will start the month with a Spirit Day assembly on January 11th AND it will be a FREE DRESS day! Wear your jeans and slippers and get comfy on Jan. 11th.

JKCS letters will also be handed out at this assembly (if any parents would like to join us!) Awards bars will be handed out in classrooms to keep the assembly running on time. (5 bars equals 1 letter. eg. 5 extra curricular activities equals 1 J,K,C,or S in that order. Letters can be sewn on JKCS cardigans.)

Donations for Tax Purposes in by Dec. 31 please

Annual Fund Drive & Other Payments: Please keep in mind that in order for your donation &/or payment to be attributed towards the 2011 tax year, all monies must be into the Finance Office prior to the close of school on December 22/11. If you are unable to make this deadline you will need to mail in your donation &/or payment and be sure that it is postmarked no later than December 31/11. Dropping cheques off in January dated for December will not meet with the CRA criteria and therefore will not be receipted in 2011. If you have any questions please contact Tamara Dempster tdempster@jkcs-oakville.org

Hear the Senior Band Play - Thurs. Dec. 22

Dearest Parents:

You are invited to come and hear the grade 7 and 8 bands play at our Christmas assembly on Thursday, December 22 at 1 pm. We will be playing several Christmas selections, and would love for you to hear the results of all our hard work!

Grade 5b will be performing on their recorders too!

Skating Party - Dec. 22

One of our traditions at JKCS is to celebrate the last day of school before the Christmas break with a skating party! Parents are very warmly welcomed to come and skate with us on Dec. 22 at 2:00 pm at the Can Lan arena, located just south of the school on Ford Dr. at Cornwall.

Buses will leave at approximately 2:00, but we do also count on parents to take their own children to the rink if they will be joining us. That helps keep our bus costs low and makes for a very fun and social day! When the skating party is finished at 3:00, students may go home directly from the rink with their parents. Students who travelled by bus, will be bused back to school at approximately 3:00 pm. Please remember to notify your child's teacher, if you will taking them home from the rink directly so we can keep everyone safe for the holidays!

Our kindergarten students will be staying at school to enjoy a movie and treats (can you imaging tying all those skates and trying to keep our little ones up on their feet on the ice??) but have the option of attending the skating party, if their parents are willing to take them along to the rink.

Looking forward to a great skating party! Hope to see you all there!

Christmas Break Dec. 23 - Jan. 8

Best wishes for a memorable family Christmas! Aren't we blessed to be able to openly celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour as a JKCS community? Merry Christmas everone!

School will be closed on Fri. Dec. 23 until Sun. Jan. 8. The office and school will be open in 2012 on Mon. Jan. 9th, our first day back to school!

Cinderella Musical Comedy - Dec. 27-31

One of our own parents (and webmaster), Rikki Wright, has written and produced a hilarilous musical comedy called Cinderella. As you might expect, it's the story of a princess-in-waiting, but what you won't expect are the funny twists and turns to the story, new characters and interactive audience participation!

Performances are: Dec. 27th through Dec. 31st (see the website for details www.pantomime.ca)

A HUGE THANK YOU!!! to Rikki for bringing the ENTIRE school to see Cinderella! We are so grateful for your generosity!

Please consider supporting our local playwright and enjoy the British tradition of Christmastime pantomime!

Johnstone-Cruz Family

Please be in prayer for little Jacob, son of Steven and Ruby. Jacob has been hospitalized at Sick Kids once again with RSV and pneumonia. Please pray particularly that God will grant him strength to be able to breathe well and that the pneumonia will be conquered. Pray also for the Johnstone-Cruz family, that they will be strengthened and encouraged.

The last time Jacob was hospitalized, both Steven and Ruby really coveted our prayers and said that they felt the body of Christ in prayer for them every day!

The Panza's Nephew

Please pray for Betty Panza's nephew, Jon, who has been diagnosed with a very rare disease in his hip. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors and most of all for increased blood flow to the area and a miraculous healing!

Michaels Family

Please be in prayer for the Michael's family (Hanny & Claire) as Claire cares for her terminally ill mother at home. Pray for strength, wisdom and God's peace for whole family.

December 22, 2011