The Good Shepherd Home and School Association selected the winners of their Christmas Baskets Raffle on Tuesday, December 7, and the GSC Class of 2022 picked the winners of their four prizes on Monday, December 20.
The votes have been counted (at the local bank) and the winners of the Good Shepherd Home and School Association’s 2021 Pumpkin Decorating Contest are: First Place: “Among Us” ~ Antonio C. (Grade 8) Second Place: “Clifford” ~ Gianna (Grade 2) and Lucas V. (Pre-K) Third Place: “Smarties” ~ Macy M. (Grade 5) H&S Choice: “Root Beer Float” ~ Alex B. (Grade 8) Congratulations, winners! Enjoy your Barnes & Noble gift cards! GSC is a winner, too, because of the support and creative skills of our students and families who brought a lot of seasonal fun into the school building for all to see. And the biggest winner of all is Camilla Hall. Due to the generosity of our voters, the Good Shepherd Home and School Association is writing a check in the amount of $450 to send to the retired Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary at the order’s retirement and nursing home in Malvern, PA, along with our prayers and best wishes. Happy Halloween! To see all of this year's entries, click here.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is mandating that face masks be worn by students, faculty, staff and visitors in all archdiocesan schools starting Monday, Aug. 30. The 15 archdiocesan high schools and 102 Catholic elementary schools are set to reopen for the fall term Sept. 8, with in-person instruction five days a week. The archdiocese cited the continued spread of COVID-19 as the reasoning for requiring the face coverings as a safety precaution. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports new cases of infection nationwide have increased 14% week over week. Read the full story written by Matthew Gambino on CatholicPhilly.com:
https://catholicphilly.com/2021/08/news/local-news/masks-to-be-mandated-in-all-philadelphia-catholic-schools/ You can download and print the lists from this Webpage: For Parents of Preschool Students:
There is a $20-25 stationery fee, which includes arts and crafts supplies. We also will supply sleep mats for rest time at $10 per mat. You will provide a small blanket for rest time, which will be left at school. Please no pillows or stuffed animals. Your child's teacher will give you the payment information for the supplies and mat. Your child will need to have a full-sized backpack. Please be sure to label all of your child’s belongings. Clicking on the above image will take you to the Zoom Meetings page. You can use this link on May 27 to attend the Webinar. The well-being of children is a top priority for not only parents, but for schools and local law enforcement. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, one out of every five students (20.2 %) report being bullied at school. Knowing how to address and discuss signs of bullying at the onset with school administrators and knowing the rights of children and parents as well as school policies can help.
At 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 27, a panel of experts, including a police officer, lawyer, and a teacher will join the Webinar, “Stand Up Against Bullying.” The panel is sponsored by the Home and School Association of Good Shepherd Catholic Regional School (GSC), which nurtures students’ commitment to God, Scholarship, Community, and Service, and aims to provide a safe space for students to learn. Panelists include John (J.C.) Lore III, a distinguished clinical professor of law at Rutgers Law School; Officer Michael Ciuffetelli, representing the Upper Dublin Township Police Community Response Unit; and Rachel Dillinger, third grade teacher at GSC. Professor Lore is the founding co-director of the Children’s Justice Clinic, the first Rutgers Law clinic to focus on children. As part of the clinic, third-year law students receive academic credit for representing children in Southern New Jersey. In addition to providing legal services, students. He also has worked as a staff attorney and pro bono coordinator at the Bluhm Legal Clinic of Northwestern University School of Law where he managed the training and supervision of more than 200 Chicago area law firm attorneys who represented children in juvenile court. Before pursuing a teaching career, he was an assistant public defender at the Defender Association of Philadelphia and the Cook County Public Defender's Office in Chicago. Throughout his career he has litigated hundreds of trials and motions before a wide variety of courts and administrative agencies. He is an expert on issues of children’s rights, juvenile law, and trial advocacy and has been a frequent contributor to various media outlets throughout the country. Officer Ciuffetelli is part of the Upper Dublin Community Response Unit, which is tasked with addressing community concerns and providing community education. Since the CRU functions within the Patrol Division, the member officers continue to answer calls for service and perform patrol duties in addition to their CRU duties and responsibilities. The CRU’s mission is to identify and address the concerns of the Upper Dublin Township community. A graduate of Penn State University, Rachel Dillinger joined the GSC faculty in 2019. During her first year of teaching, she transitioned impressively to a state-mandated virtual classroom. From virtual tours of zoos across the country to various interactive videos of her reading children’s books, Ms. Dillinger provided leadership, comfort, and creativity to her class during an exceptionally difficult time. Welcoming remarks will be provided by H&S secretary Jazmin Rozier, mother of three, and the panel will be moderated by Aimee O’Donnell, who also is a member of the Good Shepherd H&S Board and the mother of a daughter at GSC. To join the free and public webinar, log in to https://zoom.us/j/91055256559. To view previous Webinars, go here: https://gschomeandschool.weebly.com/webinars.html and scroll down on the page. This Summer, Camp GSC is the place to be for preschool children (ages 3 and 4) and for students entering kindergarten and grades 1 and 2. Click here to go to the online registration form.
Earth Day may not be a holiday in the same ranks as Christmas or Easter, but it is an important holiday nonetheless! All of us share the Earth, and it is worth celebrating everyday, and on April 22 (Earth Day).
As a Catholic elementary school, Good Shepherd, we would be remiss not to mention St. Francis of Assisi, who is known for his love for nature, animals and the environment, preaching about the beauty of God’s creation. Furthermore, Pope Francis penned Laudato si' (Praise Be to You), the second encyclical from him in 2015. In this encyclical, Pope Francis discussed the moral importance of protecting God’s creation and that we can work towards fixing it together. He further states his belief that much of the changes in our climate is man-made, and that we must find alternative solutions to mitigate the effects of climate change. Earth Day was first held on April 22, 1970, and has grown from there with various international events and local activities for communities to come together and honor the Earth. You can even do some activities as a family! Here are some ideas for ways to celebrate Earth Day that you can enjoy for years to come:
Raising kids during a pandemic has been challenging for several reasons. One way to keep children and families focused on the positive is by helping others, from small acts of kindness to larger efforts that impact those in need.
At 7 p.m. Thursday, April 29, a range of committed and compassionate advocates will join the Webinar panel, “Community Outreach: Engaging Your Family To Help Others.” The panel is sponsored by the Home and School Association of Good Shepherd Catholic Regional School (GSC), which nurtures students’ commitment to God, Scholarship, Community, and Service. Panelists include a volunteer coordinator for a local nonprofit that engages children in supporting individuals suffering from addiction; a human capital consultant and mother to a child who has led her own efforts to feed homeless people; and a clinician for individuals in early recovery from addiction, who is also raising daughters dedicated to causes like type one diabetes and wildlife preservation. The panel will be moderated by Josephine Gandolfo, who is a member of the Good Shepherd H&S Board and Director of Pallottine Ministry at Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in South Jersey. Queen of Peace Parish Secretary Patti M. Duff serves as Volunteer Coordinator for Angels in Motion (AIM), where she participates in street outreach and organizes events to prepare for that outreach. Founded by a mother looking for her son in Kensington, Angels in Motion began from her witnessing of many individuals suffering from the disease of addiction. The local nonprofit continues to provide numerous “blessing bags” which contain food, clothing, hygiene products, and recovery resource information. In her role, Patti has organized collections for Angels in Motion, including rallying kids to make hundreds of sandwiches and loving pieces of art. “We meet people battling substance use where they are literally and figuratively,” she says. “The Blessing Bags helps us make a connection and our continual presence helps them understand that there are people who care. By donating to AIM you can provide individuals, who are less than 10 miles from our homes, food to put in their empty stomachs, a pair of mittens for their frozen hands, hope that they can change their circumstances, and the knowledge that someone does care for them.” Nikki Gillum-Clemons, SHRM-CP, currently works for Exude, Inc., and has recently been involved in cultivating COVID-19-safe workspaces. Previously, she worked in human resources for Marriott Hotels, where she organized large-scale events dedicated to various charities. Her daughter Reina is a student at GSC, where she has been involved in several service projects. In second grade Reina began feeding homeless people she observed in Philadelphia and still is finding creative ways to support others in need. According to GSC parent and therapist Andrea Gahagan, “Helping others allows us an opportunity to give what we are fortunate to have, to learn from other experiences, and to get to know people we many not have a chance otherwise to interact with due to societal boundaries.” A mother of three daughters, Andrea is also a new therapy practice owner of Sage Therapy Group that promotes peace and safety for clients to become their best possible selves. “Giving the gift of community outreach to children helps them build compassion and resilience to adversities they see others facing and may face in their own lifetime as well.” To join the free and public webinar, click on the graphic at the top of this story, or log in to https://zoom.us/j/96695682113. |
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