Sunday Evening News 12.20.2020
December 20, 2020
SUNDAY EVENING NEWS
“For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given …”
(Isaiah 9:6)
Peace & Greetings,
EVENING REFLECTION & PRAYER
2020 will be a year we read in the history books very soon. At the same time, we come to the end of this
challenging year with our annual celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas confirms God’s love for us and shines bright light on the world. Jesus is born in Bethlehem, humble and poor, to enlighten and enrich our world. Jesus is the true light who shines so brightly. He shines through the current pandemic. He shines through the ups and downs of life. He shines in and through our family and friends. Christmas is a special time to reflect the radical love of God and his never-failing light which shines upon the entire world.
As we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ this year may we be renewed in the promise that God’s love never fails and I pray that you and your family have a joyful celebration of our Lord’s birth. Please be assured of a remembrance in my prayers for the entire St. Paul Community this Christmas season.
Let us pray,
Almighty and invisible God, who dispersed the darkness of this world by the coming of your light, look, we pray, with serene countenance upon us, that we may acclaim with fitting praise the greatness of the Nativity of your Only Begotten Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Merry Christmas! Fr. Glen, Chaplain
SCHOOL CALENDAR
Week of December 21 & 22
All classes will meet Monday (12/21) and Tuesday (12/22) for 30-minute periods with 15-minute breaks and a 30-minute lunch break. Wednesday, December 23, originally scheduled as a noon dismissal, will be a non- instructional day and the beginning of the Christmas break. St. Paul will return to in-person learning (with a remote alternative option) on Monday, January 4, 2021.
GUIDANCE NEWS
Welcome Cole Mancini … Welcome Ms. Allison Owsianko
Congratulations to Nick and Elaine Mancini on the birth of their first child, Cole Mancini, earlier this week. With Mrs. Mancini beginning her maternity leave, Ms. Allison Owsianko has been hired as a long-term substitute and will begin at St. Paul on Monday, January 4, 2021. She is a 2020 graduate of the University of St. Joseph’s Masters in School Counseling program and has been a long-term substitute at Hamden High School since the beginning of this school year. Allison’s dad, Michael ‘80 and brother, Andrew ‘17 are St.
Paul alums. Ms. Owsianko can be reached at aowsianko@spchs.com.
In the short-term, don’t hesitate to reach out to Mrs. Glynn, kglynn@spchs.com or Mrs. Kilbourne, lkilbourne@spchs.com in the Guidance Office or Mr. Cooper, jcooper@spchs.com with any questions or concerns.
College Acceptances
Congratulations to the following seniors on their recent college acceptances:
Lana Marie David Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences Madison Farrell Oklahoma City University, Salve Regina College
Brycen Kennedy Le Moyne College
Delaney Jordan Curry College, Dean College Tanina Sentementes American International College Jonathan Passander Florida Tech
Seniors are reminded to notify their school counselor if they want their college acceptances to be acknowledged.
PERFORMING ARTS
The Show Must Go On-Line This Fall
The St. Paul Catholic High School Performing Arts fall production, Monologue Mashup, premiered recently. A link to the performance is now available, https://youtu.be/K-OPSpKw5uM.
Congratulations to Lila Alderete, Alecia Barberi, Lucas Courtemanche, Joseph DiBiaso, Madison Howe, Daniel Kozman, Davis Kroll, Anna Kronen, Maddy Kurnick, Olivia Lanteri, Sarah Lindquist, Sami Millerick, Erica Morelli, MacKenzie Murphy, Abby Patterson, Kendall Raymond, Christian Roach, Riley Skarupa, Kirsten Ward, Rose Wolfgang, Brianna Wood and Nina Zwolinski.
ATHLETICS
Student-Athlete Home Workout
All St. Paul student-athletes, especially those planning on participating in a winter sport, are encouraged to join the TeamBuildr app. Based on the winter sport you plan to play, there are codes & passwords listed on the St. Paul website www.spchs.com, under Athletics, At Home Workouts. If you would like to be part of the workouts as an out of season athlete use the Out of Season code. As part of logging into your workouts there will be a mental health assessment questionnaire meant to encourage you to think about things like proper sleep habits, nutrition, and productive mental health activities as helpful tools to assist you in
navigating these unique times. If you have any questions or need assistance logging into or using the App please contact Coach Joe or Mr. Dennehy.
BISHOP LOVERDE ZOOMS INTO ST. PAUL
One of the “silver linings” of remote learning last spring and most recently has been the opportunity to welcome special guests and speakers to our classrooms. Bishop Paul S. Loverde, ordained a priest for the Diocese of Norwich; then Auxiliary Bishop of Hartford; Bishop of Ogdensburg, NY; and now Bishop Emeritus of Arlington, VA; visited Sister Marie Benedict’s and Sister Mary Mercy’s religion classes on Zoom before and after the Thanksgiving break.
With our seniors, Bishop Loverde responded to their comments and questions based on their reading of his pastoral letter on the Sacred Heart, Fountain of Life, Fire of Love, and more general biographical information about his life as a priest and bishop. With our freshman, Bishop Loverde introduced the role of a bishop; Sister Mary Mercy’s sophomores learned about the divine and human natures of the Church.
As this sample of student responses shows, our students enjoyed this special opportunity:
“I was inspired by his works of charity and devotion to Christ, especially in his response for how we can remain faithful to Christ during these confusing, trying times.”
“I enjoyed his mention that he has been a priest since the 70s! My parents were little kids, I can’t wait to have loved Christ for that long :)”
“I just wanted to let Bishop Loverde know that he has made a major impact on my spiritual journey. His messages and responses to the questions gave me an insight into a lot of what he has gone through.”
“I really liked the way he responded to pain. I really understand now the meaning of pain, and how nobody enjoys it, and it is not necessarily a good thing, but rather necessary in order to experience what Jesus did, and the salvation he gave to us.”
“Thank you so much for dedicating your time to answering our questions! I am inspired by your knowledge of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I learned a lot about the Sacred Heart being the center of Catholicism.”
“I truly found your life story to be very interesting because you have travelled all over the states but also the world. Even though I may never become a priest, your words will live on for me forever.”
“Thank you Bishop Loverde I really loved what you said at the end of class about how God has a path for everybody. And thank you for taking the time to answer all of my classes’ questions!”
“One thing from your lesson that I found interesting is that the Pope himself choses Bishops for the church. I would have never thought it was him who chose every single Bishop in the Church! Thank you so much for coming and have a happy Advent and Christmas.”
“Thank you Bishop Loverde for taking the time to visit our class, I found a lot of what you said very insightful. One thing in particular was how you talked about the Church being Holy because God is present there even though we sin.”
“Thank you Bishop Loverde for speaking to my classmates and me. I found it interesting how you said that everyone you ever ordained or blessed in the sacrament of Baptism became your family.”
(Hyperlink above: https://www.catholicherald.com/news/local_news/fountain_of_life,_fire_of_love/)
SPCHS MATH TEAM
The SPCHS Math Team has completed its December competition in the Math League, New England Division contest. Students have 30 minutes to complete a set of 6 complex questions covering topics from logic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, statistics, and precalculus. Congratulations to all students that participated in this rigorous competition!
Congratulations to the leading scorers this month:
1st Place: Zixuan Sun
2nd Place: Alicia Barbieri, Samantha Naples and Andrew Pauloz
All SPCHS students are welcome to join. If you are interested in competing in the next virtual monthly contest, please email Mrs. Clarke, mclarke@spchs.com.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY (December 21 – 31)
Happy Birthday to: Jesus Christ, Daniel Emmendorfer, Isabel Esposito, Cameron Fabrizio, Melany Marquez, Roland Massicotte, Nicole Murzyn, Robert Roach, Elizabeth Speaker and Tyler Turner.
MAIN OFFICE DECEMBER SCHEDULE
Monday, December 21 & Tuesday, December, 22: 7:30 am – 3:00 pm Wednesday, December 23 – Wednesday, December 30: CLOSED Thursday, December 31: 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
FINAL WORD
I leave you with a few smiles tonight. Some students in Mrs. Silva’s English class took it literally to build snowmen on their “snow day.” Here are a few samples of “literary snowmen:”
| The Very Hungry Caterpillar | Harry Potter | Miss Maudie |
| Keira Dubitsky | Alexis Tierpack | To Kill a Mockingbird |
| Adam Zwolinski |
Harry Potter The Raven
Gillian Smith Teresa Strasser
This will be the last Sunday Evening News of 2020! The next newsletter will be on Sunday, January 3, 2021 unless circumstances require correspondence before then.
In closing, I want to share how proud and grateful I am of our St. Paul community. In July, when our Reopening Plan – Fall 2020 was released we didn’t know what to expect with respect to the status of COVID-19 when students and faculty were welcomed back onto our St. Paul campus on August 31.
I couldn’t be more thankful to our administrative team/staff who worked so tirelessly through the summer planning for the new school year, our faculty who embraced the return to in-person learning and welcomed the technological expectations to simultaneously teach remotely, to our students, parents and guardians who have been so understanding, flexible and supportive the last four months. This has not been an easy journey for anyone … and certainly harder for some. But together, we have persevered!
Hopefully, during the last several months we have all learned some valuable life lessons; found time to be reflective; maybe prayed more frequently; and have a greater appreciation for family/friends and everyday normal routines that we may have unintentionally taken for granted.
We look forward to welcoming everyone (who is able) back on campus on Monday, January 4. Until then, wishing each of you and your families a healthy and Merry Christmas!
Stay well …
St. Paul, pray for us!
Cary M. Dupont ‘72 President/Chief Administrator
