Heartbeat
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From the Principal By Principal Bob Hamm AsDuring Advent we begin the familiar story of Christmas. The story is about angels, a virgin birth, shepherd songs, magical visitors from the east, and God's gift to us of unconditional love, Jesus. Since all of us know every scene and word by heart, we might wonder why the Church tells the same story year after year. One reason is to help us remember. To remember that God is like a father with massive arms protecting us from evil. To remember that God is like a mother who repeats a beautiful story over and over to assure us that goodness will prevail. Like wide-eyed children, then, let us listen to the Christmas story once again.
Let Us Pray … With prayer pleas and Advent songs of longing, we await the birth of God's Anointed One. Come, O Gift of heaven's harmony and attune our third ear, this ear of our hearts, so that we may hear, just as Mary, faithful woman of Israel, heard. O God, the time is short; these days are too few as we prepare for the feast of the birth of Mary's son. Busy days, crowded to the brim, with long lists of gifts to buy and things that must be done. Show to us, also your highly favored ones, how to guard our hearts from noise and hurry's whirl so that we might hear Your voice calling our hearts to create an empty space that might be pregnant with heaven's fire. Quiet us within, clothe us in peacefulness, that Your Word once again may take flesh&emdash; this time within us&emdash; as once it did in Mary, long Advent days ago. Amen |
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by Stacy Turner It's hard to believe that the end of 2001 is fast approaching and the holidays are drawing near. As we reflect on how blessed we are, it is important to set our sights on the future and the future of our school. Each year, the PTG board sets a few new goals for improving our school. In the past few years, we have successfully achieved the renovation of the playground, replacing the sand with a thick foam padding. We also replaced the playground shade cloth adding better sun protection for the children. And this past summer we completed the Beautify the Classroom Campaign, adding a fresh coat of paint and other improvements to grades 1, 4 and 5. The PTG Board asks you, as members of the Parent Teacher Guild, to let us know if there are things you would like to see accomplished at our school. We are currently working on replacing the wooden wall in the play area with a more substantial wall to match the exterior of the school and one that can stand up to many more years of wear and tear. We hope to complete this project during the Christmas holiday. Please send any suggestions you may have for improving our school to my attention and please think about ways you can help see it through. Have a wonderful and safe holiday season. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can help you in any way. |
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Bob Hamm
The Evergreen Tree The evergreen shaped like an arrowhead, points to Heaven. Its needles always remain green, reminding us of God's gift of eternal life, and of Jesus' living presence in our homes. (I John 5: 11-12) Stars Stars on the tree remind us of the Star of Bethlehem (Matthew 2: 1-10) Angels God's angels announced Jesus' birth to Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds. (Luke 1 and 2) Lights and Candles Jesus called Himself "The Light of the World" (John 9:5) He also called us lights of the world. (Matthew 4:14) Red Decorations Red is a color that symbolizes Love. God loved the world and sent Jesus to be our Savior. Because Jesus loved us, He gave His life for us on the cross. (Mark 8:31) Gold Decorations Jesus is the King of Kings. (Revelation 1:5) Gifts Under the Tree Gifts remind us of God's greatest gift&emdash;Jesus and the gifts of the Wise Men. (John 3:16, Matthew 2: 1-12) |
 Joan Irvine Our Sacred Heart library is getting better all the time! With so many new members joining each month, we have an incredible selection of books to choose from. If you would like to donate a book, check with Mrs. Zapata and she will share the library "wish list" with you. The following students became Birthday Book Club members this month: Sierra Carini, Grade 3, Leola and the Honeybears Katie Sharpe, Middle School, The Walker Book of Ghost Stories Thank you for these wonderful additions to our library! |
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WHAT EXACTLY IS "FAMILIES"? Bob Hamm All of you see "Families" listed on the calendar each month, but we just realized that many of you may have no idea what "Families" is. "Families" is an opportunity for our students at all grade levels to interact with each other. We have divided the student body into families with each family made up of students from each of the grade levels. An eighth grade student is the "parent" for each family. The families meet once a month to pray, reflect, and do an activity together that is usually centered on our Virtue of the Month. Each month a different teacher is responsible for planning the activity for the family meeting. This has become a very positive experience for the students, allowing them to be a part of a special group, and enabling them to interact with students from all grade levels in the school. Hopefully, this will give you a better picture of what "Families" is all about! |
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Bob Hamm
The Sacred Heart Academy family was asked to be a part of a special Thanksgiving collection at our all school Mass on November 15th. A special effort was put forth by the Student Council to inform all the students of the importance of this collection for Thanksgiving for those children who are homeless. I am sure, also, that the purple ribbons, which your child wore home on the day before Mass, was an effective reminder to send money for the collection. Thank you to Janice Teixeira for making those ribbons. Once again the families of our school showed that Sacred Heart really cares. As a result of the collection at Mass we were able to send a check for $1,200 to Stand Up For Kids for Thanksgiving. This comes at a time when we see the numbers of homeless children increasing, and when the new owner of the building where the Stand Up For Kids center is located has given them until the end of December to vacate. Please remember Stand Up For Kids in your prayers and in your actions if you have resources at your disposal to help them find a new affordable place for a center for the homeless children. Thank you again for being a part of this very special outreach program for Sacred Heart Academy. God bless each of you. |
THE BIG EVENT |
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Maria Wimer Plans for the 2002 Big Event are well under way. We already have a great team of volunteers but still have plenty of room for others to come and help with Fiesta 2000 SHA! SHA! SHA! This is a good opportunity for you to earn your parent hours, meet other SHA families and have fun. The next planning meeting will be on December 5, 2001 at 7 p.m. at Maria Wimer's house, 2240 Etiwanda Street. If you have any talents, suggestions or just want to come and help, please try to attend this meeting. If you have any questions, please call Kori Pilney 226-3120 or Maria Wimer 223-0532.
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ATTENTION HOT LUNCH HELPERS Diana Bartlett Please remember a few simple rules to help the hot lunch program run smoothly: 1. Please be on time for your shift. 2. The first person to arrive may leave after the last child is served. 3. If you can't make your shift, you must find your own replacement and notify the office of the change. 4. Please read and follow the guidelines posted on the shed wall. As always, if you have any questions, please call me
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THE FIFTH GRADE CLASS IS A DOUBLE WINNER For the first two months of the school year, the fifth grade class brought in the most box tops for the Box Tops for Education program. In September, they brought in 70 box tops amounting to $7 and in October, they brought in 252 box tops, amounting to $25. The fifth grade class will enjoy two days of free dress for their success. Total box tops brought in from all grades were 932 bringing a total of $93.20 for our library. Keep saving your box tops. Congratulations, fifth grade!
Updates and Corrections Please make the following additions/corrections to your directories:
This month's class profile features Mrs. Massa's second grade class. During these days of international turmoil and in the season of Thanksgiving, these children have delivered a strong message of peace on earth and good will to all. Here's what these second graders said when asked to complete the sentence, "If I were President of the United States, I would …" "… make sure that there were no homeless people in America." Elisa Gonsalves "… try to make all the countries free." Morgan Torpey "… stop people from smoking." Stanley Tryka "… not let people sell drugs." Giovanni Putzolu "… make no littering a country law so our parks and beaches stay clean." Clare Moran "… let other states be free." Gabrielle Valenti "… try to make no more people angry so then we would be a happier place." Madeleine Turskey "… stop all wars. I don't want countries fighting." Anna Lee "… try to stop fighting with other countries. I would like there to be a little more love in the world." Kelly MacRitchie "… make people stop selling guns and knives. People would be safe." Ryan Hall-Warne "… stop drugs by going on the news." Megan Alsheikh "… tell the people who were jealous of our freedom that they could live with us." Allison Sutherland "… stop all wars because I would rather live in peace." Sebi Peronace "… stop the wars and make our land peaceful." Christine Hamlin "… make all the states free because I want all states to be free." Ian Brown "… put peace in all the worlds." Sam Turner "… make the world a better place." Nathan Ellison "… stop the drug selling and not let anyone buy drugs." Ryan Kretz "… make all states free because then the world would be a lot happier." Sequoi Zozula "… let all countries be free." Desiree Serrano "… stop the war." Aaron Montano "… stop drugs." Nick Ryan "… stop the war so we will have a more peaceful country." Casey Ferguson "… make no school." Joe Diamond "… stop the wars and have peace in our country." Marissa Correia "… try to let every state be free." Garrett Rice "… make a law saying that nobody is allowed to shoot animals." Joey Benoit |
 SPORTS,
SPORTS AND MORE SPORTS
 SHARKS MAKE PLAYOFFS David Sheppard The Varsity and Junior Varsity football teams have concluded their regular season with winning records. The Varsity finished 6-2 and in 3rd place out of 16 teams in the Parochial League. The Sharks were led on offense by Michael McMahan, Kyle Swope, Ju Chung, Joon Roh, Ross Harrington and Kyle Dietz. The defense did a great job with Willie Newpauer, Jimmy Tontz, Morgan Pryor, Derek Ferguson and Casey Dofflemeyer leading the way. The Junior Varsity team ended their season at 5-2 and five consecutive wins going into the playoffs. The Junior Varsity team had 24 players on the squad and received solid contributions from all, including Matt Merrill, Anthony Coito, Chris Penney, Justin DeWitt, Alec Kraft, Sara Littlefield, Thomas Henkels, Brett Davey, Nick Small, and the Atchley brothers. Thanks to all the coaches for making this such a successful season, not only in the win column but also in sportsmanship on the field. WINTER SPORTS SIGN UPS David Sheppard Sign ups for winter sports teams will be coming home in the Tuesday folder on November 27th. All students wishing to participate need to turn their permission slip in by Monday, December 10th. The winter sports season is the only one in which every grade level has an opportunity to participate in the Parochial Sports League. 5th through 8th grade girls can participate in soccer. Boys in the same grades can participate in basketball. Kindergarten through 4th grade boys and girls can participate in PeeWee soccer. Thank you to all the parents who have volunteered to coach the winter sports teams.
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8TH GRADE PROFILES
Michael Scott M. Michael is the oldest child of Sue and Scott M. His younger brother, Brian is in the 4th grade. Michael has been at SHA for four years and will attend Point Loma High School next year. After high school, Michael plans to attend a college ("of my parents' choosing") and dental school and become a dentist just like his father. What Michael will remember most about his years at Sacred Heart Academy are the small class sizes, the families and his friends. His most memorable field trip was one they took to the Aerospace Museum in Balboa Park. When asked about going back in time and visiting any year, this is what Michael had to say, "I would go back to preschool because we got to finger paint and take naps." Michael likes to play a wide variety of sports including baseball, flag football and snow skiing. "I also just started snowboarding and fly fishing with my dad and I like to surf too!" His favorite subjects are recess and science and his favorite sport is baseball. Pizza and cream soda sound good just about any time and the Carmelo Bar is his favorite candy. His favorite book is To Kill a Mockingbird and his favorite movie is Zoolander. His other favorite is "hanging out with my friends." When Michael was in Boy Scouts, he and his fellow Scouts bagged potatoes for the homeless, which he found most rewarding. Finally, Michael would like to leave us with this, "I most admire my parents for raising such a good kid. My parents also take the time to help me with homework if I need them to and my dad will always coach sports at school, when I ask." Katie Elisabeth S.
Katie S. is the youngest of five children; two half-sisters, Rachelle (33) and Sarah (24) and brothers Matt (16) and Ryan (14). Katie is the last Sharpe to go through Sacred Heart Academy. She has been here all 9 years! Next year Katie will attend either the Academy of Our Lady of Peace or Point Loma High School. After high school, she would like to attend a small university such as USD. What Katie will miss most about SHA is the small family community "where you know everybody and everybody knows you." Her favorite field trips were the trip to the moon in kindergarten and the trip to the Star of India in 5th grade. For fun, Katie likes to go to the movies, play sports, go to the beach and hang out with friends. If she could go back to any time in the past, she said that she would like to visit the 1950's because she thought that Grease was such an awesome movie. Katie likes writing and P.E. and her favorite sports are volleyball, soccer and softball. Her favorite foods are "anything Mexican or American and Dr. Pepper." As far as candy bars, she prefers Snickers and she loves Bubblicious bubble gum. Katie's favorite movies are She's All That and Austin Powers and her favorite book is A Champion Lives Within. One time Katie volunteered at the Tijuana Orphanage with her girl scout troop. She and her troop helped the orphans with crafts, played games and even helped with the little babies. This was an experience she will remember forever. When asked whom she most admired, this is what Katie said, "I admire my great Aunt Mona because she never complained and always saw the good in everything and everyone." |
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A LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT The following letter was sent to Mr. Bush along with a $2 donation. Dear Mr. Bush, I hope the money helps. I used it out of my allowance. I feel sorry about this tragity (sic) and I hope you find Osama bin loden (sic). I am glad to help the children that need shelter threw (sic) the winter in Afghanistan. Please help all the people to heal from the twin towers and to understand that we should be safe now. Your speeches are great, keep it up. Sincerely, Carly Bowerman, Grade 3, Age 8 P.S. I keep this in my prayers.
NEXT HEARTBEAT The deadline for the January Heartbeat is noon on Friday December 7. Please send your articles to vthaxton@aol.com before the deadline. |
KUDOS
To Stephanie House, Happy 12th Birthday, Steph! We love you.
&endash;Mom, Dad, Dan and Ben
Happy 10th Birthday R.C.! We are so very proud of you, and think you are a very special and wonderful person. Ryan, we are truly blessed to have you in our lives! With all our love and admiration, Sydney, Mom & Dad
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OB Christmas parade SHA Float- "God Bless America" |
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8am Mass-5th grade 2nd grade to Star B Ranch Principal's Advisory Commission - 7pm |
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8am Mass-6th grade Stand Up For Kids collection day |
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8am Mass-8th grade
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Stand Up for Kids, Arts/Crafts Faire-SHA-9am-3pm |
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8am Mass-6th grade Stand Up For Kids collection day 2nd Grade to Harborview 5th grade to The Orchard
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8am Mass-8th gr. 6th grade to Duke Royale 3rd grade to Indian Hills "Families" -2pm
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8am Mass- 7th grade 3rd grade to The Lloisters NOON DISMISSAL - Begin Christmas vacation-no School until Jan 7th |
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Sacred Heart Academy
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