Heartbeat
October 1998

A Publication of Sacred Heart Academy
A Premier Core Knowledge Academy

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK....

Dear Parents,

Good communication between parent and child is essential in building a relationship based on trust and shared values. A wise parent is a good listener who encourages children to share their ideas and their experiences, thus sending an emphatic message: "you are important to me. I care about you."

Being a good listener requires more than just physical presence. A parent who makes an effort to learn as much as possible about the school, the teachers, and other students in the school will be able to show real interest in school activities. An interested listener maintains eye contact and makes pertinent comments. Sometimes there are distractions, which make it impossible for you to give full attention. Children will accept an honest explanation that now is not a good time for discussion, if they have learned to trust in the fact that they will be heard later.

Be aware that your comments will keep the conversation going or stop it completely. It is important not to be judgmental. Sometimes itâs best just to mirror your childâs feelings rather than jump in with advice. "It upset you to hear Joe talk that way." or "That really made you angry." Whenever possible, let your child make a decision on the best was to solve a problem. Your goal is to build independence, to let children think for themselves. Ask questions that will help them come up with their own solutions.

When you are a willing and interested listener, but still have an uncommunicative child, perhaps you need to think about the way you phrase your questions. "How was school?" may elicit only a one-word answer. "Tell me about your day," or "What was the best (or worst) thing that happened today?" produces more information. Ask questions that require your child to offer an opinion or to suggest ways he/she would like to change a situation. You can be an effective sounding board giving your young person a chance to express ideas and, at the same time, be an example of one who lives by Christian values.

As always, we welcome your interest in school activities and are grateful for your support.

Yours in Christ,

Bob Hamm _

LIBRARY LINES

by Mary Zapata, Librarian

Welcome back to another year at SHA's Lionel P. Correia Jr. Memorial Library. We have an exciting year of book activities planned. Come up and see a wonderful display of paper mache sculptures showcasing the efforts of students in Paul White's after school art class. Thank you to the students for sharing their fantasy creatures.

Homework Lab
Homework lab is held in the library Monday through Thursday from 2:55 - 3:25 p.m.  This is a quiet study place where children may get help from the librarian and/or parent helper.  To minimize distraction, children must be in the lab by 3:00 p.m. and must stay until 3:25.  When the homework lab closes at 3:25 p.m. lab children and other SHA students are welcome to stay for Open Library until 4:00 p.m.  Parent helpers are needed, especially for Mondays.

Used Book Sale
The Used Book sale continues until October 9, 1998.  Most of the books are priced from .25 to $1.  All proceeds go to the library.  If you have any children's books in good condition that you would like to donate to the sale, please bag them and send them to the library.

Birthday Book Club
Please choose books from the library Birthday Book Club box or get a list of suggestions from Ms. Zapata.  These California Young Reader's Medal books would make good choices for Birthday Book Club donations as we need multiple copies.  The number in parentheses indicates how many copies, if any, we have in our library (Paperbacks are acceptable for these books):
 

What's Next?

October - Goosebumps Party!  Come and listen to your favorite scary story.  The library is selling its collection of Goosebumps books to make room for new books.  Only .50
 

BIRTHDAY BOOK CLUB

Welcome back! We are off to another good start with the Birthday Book Club. A big "thank you" to the following children for donating summer books and September books. _
 
 
 
 

Sacred Heart Academy presents......Oktoberfest. A weekend filled with fun, food, games and prizes! This event will begin with a kick-off dinner featuring a traditional German meal:

The next morning's festivities will begin with a Kick-Off Walk:

The 3 mile walk will return participants to the Academy grounds where the Oktoberfest will begin:

Look for more details in your child's Tuesday folder over the next several weeks. The Oktoberfest Committee has a few items they would appreciate donated:

Contact Janice Teixeira at 225-8595 for donations, or if you would like to become involved in this great event!
 

ENTERTAINERS & EQUIPMENT WANTED!

We need a PA system and a few class acts for the Oktoberfest on Sunday, October 18th. If you are interested in donating/lending your equipment, or have a student who would like to perform, please call Margaret Malowney 223-7033 _

TREASURE CHEST DONATIONS

PLEASE DONATE YOUR "TREASURES" FOR
THE SHA OKTOBERFEST TREASURE CHEST

As part of the SHA Oktoberfest, we will be making up "Treasure Chests" comprised of items donated by you, which will then be sold during the Oktoberfest event.
Your donations should be new or gently used items.  If you have, for example, gifts which you have not used, this would be a good time to donate them to a worthy cause.  Other suggestions include book sets; toys; crystal or china; artworks; housewares or linens; small furniture items; gift baskets; etc.  If you own a business, or know someone who does, consider donating a gift certificate; or, if you have unused gift certificates from other events, recycle them.
To make your donation, or for more information, please contact either Katie Early at 224-7890 or Janice Teixeira at 225-8595.  The deadline for collecting "Treasures" is October 12, 1998.
Every contribution is appreciated!!

EGGS, EGGS, EGGS

Egg' (eg), 1. handy container for confetti. 2. provider of endless entertainment and laughs. 3. big bucks item. 4. occasionally worn as festive decoration. 5. sometimes used as food. 6. something for Dennis to clean up._
 

DIRECTORY NEWS Thank you to the following Academy families who generously donated the printing cost of this year's school directory: Susie and James Merrill ö Affordable Roofing, Inc. Bill and Queta Czerniewski ö Residential Repair and Construction Paul Yancey ö Point Properties We appreciate these sponsors' support of SHA. We also appreciate the support of this year's directory advertisers. One copy of the directory was distributed to each school family. Additional copies are available for one dollar each. Contact Ferol Henkels in the school office.  Eggs....a wealth of opportunities!! Remember to keep saving your eggs and turn them in. Free dress to the class that turns in the most!

ALUMINUM CAN DRIVE Welcome to, or back to, SHA.  The Aluminum Can Drive is on again!  Attached is an "official bag tag".  Please help raise money to upgrade our library.  SHA is the best!!  Bring in those bags of cans and CA redemption plastic.  You'll find the recycle barrel next to the boy's restroom.  Anytime that school is open is OK.  Aluminum Can Man thanks you.  Questions?????  Call Aluminum Can Man: 222-8596

TO THE POINT Volunteer Service Opportunity As we kick off another school year, now is a good time to think about how best to contribute to the Academy's "Commitment to Excellence". Review the list below to see where your help is needed. Decide whether you can help after hours, in the classroom or around the school. After Hours VOLUNTEER NOW: Remember to keep track of your points throughout the year by using the handy form in the back of your 1998-1999 School Directory SUNDAY DONUTS: Serve donuts after Mass. Call Christy Middleton @ 223-5932 AFTER-MASS GCP SALES Sell certificates, no accounting. Times available at the 10:30 am & 5:30 pm Sunday Masses. Call Patty Dimasi @ 223-8619 ADOPT-A-STUDENT: Donate to provide tuition assistance. Make checks payable to the Adopt-a-Student program and send them to Bob Hamm. FESTIVAL: Get in on the ground floor and help with planning this year's festival. Call Janice or Steve Teixeira @ 225-8595  PTG MEETING: Attend the PTG general meetings and earn 2 points. AUCTION EVENT: Get involved in the planning of this year's FUNdraiser.  Call Mary Jane Warren @ 223-2263 or Heide Macbeth @ 226-2349 IN THE CLASSROOM CRAFTS, READING AND FIELD TRIPS: Help with these class activities.  Call your child's room parent for times and dates needed. O.B. REC CENTER LUNCH: Join your child, their classmates and teacher for a special lunch hour.  Call your room parent for times and dates. Around The School LIBRARY: Lend a hand in our fabulous library.  Call librarian Mary Zapata @ 222-7252 COMPUTER LAB: Share your knowledge or just lend a helping hand.  Call Rich Grosch @ 222-7252 LUNCH-TIME PLAYGROUND HELPERS: Earn 5 points and help keep lunch time orderly and fun.  Daily from 11:45 to 1:00.  Call Connie Johnson @ 222-7252 HOT LUNCHES: Join in the fun on these special days.  Call Teresa Dennehy @ 224-9049

SCRIP VOLUNTEERS We are looking for volunteers to sell scrip the first weekend of each month following Mass. Specifically, we need someone for the 10:30 am Sunday Mass and the 5:00 p.m. Sunday Mass. If you are interested, please call Patty Dimasi, 223-8619 _ FAMILY FUN IN FEBRUARY SHA and the Peninsula Lions Club are joining forces to raise funds by having a Spaghetti Dinner for SHA's library. A computerized bar code system is essential for updating our library to today's standards. Please keep your calendar open for this family fun event in February! More details to follow: Any questions - please call Linda Small @ 226-1583 _ GIRLS VOLLEYBALL We're off to an enthusiastic start!  We have 65 girls playing volleyball in grades 5th - 8th! The season began the week of September 28th.  Playoffs will be November 9 - 21. Our coaches are Maureen Portella (Varsity A), Sara Sardinha, Jeannine Francisco and Jeff Moore (Varsity B), Michael Dennehy, Gary Lee and Jennifer Herse (JV A) and Jeff Davidson and Jim Kelly (JV B).  Please thank the coaches when you see them for all of their time and energy they give to these girls! Please help support our girls by attending their games and cheering them on.  Let's make this the best attended season ever - the girls deserve it!  Game information will be posted in the glass case in the school entry by Mrs. Henkles office.  Hope to see all of you at the games!!  Laura Hoban/Kelly Lane

It all started a few years ago, thirteen to be exact, when our dad, Tim Gregg, was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. It is a really depressing disease that makes your limbs shake, you move really stiffly and slowly, and it slurs your speech.

Well, as you know from the previous article, the disease really changed our lives. But, as you also know, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. That light was a surgery called Pallidotomy. You are probably saying to yourself...Pallidotomy, what's that? That's exactly what we said to our dad when he told us he was going to undergo that procedure. Well, Pallidotomy is a type of brain surgery that you have to be awake during the whole procedure. It includes an incision into the scalp and a one inch drill is drilled into the skull. Probes the diameter of a hair with cameras on the end of each of them are inserted into the brain. These probes travel down into the L-dopa. Once in the L-dopa the surgery of freezing the Parkinson's begins. This surgery can take from 8 to 20 hours.

Well, our dad told us that about two years ago. The surgery was set so many times, and canceled so many times. Just as we almost lost all hope, at the end of June, our dad received a phone call from Dr. Conrad Pappas saying that he wanted our dad to come up to Sacramento on August 18th so he could have the surgery on the 19th. Two days later our dad went up to Sacramento to interview Dr. Pappas, and get the 411 on the surgery. The meeting went really well, and the surgery was set for August 19th.

The next month was filled with a lot of anticipation and before we knew it, it was August 18th, and our mom and the two of us were on our way to Sacramento. That night we went to the hospital to visit our dad. He was in great spirits. He laughed at all of Johnathon's jokes, and he was so calm. We had never seen him so calm before in our lives. We stayed with him until about ten o'clock that night. We left him with a lot of hope, and boy did we ever say our prayers that night!

The next morning we woke up at six AM and drove to the hospital. Our aunts and uncles were there, and they too were in high spirits. We were able to see our dad for about an hour before the surgery. He had a headpiece bolted into his head that made him look like, in Johnathon's words, "Darth Vader". The purpose of this was so his head could be locked into the operating table because if he moved his head there would be trouble. As we entered the room, he said "Enter" in Darth Vader's voice. He was so calm and relaxed, and it made all of us relaxed to see that he was relaxed. The doctors came out at about ten o'clock and told us it was time for the surgery to begin. We all kissed and hugged him and the next few moments were spent with some tears.

We spent the next few hours shopping for gag gifts for our dad. We got him a bunch of stupid toys, and a hat because part of his head was going to be shaved. We went back to the hospital at about 3:30 and a nurse came out and told us that our dad was doing great and that the surgery would last about 2 to 3 more hours. We went out to eat a late lunch/early dinner, and when we returned at 5:30 he was out of the surgery. The doctors talked to us and told us that our dad was the best candidate they have ever had for many reasons: his age, the support of his family, and most importantly, his attitude. We could tell that they were really proud of themselves. They gave us permission to see him in the intensive care unit. When we got up there the nurse said that we could go in two or three at a time. The two of us and our mom were first. The nurse warned us that he had some oozy blood coming out of his head where the bolts were, and there was a bloody bandage on the top of his head, but other than that he was normal. We went into his room and he was sitting up eating and his face brightened as we entered the room. It was so amazing to think that a seven hour surgery cured a disease he had for thirteen years. He wasn't shaking, but the only thing that disappointed us was that his speech wasn't that great. He still slurred his words, and he wasn't very clear, but he told us that he would be going to speech therapy when he returned to San Diego. We gave him his gifts, and we laughed and cried, but all in all it was truly a blessing from God.

We visited him for the next two days from 1-5 pm and ate lunch, played games, and had fun spending time together. They released dad from the hospital Saturday at noon, just three days after his surgery. We were so happy to see him looking so good, relaxed, and happy.

Now that our dad is home, he is fun to be around again. He is not angry and impatient and we are now able to spend time with him. Johnathon hopes that our dad will help make him the best baseball player that he can be, and I hope that our dad will help me bring out my musical talent since he has a musical gift.

Our message to you is that you should never lose your faith in God. As long as you keep praying and deal with the problems that come your way, God will always take care of you and always be on your side. _