December 18, 2017 HS/MS Band Concert December 20, 2017 HS Christmas Program December 22, 2017 – January 1, 2018 CHRISTMAS BREAK January 2, 2018 SMC Classes Resume January 5, 2018 Eucharistic Adoration January 6, 2018 Robotics Competition at SMCHS January 10-12, 2018 Final Exams (1st semester exam schedule will be emailed later this week) January 12, 2018 End of Quarter 2/Semester I January 13, 2018 Snowball Dance January 15, 2018 Start of Quarter 3/Semester II January 17, 2018 All-School Liturgy LITURGY DRESS REQUIRED Visit www.thebigeast.org/ for our scheduled athletic events and follow us @Zephyr_Sports for live updates.

SMCHS Bi-Monthly Newsletter

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The following change or addition was made to the online calendar on the main page of the SMCS website: January 16--Elementary School Showcase Night Many flyers of the type that used to be attached to our school newsletter are now available via the links below, or read the full system newsletter. Basketball Team Photos Communications Coordinator Needed Booster Club Winter Apparel Sale St. Mary’s Winter Escape: Dueling Pianos Win a Cooler Full of Zephyrs Goodies! Santa Sing-Along Christmas Jubilation in the FAEC Holiday Scrip US Baseball Academy Clinic (Jan/Feb) Enrichment sign-up link National Softball Academy (Jan/Feb) Salvation Army Red Kettle Challenge Basketball Grade/Middle School Night Amazon Smiles Christmas shopping In the Community: YMCA Classes (Holiday Basketball Camp, Fun with Friends, Make a Stop at a Fun Shop

Scrip Schedule The last scrip order before the holidays was placed today. There will be no Scrip orders the week of December 25 or January 1. The first order of the New Year will be on Monday, January 8. Please note that www.shopwithscrip.com will process reloads and ScripNow orders paid with PrestoPay as usual, with the exception of the holiday dates. ACT Math Practice Mrs. Peterson met with juniors last week during lunch who were interested for more math practice for the ACT. If you were unable to attend see Mrs. Peterson for a schedule of future ACT math practice sessions. Snowball Dance The sophomore class is busy planning this year’s Snowball Dance with a Masquerade theme! The dance will be held on Saturday, January 13 at SMCHS. See the flyer attached to this newsletter for more details.

18 December 2017

The Joy of Yearbooks! A yearbook is one of the few things that are treasured forever. Honor your child’s story by ordering one today! You may order it online by using this link: Yearbook Order Forms are also available in the school office or below. Kerwin wins Essay Contest Michael Kerwin won first place in the Voice of Democracy audio-essay contest sponsored by the Nicolet VFW Post 2126 Menasha. David Mix, Post Commander, presented Michael with a plaque and monetary award. He now moves on to competition at the District 6 Level. This year’s theme was American History: Our Hope for the Future. The national first-place winner receives a $30,000 scholarship. Congratulations and good luck Michael!

Christmas Program—Sharing the Light! On Wednesday, December 20, our three Global Outreach students (from Poland and the Czech Republic) will share their Christmas traditions with our student body. Daniel Svoboda has a very special tradition to share--he

has the Peace Light of Bethlehem. Sharing this is a tradition in the Czech Republic. The Peace Light of Bethlehem is an actual flame taken from the cave where Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Scouts from Austria have gone to Bethlehem to retrieve the flame and take it around the world to spread the message of Christ’s peace. You may wonder how this light can be transported from the Czech Republic to America. To keep the flame burning, the light is transported in an airtight box that has been approved by the president of Austrian Airlines. Agents are equipped with a bucket with an inner-safe lining and retrieve the flame from the

airport. They then transport the flame from the airport to share as widely as possible. The flame which Daniel will share arrived in our area in early December. Daniel will share the story and the flame, which will burn in our chapel. Any parent wishing to join us can bring a lantern and take this light home. The program will take place beginning at 10:39am. Global Outreach Summer Trip 2018 to Europe Global Outreach Catholic Exchange Program invites American youth (those who have completed sophomore year of high school and older) and adults (especially priests and educators) for their summer trip to Europe. The trip includes participation in the GO Summer Camp in the resort in the Tatra Mountains at Zakopane, Poland and visiting beautiful European cities: Berlin, Germany and Krakow, Poland. The summer trip takes place July 8-21, 2018. For more information, please visit www.globaloutreachprogram.com and click on Summer Trip and International Youth Camp or contact Bonny Marek: (920) 203-7347 or go.bonny.marek@gmail.com **If you are interested in hosting one of our European Global Outreach students for the 2018-2019 school year, please contact Barbara Tota-Boryczka, Executive Director, at (920) 540-3085 or email boryczkabb@sbcglobal.net or contact Fr. Larry Seidl, Spiritual Director, at (920) 412-0320 or email ljseidl1949@gmail.com

SMCHS Fall Spotlight Night Fall Spotlight Night was a success! Over a dozen students entertained a well-attended crowd for a short and sweet evening on November 30. Spotlight Night gives students an opportunity to perform in a casual, low-stake environment for friends and family. Don’t miss Spring Spotlight Night, scheduled on March 23 in the FAEC Miron Forensic Theater!

Crunch Time—Freshman Finals Review National Honor Society is hosting “CRUNCH TIME” for current freshman who would like help preparing for final exams. The event takes place on Monday, January 8 from 3:30-5:30pm in the commons. Students have the opportunity to rotate to different subject areas and snacks and games are all a part of it! Please see the flyer below for more information!

SMCHS Robotics—First Tournament Success Our four robotics teams competed in the Menasha VEX Challenge at Menasha High School on December 2. The 8th grade outreach team, 1200E Calculated Error, did well in their first competition. They attracted the attention of the first seed alliance who selected them for their third alliance eliminations partner. The team competed through the eliminations to the final round and won the tournament championship! SMCS team 1200Z Syntax Error was awarded the highly regarded Design Award and won the Robot Skills Competition. In one of their matches, Syntax Error along with their alliance partner, won with the highest match score in the country to date! Both SMCS teams 1200E Syntax Error and 1200E Calculated Error now are qualified to compete in their VEX Robotic state tournaments and the Create Foundation U.S. Open. Congratulations to all of our teams; 1200C Technical Breakdown, 1200D “A”Raeganoe, 1200E Calculated Error, & 1200Z Syntax Error. The team’s next tournament will be held on Saturday, January 6, 2018 at SMCHS.

SMCHS Spring Musical The cast and crew are set and are already preparing for our spring musical, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying! The show will be presented on Friday, March 9 and Saturday, March 10 at 7:00pm and Sunday, March 11 at 2:00pm. Tickets are available for purchase by visiting ShowTix4U.com.

Email Mr. Kraus to sign up for auditions and more information hkraus@smcatholicschools.org