Chesterton Weekly 12/3/21
“Angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly.”
― G.K. Chesterton
In this Issue:
All Things Gala
Christmas CV Night
Kris Kringle Week
College Visits and Opportunities
All Campus Cleaning
Lessons and Carols
Last Day of School Reminders
Save the Dates
All Things Gala
Raffle
Hurry, hurry, hurry!! Our next Early Bird Special is fast approaching on December 15! All tickets purchased up until 11:59pm on December 14 will be added to the early bird drawing on December 15. This prize amount is for $1,000. Don’t forget, you’ll still be in the running for the grand prizes if your ticket is pulled in an Early Bird Drawing. You, your family, and friends will not want to miss out on such a great prize! Click on the raffle flyer PDF link below for the early bird prize amounts and all the information you will need.
Raffle Tickets are $100 each. Click here to visit the raffle page. And you can also download and print additional flyers to help sell tickets using this PDF file.
As of today, the House of Ambrose is leading the competition for selling the most raffle tickets. Many house points are on the line, so keep selling!
Auction
Christmas time is approaching and most everyone is in that jolly, giving Christmas spirit. It’s a great time to ask businesses if they would like to donate towards our Gala Auction. The auction is a significant part of the Gala, and we really appreciate all your help!
If you would like to work with businesses to procure items, or procure them yourself, you will need the auction intake form as well as the partner letter to introduce businesses to our event and school. All items turned into the school must be accompanied by an intake form. They should be turned in at the office, attention “Auction Committee”. For more information on how the committee accepts and organizes items into baskets, please review the intake form.
Simple, elegant, and successful is always the theme for our auction, and we are aiming for quality over quantity in our baskets! We suggest that families focus their efforts on items that have been successful at raising significant amounts in the past. Here are some examples:
Experiences; e.g., meals with priests or well-known people, tours, weekends away, etc.
Services and memberships
High-end purses and bags
Religious jewelry, prints, and other gifts
Salon gift cards with salon products
High-end spirits or wine
Sporting events tickets
Restaurant gift cards
To see the auction wish list, please visit the new silent auction Signup Genius.
Christmas CV Night
We are so excited for our annual Christmas CV Night on December 10 from 4:00 p.m. - 7:45 p.m. in the St. Sebastian Gym. The night will consist of a few fun Christmas games, a pizza dinner provided by the school, cookie decorating, and a gingerbread house/scene competition with the houses. Soft drinks will be on sale for the evening to raise money for the Portugal Pilgrimage. The evening is scheduled to end at 7:45 p.m. with a cleanup immediately following. Please plan to arrive closer to 8pm to pick up your students. As usual, students are not allowed to use their phones during the event, but the school phone will be available for use. If you need to reach your student, please call the front office. We are looking forward to a fun and festive night!
Kris Kringle Week
Every year, during the last week of first semester, Chesterton Academy hosts a Kris Kringle for all our students, faculty and staff. Kris Kringle is a traditional Christmas gift exchange, similar to a Secret Santa or an Advent Angel.
How is the term, Kris Kringle, related to a gift exchange? It comes from the name of the true gift-bringer, Christkindl, the Christ Child. While there are different ways of naming (Kris Kringle, Kris Kindle, Secret Santa) and approaching this gift exchange, the tradition itself has Christian roots: the Christ child bringing gifts and St. Nicholas who doled out presents to good children. One variation, in particular, is found in the Scandinavian tradition where there is a practice of knocking on someone’s door, throwing a present inside when it opens, and then running away. They call this Juklapp, or “knocking Christmas.” The giving of a gift creates a bond of communion/love between giver and receiver. The giver should be “in” the gift which he/she gives, or else it is a trick (and runs contrary to the Christ-centered spirit of the activity). In this manner, Kris Kringle is a practice which enables us to participate more deeply in the Season of Advent: preparing a way for the Lord by thoughtfully turning our minds and hearts toward love of neighbor.
Please keep your eye out for the official Kris Kringle rules. But in the meantime, give this guide a read-through for the basic details. We are looking forward to another week of this wonderful tradition!
College Visits and Opportunities
We have a few wonderful upcoming college opportunities!
On 12/9/21 Thomas Aquinas College will be coming to campus immediately following our daily Mass for a visit. Parents are welcome to join us!
Hey Juniors — has Christendom College caught your attention? Consider their summer program for high school juniors! The application window recently opened and families have already started to apply. Students and parents can learn more about the summer program and apply at thebestweekever.com. What could be better? Scholarships are available for The Best Week Ever! Please inquire at the office to see if you are eligible.
All-School Cleaning Before Christmas Break
On Wednesday, December 15, we are having an all-school cleaning promptly after classes end. The cleaning will take about the same amount of time as the typical Friday school cleaning. If you need to leave for the basketball game, there will be a sign-out sheet, and you will be responsible for cleaning on Thursday. Take home everything you need for Christmas break when you leave Wednesday.
Lessons and Carols
Advent Lessons and Carols is one of our most beloved annual traditions we have all year. This year, it will be held at Sts. Peter and Paul in Naperville, beginning at 7 p.m. on Thursday, December 16, 2021. The students share what they have been working on in their choir class this semester with the entire school community. As such, it is an all-school required formal event for students, parents, and faculty. Students must wear their formal attire uniform. This performance is part of the student’s music grade for the semester.
Students are required to be in school on that day; please note the shortened schedule for the day: 8:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The arrival time for students is 5:15 p.m. and they should report to the parish hall (the red brick building next to the Church). Parents are invited and encouraged to attend mass at 5:15 p.m!
Last Day of School Reminders
In case you missed it, the schedule for the last days of school are changed. Please review them below if need be!
These changes are now reflected on the school calendar.
Wednesday, December 15, 2021 - Normal School Schedule
This will be the last full day of classes, and the last day for assessments for first semester.
All-houses will be deep cleaning all of campus from 3:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Some students may need to leave early for a basketball game after school; we will make arrangements for them to help out with the cleaning during the day on Thursday, Dec. 16.
Thursday, December 16, 2021 – Last Day of School for Students
7:45 a.m. Building Open
8:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Convocation at 8:00 a.m. as usual
Christmas Breakfast for students; gift exchange and Christkindl celebration
Lessons and Carols Practice
11:30 am Mass
12:30 p.m. Dismissal of students for Christmas Break
Friday, December 17, 2021
In-Service for Faculty and Staff
Save the Date
12/10: Christmas CV Night
12/13-16: Kris Kringle Week
12/15: Second Early Bird Raffle Pull
12/16: Advent Lessons and Carols
1/4: All students return from the Christmas Break