From Mrs. Santos
Kindness is Contagious
We have been discussing the virtue of kindness this week. It is really wonderful (and most often not planned) when we can connect the dots between what we are studying, and how it plays out in real life. By definition, kindness means to be gentle and generous toward others. Late last week, an anonymous donor came to us with a proposition and a challenge. This person would join us in our Lenten Giving Project to raise funds for the Hogar del Pobre orphanage by matching all monies 'dollar for dollar' donated on a single day. Our response was a resounding YES, and of course, Thank You! The next question would be, when? Without really giving it alot of thought (which is not typical), we picked last Friday, St. Patrick's Day. Not only would we be wearing green on Friday, but hopefully and prayfully, raising the green!
We had no idea what to expect with such a short timeline to communicate with our school families. We let everyone know about the challenge match last Thursday in Saints Speak, and then followed up with a SchoolSpeak email reminder on Friday morning, known as Double Donation Day. At best, we were hoping to raise a few hundred dollars. Then the money started coming in. Checks from parents and staff members. Crisp $100 dollar bills, and crumpled dollar bills. The phone was ringing off the hook with parents asking if it was too late to bring in money. All day long, the donations for the children of Hogar del Pobre kept coming in. First we reached $1,000; then $2,000. Before you knew it, the money reached and surpassed $3,000. Ponder for a moment that this amount was going to be doubled! The office staff had goose bumps on top of goose bumps; you could not help but experience an overwhelming exhilarating and humbling feeling of joy. There is something about kindness that is contagious. When one person shares a kind word or action, others want to join in.
One of the most well known sayings of Saint Teresa of Calcutta is to "Do small things with great love". Every dollar that was donated on Double Donation Day was done with such love and purpose. This clearly was the order of the day last Friday, St. Patrick's Day 2017. But Saint Teresa also felt that the biggest disease faced by people in today's world was not an affliction like leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted, uncared for and deserted by everybody. The greatest evil being the lack of love and charity, the terrible indifference toward one's neighbor who may suffer from exploitation, corruption, poverty and disease. While we are amazed at the outpouring of donations and the size of the amount collected and matched; it is because of the caring of our All Saints school community and our compassion for the orphanage and the children that we hope that we have established a connection that embodies the virtue of kindness.
Then on Saturday night, we celebrated our biggest social event and fundraiser of the year, A Night In Hollywood: An Evening of Glitz, Glamour & Giving. First of all, this night would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of a trio of ladies who have lived at ASCA for the past few months - Kate Bobofchak, Kristy Wagester and Tracy Coleman - and an army of other volunteer parents who helped out with every aspect of this special celebration of All Saints (we wish that we could personally acknowledge each and every one of you by name), and created a red carpet event worthy of any Hollywood star. On Saturday night, All Saints Catholic Academy was the star, and collectively, we joined together to raise money for the school that we love so much.
I was blown away by the excitement of the bidding during the live auction for things like Hamilton and Bon Jovi tickets, as well as the first spot in the car line after school. Congratulations to the Marriott family who won the Tuition Credit Raffle (and thanks to everyone who purchased a ticket). One of our brand new school families, the Martin family, purchased raffle basket tickets when they visited our Open House back in January; and they were the winners of one of the most beloved raffle baskets, the Outdoor Movie Party Basket with a value of $475. Congratulations Martin family, and welcome to All Saints!
This year's Fund a Need at the DDA was to raise monies toward changing our main entrance from Door 7 (which is like coming into the school through the garage door) to Door 1 (the doors beneath the stained glass windows outside our St. Therese, The Little Flower, Memorial Plaza - AKA, the pretty door). The planned renovations include a new welcome desk and configuration of space, as well as the creation of a new Health Office in underutilized space between our conference room and staff lounge. Some of our 7th and 8th grade students created, produced and acted in a most creative and humorous video to help make the case for this project (to take a look, go to https://drive.google.com/a/ascacademy.org/file/d/0Bye64yr8tQrSRUNvU2dHSk1KeGc/view?usp=sharing_eip&ts=58cc1c15).
I did not know what to expect as the auctioneer began the bidding. In hindsight, I should have known better. In just a few short minutes, over $25,000 was raised, with that total increasing each day with additional contributions. What an outpouring of kindness and generosity! If you still wish to contribute toward the Fund a Need, we would be honored to accept any amount of money toward this worthy cause. We do not have a total amount raised at the Dinner Dance Auction to share with all of you yet, as monies are still coming in. One thing that is certain - it will certainly look different at ASCA when you return to school in August. Thank you to everyone for your support!
As we begin our Spring Break tomorrow at 3:30 pm, I hope that you all enjoy this break with your child(ren); safe travels to those who will be on the road.
Saints News
2017-2018 School Calendar and April 2017 School Calendar
Please click here to view our 2017-2018 School Calendar. Please click here to view the April 2017 School Calendar.
SHPP 2017-2018 Nomination Forms
SHPP our School Home Parish Partnership organization) needs you! Consider nominating yourself or someone you think would be a great fit for these positions that truly make a difference for our students and our school community. In addition to these positions, there are many ways to become involved with SHPP. Please consider sharing your time and talent. There are opportunities available for all levels of involvement.
Click here for the nomination form. Please contact Mrs. Santos at (630) 961-6125, or msantos@ascacademy.org with any questions. Nomination forms are due by 3:00 pm on Friday, May 5.
Jr. High Spring Musical - The Little Mermaid - Program Book
First of all, we hope that you have reserved the date for either Friday, April 21 or Saturday, April 22. These are the performance dates for this year's Junior High Spring Musical, The Little Mermaid Jr. Do you have a business you would like to promote to 
the All Saints families? Do you know a cast or crew member in the Jr. High Spring Musical? What better way to do so than to place an ad in our professionally designed "Playbill"/Program Book for our 9th annual Jr. High Spring Musical production of the Little Mermaid! Take advantage of this opportunity as Ads are now being accepted!
We will print just over 300 copies of these books that will be be placed directly in the hands of All Saints families and friends. Many of these books will become a keepsake as well, increasing the number of views! Simply click here for the form, and return it with payment to the ASCA office in an envelope labeled Little Mermaid Musical Ad. All ads, including photographs or stock art must be received no later than Wednesday, April 12th in order for the book to go to print. Please contact Debbie Kosmach with any questions at nolkos@aol.com.
Lenten Rosary Prayer
As we continue our Lenten journey, all are invited to join us each Wednesday throughout the Lenten season for our Rosary prayer, which will be recited at 7:50 am prior to our school masses IN THE GYM. We pray for the intentions of Pope Francis, our school, our schools intentions and any you may wish to offer. You do not need to know the rosary. We offer cheat sheets and rosaries for any who need them. We are also very child and baby friendly! Please bring your younger children, visiting grandparents or friends for 15 minutes of prayer for our Pope, our children, teachers, administrators and loved ones. Please feel free to contact Christi Kluzak at dkluzak@gmail.com with any questions or suggestions.
Grandparents Day Update
The invitations have gone out. If you did not receive an invitation, it is not too late to respond. To RSVP for the May 4 event, please send an email to ascagrandparents@gmail.com. Be sure to provide the first and last name of each grandparent, and their home address (so we can send thank you's and a picture). Also, please include each student name and homeroom.
Second Annual STEM Fest at ASCA
Save the date and plan to attend our 2nd Annual STEM Fest on Monday, May 8 from 6:30 - 8 pm. ASCA's STEM enrichment program needs a few good parent scientists, chemists, mathematicians, bankers, nutritionists, orthopedists, chemical engineers, marine biologists, astronomers, computer scientists, etc.
We need enthusiastic and upbeat parents (or work colleagues) to present their STEM field to children through hands on activities. Adults will lead a 5-10 minute demo, and then allow for child interaction. If you are interested or know of an eager volunteer, please contact Dr. Deborah DeRosa at stemfestasca@gmail.com.
Saints Having Fun
Registration Now Open!
ASCA All School Family Fun Night at Players - Sunday, April 30 
We are excited to announce an opportunity for our students and their families to come together for an afternoon of fun at Players Indoor Sports Center in Naperville from Noon to 3 pm on Sunday, April 30. This is an all ages event. The cost is only $14 for one child, with a $25 max for 2 or more children. Registration is online, and couldn't be easier! Flyers are coming home with all oldest and only students today! Stay tuned for more exciting information after spring break. Meanwhile, talk to your friends and get everyone on board and registered.
To register, please click on the following link: https://login.ezfacility.com/OnlineRegistrations/Register.aspx?CompanyID=924&GroupID=230457.
Saints in the Classroom and Beyond
Breakout Edus are Happening at ASCA
What is a Breakout EDU? Is it a new kind of illness?!? "Breakout EDU creates ultra-engaging learning games for people of all ages. Games (Breakouts) teach teamwork, problem solving, critical thinking, and troubleshooting by presenting participants with challenges that ignite their natural drive to problem-solve. New games (including games that are curricularly aligned) are being developed by educators worldwide.” The above description is from the BreakoutEdu site.
The students in Grades 4 and 5 at ASCA can attest to just how engaging the activity is. In our Tech Center, fifth grade did their breakout on the topic of Saints shortly after they finished their research and presentation of saints for Catholic Schools Week. The fourth graders worked really hard last quarter to create new, secure network passwords. Their breakout centered on Saving Captain Digital Citizen’s Passwords. Their excitement was quite evident as they worked cooperatively (our virtue of that week did not go unnoticed.) to beat the clock and save the passwords. All three homerooms at both grade levels were successful in beating the clock. Grades 2 and 3 worked on digital breakouts on St. Patrick’s Day to help the leprechaun find his treasure.
Saints in the Summer
Physical Education Spirit Camp at ASCA
All Saints Catholic Academy is excited to offer an opportunity to continue the fun from PE combined with a touch of grace for K-5 students. Under the instruction of Mr. Justin Busche, students will get the opportunity to enhance their learning of popular sports, fun activities and increased fitness with a focus on a Biblical theme each day. Think of it as one part Vacation Bible School, one part Fitness, one part Sports, and ten parts cool, all mixed in a blender for a week’s worth of FUN!!!
Who: Incoming Kindergarten – 5th grade students
What: Focus will be on a different activity each day
When: Monday, June 5th – Friday, June 9th and/or Monday, June 26th – Friday, June 30th
Time: K-2: 8:45 AM – 10:15 AM 3-5: 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Where: All Saints Catholic Academy
Please click here for more information.
Saints In the Parishes
Jack Shea at St. Thomas the Apostle
Jack Shea, theologian and storyteller, will be at St. Thomas the Apostle on Tuesday, April 25 from 9 am - 3 pm for the following presentation: Come Holy Spirit - The Season of Pentecost. The cost is $35 and includes a continental breakfast and lunch. To RSVP, contact Marge Coronado at (630) 355-8980, X118, or mcoronado@stapostle.org by April 21.
Saints in Competition
From the Saints Sidelines . . .
CONGRATULATIONS to our Boys 7B1 DuPage Parochial League CHAMPIONS! What an outstanding performance!
Congratulations to all of our All Saints basketball teams on a tremendous season. Thank you for all your team spirit!
ALL basketball uniforms are due in to the office ASAP!
ATTENTION Parents of 4th graders……is your child interested in participating in our athletic program next year? We will be hosting a meeting for all parents interested in learning more about the athletic program. The date is TBD, but will be shortly after break, watch your email for information.
2017-2018 SPORTS REGISTRATION will begin over the next couple of months. If your child (current grades 4-7) has not participated previously, be sure to access the registration website at www.asca.SIPlay.com and establish an account. If you had an account set up previously with SportsSignup, the user information (username & password) remained the same; however, please be sure to access your account and update your information (i.e. email contacts, sports physical information, PGC, etc) If you have questions, please email Erika Baka at jnebaka@gmail.com.
GO SAINTS!!