MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Dec. 13-1:30pm 3’s and JK Christmas Program
Dec. 13 -6:00pm Gr’s. K-2 Christmas Program
Dec. 13-7:00pm Gr’s. 3-5 Christmas Program
Dec. 15-6:00pm-8:00pm Live Nativity, Community Cantata 6:30pm-7:30pm
Dec. 18-11:00am dismissal
Dec. 19-Jan.3-No school, Christmas/New Year holidays
Jan. 20-Martin Luther King holiday
Jan. 23-P/T/S Conferences, school in session
Jan. 24-11:00am dismissal, p/t/s conferences 11:45-3:00
Jan. 29-9:00am-6:00pm Open House
CONGRATULATIONS!
The following students had a great day competing in the 6th Grade Quick Recall Showcase. They did not win overall, but beat Collegiate in the 1st round, a big success! They lost to Meyzeek in round 2 and Holy Spirit in round 3. Gabe Brown was #3 and Sam Gohmann was #4 in the Social Studies assessment, both with 28 questions correct!!! Thanks, in part, to their stellar Social Studies teacher. The kids had a lot of fun and it was a great experience!
Team members are: Hannah Gohmann, Sam Gohmann, Gabe Brown, Sam Schweickhardt,
Felice Pappalardo and Isa Verdi.
The Ascension Blue Team went undefeated during the regular season!
Team members are: Teddy Marx, Samantha Bowling, Ian Beierle, Will Yorgy, Ben Whittington, Maura Cornell and Colin Dwyer.
OUTDOOR LIVE NATIVITY
ALL are invited to join us once again for our annual Outdoor Live Nativity on Sunday, December 15; from 6:00-8:00p.m., here at Ascension. This has become a favorite holiday tradition with families, so please mark your calendars so you don’t miss out on this incredibly popular Advent experience! There will be “living” characters (many of them school and ANCHOR students) “real” baby Jesus, small animals, music, Scripture, and refreshments as part of this awe-inspiring manger scene. A new feature this year is the Christmas Cantata, which will be happening in church. You won’t want to miss this great evening of inspiration, fun, and fellowship for ALL ages!
COMMUNITY CANTATA
We would like to extend a special invitation for you, your family, and friends to attend our Community Cantata performance on Sunday, December 15th, at 6:30 PM in the Church at Ascension. As we prepare during this Advent season it is a time for gratitude, a time for celebration and expectation! And it is a time for music! This choral performance will feature voices of all ages and from multiple parishes in our community. Come enjoy the Live Nativity at 6:00 PM and a wonderful music performance at 6:30 PM. We look forward to seeing you there!
A MODEST INVITATION
I recently read someone speaking of the community of the Church by stressing the reality that church is not just a place to go, but rather a family to which one belongs. I cannot help but reflect on how, if the plans of God are real and to be fulfilled, the act of gathering together with everyone who we would then consider family would, by necessity, require a great dwelling place! Imagine how crowded family gathers are, or have been for you in the past. Families are alive; they grow and decrease depending on the season. I remember some family gatherings when we were children that felt like the house we were in was bursting. I don’t mean this in a claustrophobic sort of way, but in a way that felt full and complete like there was just the right amount of love to be shared and warmth to be explored. I hope you are living that reality, or have memories of such an experience! This, I believe, is a vision of heaven – complete, happy, loving, and warm. As silly as it may sound, I genuinely believe that our God desires us to be together in this way. I believe in the truth of a loving God who, at His birth as Emmanuel, brought together the lowliest shepherd and the loftiest magi in the humble adobe of a stable.
As a parish community, we have celebrated the achievement of our school as a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. This is a recognition that Ascension school is a place that prepares successful scholars. While there is no equivalent to recognize significant parish achievement, I desire to lead a parish that prepares successful scholars, and splendid saints! What would that parish look like? I believe it would look like a large family practicing for an eternity together in the Kingdom of God. This is not an easy proposal. Family is messy and complicated, and that’s relevant for families connected by blood! What does it look like when veritable strangers are seated next to one another at the table of Christ, our Savior? The most telling aspect of a successful family is the willingness of the members to show up. Perhaps the desire to do so isn’t always perfect. Maybe the attendance isn’t perfect. Probably the participation is, at times, lackluster. That’s OK, that’s family. Relating to one another requires a degree of vulnerability, and few aspects of life call us to such a degree of vulnerability as relating to one’s family.
The modest proposal that I suggest is just that, to be vulnerable. Take on the challenge of opening your heart to being vulnerable to the degree that is just beyond your comfort level, to participate in this messy family that we call the Church of the Ascension. In this blessed season of Advent, I encourage you all, especially the families of our school children, to consider the opportunity to practice that vulnerability and be present. You can also practice this vulnerability by inviting your friends, your family, your neighbors, and your co-workers. There are plenty of cards in the gathering space that detail our Christmas Mass schedule, and our regular Sunday Mass schedule. Please take one for yourself and several for those who you know that might appreciate the gentle nudge, the modest proposal of joining the community a bit more often. One of the most appealing aspects of our faith are the open doors – the capacity of anyone to say that they are interested in walking with the community on this journey of life. There are opportunities to join the faith. If you are baptized Catholic and have been away for a while, reentry is almost scandalously simple! Come to the Sacrament of Reconciliation and then come to Holy Communion as one trying their best. I desire to walk with each and every one of you. To hear of your trials and your successes. To support you and challenge you. I cannot make you take this walk with me to join your family, but I can invite you. Come, let us adore Him!
In the Peace of our Ascended Lord,
Fr. Adam
To read past articles please visit: spiritualfather.org/blog
ASCENSION SCHOOL FACULTY & STAFF CHRISTMAS GIFT COLLECTION
Over the years, the PTO has helped make Christmas gift giving for our teachers a little easier. There is always so much going on, and we don’t always have the time or know what to purchase for our wonderful teachers. So, we will once again be collecting money from school families for a holiday gift for our faculty and staff. This collection contribution is completely voluntary! It is designed to save you time during the busy Christmas season, if you wish to utilize it.
Contributing is easy!! Send in cash or check payable to Laura Ridge or Kristen Jansen (they can’t be made out to Ascension.)
Be sure to include the names of your children. The Christmas gifts will be distributed with a note including the names of all the students and families who donated. Please consider how many school employees are involved with your children every day (music, library, art, office, cafeteria, maintenance, etc.). Over the last few years, the staff has been very appreciative of your generosity.
Please send your contributions to the school office in an envelope marked “Teacher Christmas Gift.” The deadline for donations will be Tuesday, December 17th. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Laura Ridge at (502) 645-6925 (texting is fine) or at lauramkridge@me.com.
Thank you in advance for your participation!
EASY MONEY SWEEPSTAKES WINNERS FOR THE WEEK OF 12/2/19
Date/Payout/Name/Seller & Grade
12/2 – $250 Heidi Yang, Tatum Mullaney Gr. 5
12/3 – $25 Kevin Murphy, Mia Airhart Gr. JK
12/4 – $25 Vikki Carroll, Holly Carroll, Gr. JK
12/5 – $25 Alicia Chandler, Aymen Chandler Gr. K
12/6 – $50 Dorothy Duckworth, Church Sales
RECONCILIATION OPPORTUNITIES DURING ADVENT
Wednesday, December 11-7pm-8pm Parish Communal Reconciliation
Friday, December 13-7pm-8pm ASCEND (Adoration – Praise – Silence – Reconciliation)
Friday, December 13-Fellowship 8pm – 9pm.
Friday, December 20-7pm-8pm Advent Meditations (Adoration – Contemplation – Silence – Reconciliation)
Advent Meditation on Wednesdays 7:30am-8am before 8:15am Mass and 45 minutes prior to each weekend liturgy.
WIN A BOTTLE OF PAPPY VAN WINKLE 12 YEAR RESERVE
$10 per chance (only 120 tickets will be sold)
Proceeds will benefit the Class of 2020 8th grade Grand Canyon trip
Drawing will take place at Trivia Night on February 22, 2020.
Tickets may be purchased in the school office
PARENT EDUCATION SESSION WITH ROY PETITFILS
Roy Petitfils, a Catholic author, speaker, and psychotherapist in private practice, will present “What Teens Want You to Know But Won’t Tell You” on Wednesday, January 29, 2020, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at St. Xavier High School, 1609 Poplar Level Road, Louisville, KY 40217.
This is a wonderful opportunity, and encourage you to attend!
PULL TABS COLLECTION-KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
Now is the time to start filling up those Ziploc bags, milk jugs and coffee cans with pull tabs. Every little bit helps. Together we can make a difference. For more information on Kids Cancer Alliance please visit kidscanceralliance.org or contact K of C coordinator John McCarthy at mccoots1@gmail.com.
All proceeds benefit the Kids Cancer Alliance (KCA) and Indian Summer Camp (ISC).
Pull tabs can be sent in to the school office at any time.
AMAZON SMILE
If you shop Amazon, please consider shopping AmazonSmile! AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know (same products, same prices, same service)! Amazon donates 0.5% of the purchase price of eligible products to Ascension! Please support Ascension School by continuing your shopping with Amazon at https://smile.amazon.com/ch/61-0652304. It is a win-win for Ascension and our students!
Our organization is listed as Church of the Ascension School Louisville, KY.
We received a check for $36.99 for the last quarter.
BOX TOPS COLLECTION
Our goal is to raise $2,000+ in FREE money for our school! Ask family, friends, and neighbors to download Box Tops for you!The Box Tops for Education program is changing the way we can earn cash for our school!
Over the summer, participating brands have begun to change their packaging from the traditional Box Tops clip to the new Box Tops label.
Going forward, instead of clipping from packages and checking expiration dates, all Box Tops will be earned digitally by scanning your receipt. The Box Tops for Education team has worked hard to build a NEW-and-improved, user-friendly Box Tops mobile app, available now.
The new app features state-of-the-art technology that allows you to scan your store receipt, find participating products and instantly add Box Tops to our school’s earnings online.
If you still have traditional Box Tops clips at home, make sure to send them to school. We will still earn cash for all clipped Box Tops until they expire. Better yet, you can “double dip” during the packaging transition by clipping traditional Box Tops AND scanning your store receipt containing
participating products.
Please download the app and follow the instructions for setting up an account and finding our school. All you have to do is scan your receipt within 14 days of purchasing participating products, and our school earns $.10 for every box top clipped!
REMINDER
Student’s who are absent should be phoned in or emailed to Ms. Thomas by 8:30am. There is a 24 hour message system for you to phone in absences, 451-2535 ext. 22.
Also, it is very important that your child/ren arrive at school on time daily! Students should be in their class and chair by 7:55am. If your child is late, you must come in to sign them in. Thank you!