OCS Weekly Newsletter #31
| 2010-06-18 - OCS Weekly Newsletter #31 |
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Greetings from the Principal
“Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”
1 Peter 4: 2-4 This past Thursday we celebrated the lives of our Grade 8 graduates. Many had been with us since JK while others had joined us this past year. Despite their varying durations with OCS they all have added something to the “flavour” of our student body. Their reading buddies, in Grades JK – 2, all looked with awe as their “buddy” took the seat of honour. Teachers were seen with eyes which became a bit glassy and those who spoke had a sudden “frog in their throat.” It was a moment, which has become as powerful as the actual graduation, when the teachers and student peers honour and respect those moving onto the halls of High School. The above passage of Scripture was examined in one of our last Gr. 7 & 8 Bible classes. It captures a special moment between the Apostle Paul as he gives departing comments to his protege Timothy. His opening words to Timothy are those of encouragement and focused instruction as to bringing “that which you have learned into the practicality of everyday life.” Our graduates are eager to move on and we need to support them through personal encouragement and prayer. They are academically equipped for the next level of education; yet we desire them to also be spiritually prepared to not only defend that which they have learned but to make a significant difference in the lives of those they will will share a classroom with in subsequent years. As parents we do understand the reality of hardships which will face them in future years and we know too well the spiritual opposition which every intentional believer will face. As Christians we need to be able to defend the truths which have become fundamental to our life in Christ. There are those in positions of influence and authority which ridicule the truths of the Gospel. The recent decision by the local school board to remove references to “god in all forms” from the public school system gives further evidence to the challenges we face. Paul's inspired word to Timothy, to our students and parents alike is this: But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. God has empowered every believer with the Holy Spirit which not only brings comfort, but becomes the Master Teacher within us. It is the Spirit of God, working through every believer that will give our graduates success in every aspect of the next phase of academia. As parents, God expects us to diligently be in prayer for all our graduates. It is with a confident anticipation that we can expect our graduates to be academically, spiritually, physically and socially effective for the Lord! Our graduates have finished their OCS years well and we release them to their next challenge as Christ's ambassadors.
Announcements
Pre-Registration for the Fall: By now, you should have received in the mail, your student & family profiles and a financial commitment form. These forms are to be returned to the school by June 25 along with a post dated cheque for September 1. Some families have already returned their forms, but did not include a cheque. We count on the tuition income to meet our financial obligations for September so please ensure that you leave a cheque with the school office. Also if you are participating with CEAF, we will need to mail the post dated cheques in early August to ensure we receive a grant cheque for September.Before and/or After School Care: With the upcoming closure of our OCS daycare, we are starting to investigate the child care needs of our OCS families. The Program Committee is attempting to ascertain how many OCS families will need before/after care. If you are a family that is interested in OCS continuing to provide this service, please contact Sue McLaughlin at brent093@yahoo.ca. Your quick reply will be greatly appreciated as it will help us properly assess the needs. Thanks Sue McLaughlin on behalf of the Program Committee. Graduation is scheduled for all to attend on Friday, June 25 @ 7 pm. Please come and support our graduates. Teaching Elder George Butcher, from Hillside Bible Chapel, is our guest speaker. New family registrations have been coming into the school and we praise the Lord for those He is bringing to the school. Please pray those who are deciding and seeking God's direction for their commitment level regarding next year. Seek the Lord for those within your church that you may approach with the news of the effectiveness of an OCS education. Mortgage Donations: We are pleased to report that at our 30th Anniversary celebration five generous donors gave donations towards our mortgage. We recently sent a cheque to our mortgage company for a principal payment of $3120.00! Praise God for His provisions through His people! Scrap Metal: Thank you to everyone who brought in scrap metal and donating “clunkers” (old vehicles). We raised $1173.93 for the student fund. The student fund is not to be confused with the operating funds of the school. The student fund is used to offset student activities such as: class trips, sporting events, magazines for the library etc. Walk-a-thon - Congratulations to the grade 5/6 class for raising the most money and winning the class prize! On Monday they will get to enjoy a pizza lunch/ice-cream sandwich dessert! Also congratulations to the Schenk's for raising $1059.00 & winning the Family prize! Tristan, Alayna & Justin will enjoy a McDonald's lunch on Tuesday! Right now (Thursday) the total is $6546.75 with 19 families yet to hand in their money. The Lord willing that will bring us up to our budget of $10,000.00. Golf Tournament – Sat. June 19 – Many thanks to our sponsors and golfers. Please pray for the sun to shine, as you look forward to a great day of fun and fellowship. Thanks to all the volunteers who have given up their Saturday to make this tournament a success! Grocery Vouchers: REMINDER – PLEASE SUMBIT YOUR SUMMER ORDER FORM. This fundraiser takes little effort on our part; we all have to grocery shop so why e not support your school at the same time. If you have any questions regarding the program you can contact Kara Martin @689-4297.
Class News
Kindergarten – Mrs. Murray
1. Many thanks, to Jasmine's mom, Jen Mansfield, for the fabulous art lesson. The works of art will be coming home soon.2. We hope the dads enjoy the cupcake "hamburgers" - (it's not meat!) Happy Father's Day on Sunday. 3. Thursday 24th, 11:30 am we present the mini play, "Gideon" in the Gym. (It's 3 songs and some acting.) We leave for our final potluck picnic at Clayt French Park. Please sign the permission form for Thursday's outing and indicate on the sign up sheet outside our classroom what food you are bringing. We need enough for children and parents. Drivers are needed for those children whose parents are not able to attend. Boosters are needed. Children should have towels and bathing suits for the splash pad, sunscreen, hats etc. Children need to be picked up from the park. Call me if you have any questions. 326 0750 4. SK Graduation Friday 11:00 in the Kindergarten room. Parents and grandparents/friends are welcome to join us. We will serve juice and cake after the program.
Grade One/Two – Miss McPhedran
1. Thank you Dan, Sherry, Christa, Stacey, Sue and Melanie for driving and/or accompanying us to the Zoo. It is always a really fun, and informative trip.2. Thank you too, to the Atkinsons’ for hosting us last Tuesday. That was really a special visit (there, and to Scales Nature Park). Thank you, Cindy, Kathleen and Tracey for helping out with the trip. 3. We are rounding out the year – just ‘Mr. Men’ on Thursday (note to follow Monday), and cleanup and clear out of ‘stuff’.
Grade Three/Four – Mrs. Evans
1. Bike trip - I will let you know on Monday when we go on the bike trip. The weather will be the determining factor. So, we will either go on Wed. June 23 or Thurs. June 24. We'll leave at 12:00 and return by 3:15. If you would like to come along there is room for more.2. Math skills book should be returned, completed by Fri. June 25th. 3. One of our favourite times in class is morning devotions especially when we sing. I would love to end the year with you joining our class as we sing our way to dismissal time. (11:30-12:00, Fri. June 25) So, you are officially invited! P.S. If the students would bring some snacks, we will eat our way through them too. 4. Well done grade 3/4, your effort into writing and producing our grade 8 presentation was wonderful!!
Grade Five/Six – Mrs. Brown
1. Thank you to all the drivers who have volunteered to take the students on our trips. Thank you for your flexibility and helping the trip change to Base Lake go smoothly.2. There is a grade 5 French test on Tues. and a grade 6 Math test on Thurs. This will complete the Math curriculum for grade 6.
Grade Seven/Eight – Mrs. Veenstra/ Mr. Freeman
1. Grade 8's will meet at the school for a 6 am departure for Ottawa. Please note that 6 am is in the morning! A bag lunch for Monday is required.2. Grade 7 students will have classes on Monday through Wednesday with Mrs. Clark & Mrs. Heidman. Thursday will be the trip to the Science Fair and Friday morning the students will assist with the gym preparation for the Gr. 8 graduation. 3. Tennis on Tuesday. 4. Spelling test – Tuesday. |