NEW! Thank you - Thank you, thank you, thank you for everyone’s patience, humor, and generosity during last week’s heat wave! Our community really came together to make the week as comfortable as possible for our students…with teachers rearranging lesson plans and activities daily so they could move to cooler locations, parents and teachers donating an incredible amount of popsicles and waters, and even Mrs. Clarke spraying students with the hose! We are so grateful!
NEXT WEEK! Early Release - Here’s a reminder that Friday, September 22nd will be our first Early Release day of the year so that teachers may attend professional development. Upper campus students will be released at 11:30 AM and lower campus students will be released at Noon (Prek will release at 11:40 AM and Kdg at 11:45 AM). Nashua buses will be provided on the early release schedule. There will be NO After Care that day.
FORMS DUE THIS WEEK! Parent-Student Handbook - Our 2023-2024 Parent-Student Handbook has been posted on both the upper and lower campus websites and in the Family Portal:
- All families can find it in the Family Portal under the School - Resource Documents tab on the left side of the page.
- Lower campus parents can also find the handbook on the website HERE and upper campus parents can also find the handbook on the website HERE.
The handbook outlines important information about our school’s policies and procedures and is required reading for all families. Parents should review the handbook with their students and familiarize them with all applicable policies as soon as possible. Once you have completed this review, please print and complete the Signature Form located on page 54 and return it to school. Forms are due THIS FRIDAY, September 15. Thank you!
THIS WEEK! Lower Campus Parent Information Night - TOMORROW, September 14 at 6:30 PM in the church hall. After a brief introduction by school staff, parents will be able to visit their students’ classrooms, sign up for volunteering, and shop the Book Fair!
NEW! School Board News - Our Board of Limited Jurisdiction (School Board) is tasked with helping to guide the school's strategic vision, Catholic mission and identity, and financial stability. You can find out more about the Board on the website HERE. The page features short biographies of each of our Board members, as well as meeting minutes and a form for contacting the Board with questions.
Strategic Plan - Last year, the Board developed a five-year Strategic Plan for the Academy. Parents can view the plan by clicking HERE.
NEW! Nurse Notes and COVID Guidelines - Our school nurses, Mrs. Gloria Sheehan (at the lower campus) and Mrs. Laura Danielson (at the upper campus), would like to share important health news as we enter cold/flu season. Please click HERE to view the notes, including our current COVID guidelines.
NEW! Academy Spirit Shirts Ordering - Our Wildcat Spirit Shirt vendor, Maverick’s Stitch and Screen, is ready to take orders for short and long sleeve Wildcat Spirit shirts! These shirts are not part of the official daily uniform but may be worn on Spirit Days, on free dress days, to sports or other events, or whenever your student (or you!) want to show a little Saint Chris pride. Short sleeved shirts are $9.50 and long sleeved shirts are $12.95. Both are available in navy blue, white, and…new this year…Carolina blue!. Youth and adult sizes are available! Orders can be placed HERE through Wednesday, September 27. All shirts will be delivered to the school and distributed to students to be brought home. If your order is a surprise for your student, please email Marta at [email protected] and we will hold it for you to pick up.
Stay tuned…other spirit items will be added soon! We’ll let you know when they are ready for ordering!
NEW! Lower Campus CYO Basketball - Calling all basketball players in grades 3 - 6 to represent Saint Christopher Academy in the CYO Manchester League. The season will run November to March with one weekday practice (days TBD) and games on Saturdays in the Manchester area. Click HERE for more information and to fill out a form to indicate your interest. Contact Mrs. Tracy Beauregard with questions ([email protected]).
NEW! Cross Country Runners “Spike Night” hosted by Fleet Feet Sports - We are very excited to offer a “Spike Night” at Fleet Feet Sports here in Nashua this coming Friday night (9/15), from 5-7 PM. The store is offering 15% off for all Saint Chris runners from both the upper and lower campus. Their highly trained staff will create a 3D scan of your foot, and work with you to find the best shoe for your individual foot. More information can be found on the flyer HERE.
NEW! Pickleball Club Signups - Saint Christopher Academy is happy to once again offer our Pickleball club to upper campus students! Pickleball is a hybrid/combination between tennis and ping pong, and is now the fastest growing sport in the United States! The Pickleball Club is open to all students in grades 6-8, but there is a limit of 12 students. The club meets on Monday and Tuesday afternoons, starting this coming Tuesday, September 19 from 3-5 PM. There is a fee of $90 per student. For more information, and to sign up, please click HERE.
Upper Campus Girls Basketball Open Gym - All grade 6 to 8 upper campus girls are invited to participate in the drop-in open gym times on Saturday mornings, from 9:00 - 11:00 AM. These are not basketball team practices and are not required for students who would like to try out for the basketball team….They are simply time to get into the gym and shoot a few baskets! Students are welcome to attend some or all open gyms. Mr. Purcell will monitor the open gym sessions.
Upcoming School Masses - All parents are invited to attend our weekly school masses! Parents must enter through the front door of each campus facility, sign in, and receive a nametag to attend. All masses are at 9:45 AM on both campuses unless otherwise noted. The schedule for the next month is:
September 19 - Lower campus mass (grades PK - 2) - in Church Hall
September 27 - Upper campus mass
October 5 - Upper campus Eucharistic Adoration with Fr. Von @ 1:00
October 12 - Lower campus mass (grades 3-5) - in Church Hall
October 18 - Upper campus mass
October 19 - Lower campus Eucharistic Adoration - all day
October 25 - Lower campus mass (grades PK - 2) - in Church Hall
THIS WEEK! Hot Lunch Ordering - Ordering for the last week of September and all of October is now OPEN and will close on THIS Friday, September 15. Ordering for Hot Lunch is done through Boonli.com. Full instructions for ordering can be found HERE for the lower campus and HERE for the upper campus. Please be sure to read all instructions carefully!
Lower Campus Scholastic Book Fair is Underway! - Check out pictures of our Scholastic Book Fair here! The Scholastic Book Fair is open at the lower campus! We are so excited to start the year off with the Scholastic Book Fair to help support our lower campus library. Students are shopping at the Book Fair during their regular library time. Additional shopping opportunities include before classes begin from 8:30-8:50 AM, and during recess or lunchtime with their teacher's permission. Parents may also shop during the Open House on Thursday, September 14th. Please contact Mrs. Noon at [email protected] if you are interested in volunteering at the Book Fair.
Online Book Fair and eWallet - The online Scholastic Book Fair runs from September 5th - September 18th. Please take a look at our Book Fair website HERE for some shopping ideas and to purchase the eWallet. The eWallet gives students a secure, cash-free way to shop the Book Fair. There is no charge to set up an eWallet. You can simply create an account and authorize a spending limit on your credit card. There will be a record of the eWallets at the Book Fair in case your student does not have their eWallet in hand. For more information, visit the online book fair HERE to shop and to purchase your eWallet!
UPDATED! Hot Lunch Volunteering - We are still in need of many, many more Hot Lunch volunteers! If we are unable to find a minimum of three volunteers daily at the lower campus and two volunteers at the upper campus, we will be unable to provide Hot Lunch on the days that we are short staffed. Currently, we do not have enough volunteers every day except Friday at the lower campus. The upper campus needs volunteers on Tuesday and Thursday. Everyone is welcome to volunteer…we’ve had parents, alumni parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Hot Lunch is a great way to get to know other parents, to see what’s going on at the Academy, and to see your children and their friends. Volunteers serve lunch one day a month on the day of the week of your choice (although those who want to help out several days a month are always welcome!). Volunteer hours at the lower campus are approximately from 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM and 10:15 AM to 12:30 PM at the upper campus.
To volunteer at the lower campus, use the Sign-Up Genius HERE. To volunteer at the upper campus click HERE. Be sure to click through the tabs at the top of each Sign-Up Genius to view the teams and dates available for each day of the week!
Calendar Raffle Fundraiser – It’s Fall Calendar Raffle time again! We have some GREAT prizes again this year, including gift cards to fabulous stores and lots of CASH! Every family is asked to sell a minimum of 10 tickets at $10 per ticket. This is the first of our three major fundraisers, so we are really counting on your support! This year, our Academy goal is 4,000 tickets between the two campuses! We can do it! If your family are super sellers and in need of more tickets, please email Marta Nissen at [email protected]!
As in the past, for every 10 raffle tickets your family sells, you will earn one entry into a raffle for a $1,500 Tuition Credit or $1,000 Cash!
NEW! Our First Turn-In Day - THIS Friday, September 15, is our first incentive Turn-In Day….every student who brings in a ticket on Friday may wear Free Dress that day! Hooray!
Calendar Sales Incentives - Here’s our super student seller incentives for this year:
- Random Surprise Prizes – We’ll be picking random submitted tickets on random days…and the student seller for each of those random tickets wins a free dress pass. There’s no special schedule…it’s a surprise!
- Classroom contests –
- Top Selling Class across the Academy wins an ice cream sundae party with all the fixin’s!
- Top Selling Class on each campus wins a morning donut party (with coffee for the teacher!).
- Top Sellers - The three top sellers across the Academy win a Target gift card! (1st place - $25, 2nd place - $20, 3rd place - $15)
- Random School-Wide Turn-In Days - Keep an eye on your email…we may just throw out a few random days when any student who turns in a ticket gets a free dress!
St. Christopher Parish Women’s Fall Book Study: Women of the school and parish community are invited to a Women’s Fall Book Study on Monday evenings from 7:15 to 8:30 pm in the Pennell Center (the white building across the parking lot from the church) , starting September 25th. The group will discuss Boundaries by Cloud and Townsend to help us explore how to apply the God given gift of Boundaries in our lives so we can multiply our love for God and others while minimizing resentment, exhaustion and all the other feelings associated with a lack of healthy boundaries in our lives. Please note: The authors of this book are not Catholic, however, it is based on sound Biblical principles shared by Catholics and Protestants. Sign up at: https://tinyurl.com/StChrisBoundaries.
St. Christopher Parish Sacramental Prep -
- St. Christopher Parish Grade 2 Students! RECONCILIATION – Please register now for RECONCILIATION class this Fall 2023. Baptized students in Grade 2 and up who are St. Chris parishioners and who are seeking reconciliation should register for this class. Students and a parent attend 7-8 Sunday evening classes at the upper campu sduring our parish renovations as they prepare to receive this wonderful sacrament. We will learn about God’s love for all of us, His forgiveness when we go astray, the Ten Commandments and more. Registration forms for Sacrament Prep are available on the parish website at stchrisparisnh.org. Online registration and payment has been added for your convenience! Questions? Email: [email protected]
- St. Christopher Parish Grade 3 Students- CONFIRMATION – St. Chris parish students in grade 3 who received their Reconciliation last Fall may register for this CONFIRMATION class. This class meets on approximately 7-8 Sunday mornings. Families attend the 10:00 am Mass and then proceed to the upper campus (during parish renovations). Classes resume in the Church hall once our upper church is completed! Class will be from 11:30-12:30. Students and a parent participate together as they learn and prepare to receive both Confirmation and Eucharist in Spring 2024. Students registering for this class also register for First Eucharist, which runs from January to May 2024 .Sacrament prep registration can be done conveniently online from our website stchrisparishnh.org Questions? [email protected]
- St. Christopher Parish Confirmation for Grade 6 and up - Baptized students in grade 6 and up and a parent attend classes in January 2024 through April 2024, preparing to receive the sacrament of Confirmation. Students in this class should already have received Reconciliation and First Communion. Classes are 11 am to 12 noon after attending the 10:00 am Mass. Registration forms for Sacrament Prep are found at stchrisparishnh.org. Questions? [email protected]
COMMUNITY NEWS
Happy Hearts Day Care - Happy Hearts Daycare, located across the street from the lower campus at 12 Cushing Ave., has a few openings for extended care. The hours are 6:30 to 8:30 AM and 3:00 to 5:30 PM. They accommodate students on snow days, two hour delay, early release, no school days (except for the major holidays) and even if there is a power outage :) They also provide care on the Christmas, February and April vacation weeks. If interested, please call...603-321-9320.
NEW! Bishop Guertin Open Houses: Bishop Guertin High School will hold two upcoming Open Houses for prospective students and their families in October. The first will take place from October 15 from 1:00 - 3:00 pm and the second will take place on October 19 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm. Students and families will tour the building, meet faculty and staff, and discover the BG difference. Registration for the event can be completed HERE.
NEW! Nashua Nighthawks Basketball: Registration is open for the 2023-2024 travel basketball season for grades 3-8, see the below registration link. The Nashua Nighthawks travel league provides boys and girls with an opportunity to participate in a competitive basketball league in the Merrimack Valley area (MA and NH). The practices and games do not conflict with middle school sports activities. For boys, you must reside in the city of Nashua. For girls, you must attend school in Nashua. Click HERE for more information.
NEW! Parish of the Resurrection Time for Tots Program - The Parish of the Resurrection invites moms, dads, grandparents, and day care providers with toddlers to attend the weekly Time for Tots program at the parish. For more information, click HERE for more information.
THIS WEEKEND! Egyptian Food Festival - Join our friends at St. Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Church this weekend, September 15 to 17, for some delicious food, music, and fun at the Egyptian Food Festival. Hours are Friday 4:00 - 9:00 PM, Saturday from 11:00 AM - 8:00 PM, and Sunday from 12:00 - 6:00 PM. Less than a mile from Saint Christopher, at 39 Chandler Street (formerly Saint Francis Xavier parish).
National Charity League - National Charity League is a mother/daughter organization that helps encourage leadership and community service. No money is raised or exchanged - we give our time and teach young women to become leaders in their communities by getting involved. In the Southern New Hampshire chapter, we donate our attention to Our Promise to Nicholas, Special Olympics of NH, Mt. Carmel, Alzheimer’s Association, JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes), Animal Rescue League of NH, Bedford Community Food Pantry, Caregivers, Furled by Kids, and Families in Transition. We practice philanthropy, the active effort to promote human welfare. We teach leadership and encourage culture through tradition and core values.
If you have a daughter entering 7th to 9th grade and you want more information, please call Carrie Ayers at 301-755-4448 or email her at [email protected].
Immaculate Conception Parish Sacramental Prep - Registration for preparation for First Reconciliation at Immaculate Conception Parish in Nashua, to be held in October 2023, is now open and must be in by Thursday, September 21. Registration for the Sacraments of Confirmation & First Eucharist, to be held in the spring, needs to be received by January 1st, 2024. For more information, and to determine if your child is eligible to receive a Sacrament, and to register, please visit iccnashuanh.org/prek-8.
THIS WEEKEND! Thank You Project Water Walk - The Thank You Project’s mission is to bring a clean and reliable source of water to communities of Achi and Ututu in rural Nigeria. Members of these communities are forced to walk miles every single day to get unsanitary water. We have begun our sixth water well in Nigeria (at a cost of $30,000 each) and also are providing one college scholarship per year ($2,000/ student) to those who cannot afford to go to college in Nigeria. Go to www. thankkyouoproject.org to see our progress. If you or a group from your congregation would like to get involved, please register at www.thankyouproject.org and submit pledges by filling out the registration form. Donations are accepted by using PayPal, Venmo, or by mail (PO Box 23, Nashua, NH 03061)