Kobza's Komments

It’s hard to believe that we have reached December, Advent, and a new liturgical year.  December is a short month that is packed full of activities.  We can get caught up in the craziness and commercialism that is Christmas. It always amazes me to walk into stores on November 1 and see the Christmas section going up as the Halloween section is being taken down. Advent is supposed to be a time of quiet, joyful preparation for the celebration of Jesus’ birth. As I am writing this, I am looking forward to starting my preparations by attending the Women’s Advent Retreat at St. Martha’s Church this weekend. This is my third year attending and am looking forward to the fellowship of women from Lethbridge and surrounding areas, the fabulous food, and time to experience and reflect on the theme: Spending TIME with Jesus. If you have not attended the retreat before, I invite you to think about attending next year.

As for the school preparations, we are going to be celebrating the theme of Walking Together through Advent.  Each weekly celebration will focus on Hope, Peace, or Love. We are working on a social justice program to raise awareness about cancer and to support cancer research through donations. Students are able to donate at the weekly advent celebration.  Our grade 9 students are doing morning prayer during Advent and will be creating prayers that reflect our theme. When you are in the gathering space look for the bulletin board display that will be put together that will illustrate how we are Walking Together through Advent.  We are going to be adding to this bulletin board throughout the year.

We have a couple of special events going on in December that I hope to see you at so please mark them down in your calendars.  Our school celebration this year is Christmas at the Fort.  It is on December 11 and runs from 5:30 – 7:30. This event is for the entire school and includes activities, such as, cookie decorating, making snowflakes, going on hay rides, learning about First Nations culture, caroling by the fire, and enjoying a cup of hot cocoa. The next school event takes place on Sunday December 14 at 4:00.  We are working with the Hurricanes to have a School Rocks Night. There are 14 other schools in Lethbridge participating and we are hoping to sell as many tickets as possible so we can fill a section full of red and black Hawkwear. This event is not only build community but also acts as a fundraiser for us as we receive money from the Hurricanes for every ticket sold. Money raised from this will go to meet our fundraiser target for school activities and clubs. Finally, we invite you to come into the school on the last day as the staff serves hot chocolate and candy canes to parents and students. It has become one of my favorite traditions here at the school.