Dear Families of St

Dear Families of St. Sylvester School, 5.17.2016

First Communion and the Marian Month of May

A beautiful First Communion Mass was celebrated this past Saturday and we are very happy for the St. Sylvester students who received the Eucharist for the first time. Thank you to Ms. Kendall for leading the classes and preparing the students for that special day.

May is a Marian month in the Church, a time to honor Mary, the mother of God. We do that in school in several ways. A living rosary was held yesterday and the 1st and 8th grade buddies helped lead the school in praying a full rosary. May Crownings are another Catholic tradition.

Most first communicants are in 3rd grade and so it is our custom to have all of the 3rd graders participate in our own May Crowning. There will be one this Friday near the end of our Ribbon Mass and another during the 11:30 Family Mass on May 22.

Walk-a-thon – Last Official Fundraiser

The walk-a-thon will take place tomorrow, weather permitting. It is our last official fundraiser of the school year. During the walk-a-thon, students walk or run laps around a portion of Palmer Park and submit pledges. The rain date is Thursday this week. Please contact the office if you have any other questions. All students should wear their gym uniforms tomorrow. All signed up volunteers should be here from 8:00-10:30.

Running Group – Saturday, May 21

All are invited to join in with a fun run that is set for Saturday, May 21. The group will meet at 10:00 in front of school and run for about two hours. The group plans to run through and explore Humboldt Park. It is a fun run so there is a relaxed pace with a lot of stops and starts. The group will talk about special areas/history inside Humboldt Park and close it out with trivia and treats.

The run is sponsored by Windy City Adventure Boot Camp. This fitness camp is led by Carmen Buffington, a certified trainer and mother of a St. Sylvester Preschooler. We are grateful for the support, and we encourage you to learn more about all the benefits of this boot camp at

Summer Math Tutoring

We have set up a potential math tutoring program for this coming summer. If there is enough solid interest amongst students in grades 3-7, we will hold it. Please email Mr. Bennett or your child’s math teacher directly to let us know if you are interested in participating. Assuming interest is strong enough, I will confirm the program, dates, and times in one of the upcoming Tuesday letters.

8th Grade Class

We have begun the final countdown for the current 8th grade class. While the days are few, there are a large number of activities planned for our graduating students including a junior high party, their autograph book sessions, the Ribbon Mass, the class trip, the graduation Mass, the class breakfast, and the final graduation ceremony. The graduation ceremonies (Mass 8:30 a.m. and ceremony 7:00 p.m.) both take place in the church on the 27th and are open to all guests.

This class of 2016 is a very spirited group with a great list of individual and class accomplishments. Their teachers, classmates, and I will be sad to see them go.

Volunteer Opportunity

There will be a concert in the church during the afternoon of Sunday, May 22. There is a need for volunteers and any service there will count towards a family’s outstanding volunteer hour balance. Volunteers must be signed up with our office by Friday if they plan to attend as all other attendees will have to pay the concert entrance fee. There are three time slots for which volunteers are needed: 2:30-3:30 p.m. in the church; 5:30-6:30 p.m. in the church; and finally 8:00-9:00 p.m. in the gym. Please sign up in the binder or contact the front office to be signed up.

Field Day – Saturday, May 14

Thank you to Mrs. Mazon, Mr. Franky Perez, and the dozen students who came out for Saturday’s Youth Sports Alliance Field Day. It was a cold and blustery day but our students shared that they had a lot of fun competing in the various games that were held in conjunction with the YSA and the Big Ten conference. Congratulations go to 6th grader Joshua Rodgers who took home the individual spirit award.

Boys & Girls Club

We are including a promotional flyer from the Boys & Girls Club in today’s folder that describes some of the opportunities available through the club for students in grades 1-8.