A Message from Mrs. Perrault, Principal
Dear Families,
Last Thursday we kicked off Martyr Marathon and as I'm sure you have all heard, this year we will Party Like It's 1992! As I reflect on our 30th Anniversary and the wonderful tradition of the Martyr Marathon, I become profoundly humbled by the legacy we've inherited. I’m also inspired by the duty bestowed upon us to continue living our mission each day, ensuring our school reaches its 60th Anniversary, and most importantly that every student that walks through our doors feels and knows Christ's love for them.
Never is the joy of community as strong at St. Stephen the Martyr as it is on the day of Martyr Marathon. I'm so excited for our new students and families to experience the event and can't wait to see what new memories will be made with our current students. The funds raised from this event go directly to our school operating budget and impact every single student, teacher, and staff member within our walls. I want to thank you in advance for helping us reach our all-school goal of $65,000. There are lots more Martyr Messenger details included below, so please be sure to continue reading.
I thank God daily for the blessing of serving you and your children. Please know of my continued prayers for each of you.
United in Christ,
Mrs. Perrault
In this issue of Martyr Messenger:
- Admin Updates: Curriculum Night Details, Upcoming Evacuation Drill, First Martyr Monday, Emergency Contact Info Needed, Before & After School Supervision, Medications During School Hours
- Home & School Updates: Martyr Marathon, Save the Dates for the Fall Family Frolic & Adult Social, 21-22 Yearbooks, Be the Light Life Chain
- Parish Updates: Pastoral Conference '22, Iron Sharpens Iron, Martyr Mission Volunteers Needed, Welcome., RCIA, Beloved: A Women's Group, Bible & Book Studies
- Community Updates: Archbishop's Dinner for Education, Upcoming Events at Duchesne Academy, Skutt Catholic Presents...Footloose!
Administration Updates
Curriculum Night
Curriculum night is a great opportunity for you to learn about your child’s curriculum, daily schedules, and yearly events. This night is informative, and it is not meant to be a question and answer session because of the limited time. You are encouraged to take notes and jot down any questions you may have and then contact the teacher(s). Conferences will be held in October giving you an opportunity to visit with teachers about your student progress, concerns, etc. We have organized this school event with three different time slots so if you have more than one child, you have an opportunity to attend the sessions that align with your children. This event is for parents/guardians only. Students do not attend.
Grade TK-6th Grade (meeting locations listed below)
- Session One: 5:45 - 6:05 PM
- Session Two: 6:15 - 6:35 PM
- Session Three: 6:45 - 7:05 PM
Grades 7th & 8th Grade (all parents/guardians will meet in the Dining Room)
- Session One: 5:45 - 6:10 PM
- Session Two: 6:15 - 6:40 PM
- Session Three: 6:45 - 7:10 PM
Please feel free to stop in the Library where our “specials” teachers will be located if you wish to learn more about your child’s “specials” classes.
Meeting Locations:
- Transitional Kindergarten: South Portable
- Kindergarten Classes:
- KA Mrs. Hoff- room 102
- KB Mrs. Van Gerpen room 101
- KC Mrs. Rezac room 120
- First Grade Classes:
- 1A Mrs. Fitch room 109
- 1B Mrs. Christiansen room 108
- 1C Mrs. Keller room 105
- Second Grade Classes:
- 2A Mrs. Gill room 118
- 2B Mrs. O’Leary room 119
- 2C Mrs. Schweers room 117
- Third Grade Classes:
- 3A Mrs. Mancilla room 220
- 3B Mrs. Vamosi room 113
- 3C Mrs. Niehaus room 219
- Fourth Grade:
- All parents/guardians will meet in Mrs. Haack’s room 202
- Fifth Grade:
- All parents/guardians will meet in Miss Freeman's room 218
- Sixth Grade:
- All parents/guardians will meet in Mrs. Pestel’s room 210
- Seventh & Eighth Grade:
- All parents/guardians will meet in the Dining Room
Upcoming Evacuation Drill
As part of our commitment to emergency preparedness, we will complete an Evacuation Drill on Monday at 9 AM. All students, preschool-8th grade, will participate if they are on campus during the designated time. If you have questions, please contact Mrs. Perrault or Mr. Verraneault.
Evacuation Drill - Monday, September, 12th at 9 AM
- Evacuation drills are practiced for an emergency situation (i.e. a gas leak) when students and staff need to leave the St. Stephen campus.
- Our evacuation location is YMCA - Armbrust.
- Our evacuation route is down the south drive, west on 'V' street to the crosswalk to cross 168th street; north on 168th street sidewalk to the YMCA.
- For the drill, we will practice our evacuation route but will stop prior to crossing 168th street.
First Martyr Monday - September 12th
We are excited to kick off Martyr Mondays next week and can't wait to see everyone's school spirit! Students can wear a “spirit” sweatshirt/T-shirt purchased through the 8th-grade fundraiser or another approved SSM spirit top (including Martyr Marathon t-shirts, SSM sports camps/team shirts/jerseys, VBS shirts, etc.). Students will wear uniform bottoms, socks and shoes.
Emergency Contact Info Needed
Several families only have two parents/guardians listed as Emergency Contacts in their FACTS Family Portal. We request each student have at minimum four Emergency Contacts on file (this number includes parents/guardians). Please take time to follow the below steps to add additional Emergency Contacts for your student(s). To login into FACTS:
- Go to: https://logins2.renweb.com/logins/ParentsWeb-Login.aspx (this page is linked from our 'Parents' webpage: school.stephen.org/parents)
- Enter our District Code: SSC-NE
- Enter your User Name & Password (you set this up at the time of enrollment; use the “forgot user name/password” link if you need to recover either item)
- Once logged in, add Emergency Contacts by following these steps:
- Click "Family" from the sidebar
- Then click "Family Home"
- Then select "Family Demographic Form"
- Then click the "Emergency Contacts" button next to your student's name.
- Add additional Emergency Contacts for each student you have enrolled. We request four emergency contacts. This number includes parents/guardians (i.e. Mom, Dad & 2 others).
- Click "Save" at the bottom left side of the form.
- Note: To see the "Save" button, you must scroll past the "Emergency Contact 20" fields.
Before and After School Supervision
Please review our Before and After School Supervision policy below. This is included in the Family Handbook (page 24).
"Our school doors open at 7:50 a.m. Students are expected to leave the school grounds by 3:30 p.m. Supervision is not provided before and after school, however; teachers are on door duty before and after school beginning at 7:50 a.m. The children are expected to keep off the grass before and after school. Children should go home/to their ride or carpool upon school dismissal. Students electing to walk to the YMCA across 168th Street after dismissal must cross at designated crosswalks for their safety.
In the event a child is not picked up by 3:30 p.m., he/she will be taken to the Office and asked to contact a parent by phone. If no parent arrives before 3:45, the student will be placed in KidZone (before and after school care program). Families will be charged a special drop-in rate for such instances."
Medication During School Hours
If a child needs to take over-the-counter medication (Ibuprofen, acetaminophen, etc.) during the school day, a written, signed, and dated school medication form must be completed by the child's parent/guardian. Please complete the below form and send it to school with any medication you would like to keep here.
Home and School Updates
Martyr Marathon Fundraising is Underway!
Martyr Marathon is our school’s largest fundraiser of the year. Students earn money for the school by walking the marathon route and are encouraged to collect pledges from family, friends, neighbors, or businesses to support their effort. Donors then pledge a flat donation in support of our school. We use a web-based fundraising system, PledgeStar, that makes it easy for students to request pledges from their family and friends, and for donors to make secure, credit card donations online. It's fun, it's easy and people who use it typically raise twice as much as those who don't!
Get all Martyr Marathon fundraising and event details on our website and don't forget to join our Martyr Marathon Facebook group for daily blitz prizes now through Martyr Marathon!
Be The Light Service Activity: Life Chain
All St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic School students, families, teachers, and staff are invited to join Home & School's Be the Light service committee at our 2nd Annual gathering for Life Chain!
We will join thousands of people across the country as we stand together as a church, school, and community to pray for life on Respect Life Sunday, October 2nd. Show your prayerful witness and join us! Click the below button for more details and to sign up.
Fall Family Frolic: Save the Date - October 10th
2021-2022 Yearbooks
Last year's yearbooks are in and have been sent home. If you have not received your copy, reach out to Jenny Escobar at jenescobar@outlook.com.
Wishing you would have ordered one and didn't?! You're in luck. We have a few extras we would love to sell YOU. Send your request to Jenny at jenescobar@outlook.com. Quantities are limited!
Save the Date: Friday, October 21st - Adult Social
Mark your calendars for a night out at Thunderhead Brewery on Friday, October 21st. This adult-only event will be a great way to get to know other school parents and guardians in a fun, relaxed evening! More details will be shared in the weeks to come.
Parish Updates
Join us on Oct. 1st for Pastoral Conference '22!
All St. Stephen the Martyr parishioners are invited to attend Pastoral Conference ‘22! Join us in the Dining Room on Saturday, Oct. 1st. Breakfast will be served at 8:30 AM and we will join the conference as a remote-site beginning at 9 AM.
Pastoral Conference '22 will provide context to the Archbishop's Vision & Priorities, the Big Goal, and the 4 Habits of a Disciple: Prayer, Compassion, Friendship, and Invitation. It also will evoke a desire to respond as a community to the call to be missional.
Iron Sharpens Iron - Kick-Off Meeting on Sept. 16
Committee Chairs Needed for Martyr Mission 2023!
Planning is underway for our church's dinner and auction (Martyr Mission). We still have three volunteer leadership positions to fill in the areas of:
- Decorations
- Auction Assembly
- Food and Drink
We have detailed descriptions of the roles, planning guides, great co-chairs & parish staff leading the event so you wouldn't be doing any of this work on your own!
If you're interested, please reach out to Catiana Urrutia at (402) 861-4541 or by email at c.urrutia@stephen.org.
Welcome. Retreats:
Registration Open!
Are you ready to open the door?
Introducing...
This new group will join together women of St. Stephen the Martyr to grow closer to Jesus. Women of all ages are encouraged to join us!
We will meet monthly in the GPC from 6-7 AM on the following dates:
- Oct. 6, Nov. 3
- Dec. 1, Jan. 12, Feb. 2
- Mar. 2, Apr. 6, May 4
Please grab some friends and join us for fellowship, prayer, and growing together as women of the parish.
For more information, contact a.ybarra@stephen.org.
Upcoming Bible & Book Studies
There are several Bible & Book Studies happening at St. Stephen the Martyr this fall! Explore all the opportunities to grow closer to Christ on our website at stephen.org/bible-and-book-studies.
Community Updates
The Archbishop's Dinner for Education is only two weeks away!
September 22, 6-9 PM, CHI Health Center
This month, we will celebrate all that Catholic education has to offer our K-12 students. Each year, the Archbishop’s Dinner for Education provides tuition assistance for nearly 300 elementary students. In 2021, the Archbishop’s Dinner for Education was also able to raise enough funding to send 27 students on to a Catholic high school, with four-year renewable scholarships. Academic success is one of many defining outcomes of Catholic education. This success can be seen in the test results, graduation rates, and matriculation to post-secondary educational opportunities. Low-income students enrolled in under-served Catholic high schools have a 92% or higher graduation rate. View the invitation here.
Upcoming Events at Duchesne Academy
- Heart for Art for 8th Grade Girls, Saturday, Oct. 1, 10:00 AM - Noon
- You are invited to join faculty members of Duchesne’s art department and work with different art mediums. Students will get to create hands on art as well as be exposed to music via drums and song. You will have fun learning new techniques, meeting new friends and creating in a supportive environment! A $35 fee includes fun, food, a t-shirt and works of art to take home! Space is limited, register today!
- Register: https://www.duchesneacademy.org/apps/pages/event-registration
- Harvest Party for 8th Grade Girls, Friday, Oct. 28, 7:30-10 PM
- Come celebrate fall on Duchesne's campus with hayrack rides, a photo booth, spooky tours of the school and of course, a caramel apple bar! Please use the student parking lot (36th and California Street) for drop-off and pick up and enter via the Performing Arts Entrance. A $35 fee includes food, fun activities, prizes and a t-shirt!
- Register: https://www.duchesneacademy.org/apps/pages/event-registration
- Open House for 5th-8th Grade Girls, Sunday, Nov. 6, 10:30 AM - 1 PM
- This is a true open house. No registration is required!
Skutt Catholic High School Presents...
Join Skutt Catholic High School for a night of great music, dancing, and singing! Performances are Thursday, Sept, 22, Saturday, Sept 24, Sunday, Sept. 25, Friday, Sept. 30, Saturday, Oct 1, and Sunday, Oct 2. Sunday shows are at 2 PM. All other shows are at 7:30 pm. Tickets are available at the door (cash or check) or here. Adults: $10 and Students K-12: $8.
Important Upcoming Dates
- September 12
- First Martyr Monday: Students may wear Spirit Wear Tops & Uniform Bottoms
- Evacuation Drill, 9 AM
- September 15: Curriculum Night
- September 21: 2 PM Dismissal (Staff Meeting)
- 1:50 PM Kidzone and TK Dismissal
- 2:00 PM K-8 Dismissal
- On 2 PM Dismissal Days, Preschool & PreK classes will meet as follows:
- Morning Classes: 7:50-10:15 a.m.
- Afternoon Classes: 11:30 a.m.-1:45 p.m.
- September 23:
- Martyr Marathon
- Noon Dismissal
- Progress Reports
- September 24-25: 8th Grade Confirmation Retreats
- October 1: Pastoral Conference '22
- October 2: Be the Light Life Chain
- October 7: No School (Teacher Professional Development)
- October 10:
- No School (Teacher Professional Development)
- Fall Family Frolic at Vala's
- No School (Teacher Professional Development)
- October 11: Classes Resume