Dear Parents,

Thank you to all who came to the Back to School Night last Thursday. We had a great turnout, and it was so good to see so many come to see what is going on in your child's classroom. If you did not come and did not get a new School Directory, please come by the school office and we will give you one.

You should have all received a letter this past week informing our school community that our seventh grade teacher and athletic director, Bob Hauch, has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer. While we are all confident of a positive outcome, the road ahead for Bob Hauch and our school family will be a challenge. I ask for your prayers for Mr. Hauch and the school community as we put our trust and faith in a merciful and loving God. Many of you have already reached out to Bob, and I know he appreciates your continued support. We will keep you all informed as more specific needs arise. This is a time when we can come together as a family and community to help our brother in Christ! Again, we will keep you informed of Bob's progress as well as any adjustments to our staffing or athletic scheduling that may result from his possible absence.

I want to thank you all once again for your support of our new uniform dress code. The students look great and I have heard much positive feedback on the results. I do need to remind you that logos on clothing is not allowed, and this also means that students may not cover a logo with tape, patches, jewelry, or anything else. If it can be removed without damaging the fabric, that is acceptable.

The new Parish Hall (gymnasium) floor will be installed next week, and it should be completed by Tuesday, September 26.

1. Sunday School: Sunday School for all ages begins this Sunday at 9:30 AM. Hope to see you all there!
2. Annual 8th grade Gift Wrap Sale: Remember to look over your gift wrap catalog which went home last week. If you need another stop by the school office. Please complete the order form and return to your child's class with your check payable to St. John's Lutheran School no later than Monday, September 25th. All items should be delivered by the Thanksgiving Break. This is the 8th grade's major fundraiser. Let's all try to support this class.
3. Get On Track: Sponsor sheets and T-shirt order forms were sent out today! The students will receive a FREE hat and T-shirt for participating. You may buy additional hats and shirts for only $10.00 for Adult T-shirts, $8.00 for hats and $16.00 for Women's Cut T-Shirts. It is very important to return the T-shirt order form no later than Friday, September 22nd, so we have them in time for the event. Even if you are not going to purchase additional items we need one form for each student so we order the correct sizes for the kids. Today also starts our poster contest. Entries are due by September 22nd and there will be some great prizes for the winners. Poster board is available in the School Office. See the attached flyer for details. Let's start getting some pledges for our school and our deserving class charities!
4. Otter Pop Sale: The Cub Scout Pack 183 from St. John's will be selling Otter Pops after school to raise money for some of their upcoming events. They will be selling them at the hot lunch window for 25 cents each. Please try to bring quarters! We will sell them starting Monday, September 11th and continue for the next few weeks. We will not sell them on days when there are home volleyball games. Thank your for your support!
5. Health Alert: As with every year, the start of school brings many pesky germs. We have had students out with step throat and the flu. Please remind your children to wash their hands often and not to share drinks, spoons, straws, etc. If your child is complaining of a severe sore throat, it may be wise to have their doctor check for strep.
6. Harvest Event: Hello everyone, I am holding another meeting for the Harvest Event on Tuesday, September 19th, at 8:45 AM. Place to be announced.
   
   We are in need of people to run Wheel of Fortune, Golf Putt/wine games, help collect donations that have been promised and to help solicit more donations at various Napa locations with me on Thursdays or Fridays 2 hours only generally a.m. after coffee. On Friday the 15th of Sept. we are going to meet at Peets coffee 9am and solicit Bel Aire Plaza. I could use a couple more to join us. We also need people to help with take down at the event, registration and we need eight resturants to add to the four we have for our 12 resturant package. We need help with cashering, check out, and registration. We need someone to help create a Wine Spectator table (see Nancy for details). We need people to help put bid sheets and items together and decorate packaging for event evening. We need someone to help with the Sip and Sparkle game too(see Nancy for details).
7. St. John's Lutheran Church Commemorative Ornament: St. John's Church is celebrating its 100th Anniversary in 2007 and will be publishing a Commemorative Book next year. In order to help defray the cost of the book, we are presently selling a commemorative gold-plated brass ornament with an etching of the church. The ornaments are available for $15 in the School or Church Offices. There are a limited number of ornaments available, and when they're gone, they're gone. We will not be re-ordering. See Cindy Zeller or Christy Kramer to purchase yours today.
8. The Scoop From Scrip: Plenty of Lands' End Scrip available to purchase those items you have been waiting to purchase. Lands' End has lots of items available besides uniforms. Gift cards work great online.
   
   Compadre's Scrip is back in stock, now in denominations of $20.00, and we receive 20% of all sales!
   
   Scrip is available to everyone Monday through Friday in the School Office. You can also call in your order to 226-7970 or fax it to 226-7974.
9. From the Minister to Youth and Children:
   
   7th and 8th Grade Ministry: If you are involved in Confirmation this year, don't forget that we meet this Wednesday, September 20th, for our Learning Event. Because the gym floor is being replaced, we will be meeting in the church from 6:30-8:30 pm. Bring your Bibles, Catechism and binders. Any questions, contact your adult guide. And don't forget that the Confirmation Retreat happens September 29-October 1, 2006.
   
   Don't forget to join us next Friday, September 22nd. We will be meeting to watch a movie called, "The Moment of Truth: Take a Stand." It's a funny movie about extreme sports that I'm sure you will enjoy. If you have seen the video, "Extreme Days" and liked it, you will want to be sure and see, "The Moment of Truth!" We'll also be showing some of the video and pictures from our Jr. High District Youth Gathering that happened this past summer. We meet in Room 10 from 7-9 pm so come on down and enjoy the movie!
   
   There is still some room left on the Jr. High Youth Quake! If you want to go, just get a non-refundable deposit of $35 to Steve before the end of the day on Monday, September 25th. The Quake happens on November 10-12, 2006. Any questions, please contact Steve at 255-7451 or at steve@stjohnslutheran.net