The Patriot Report – June 05

EXHAUSTION AT THE END OF A JOURNEY

In 2008 my wife and I completed the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage. We walked 750 kms over a period of 30 days in the heat of the summer. There are countless life lessons that I continue to draw upon to this day as a result of that experience. Every June I am reminded of what it was like to be 100 kms away from Santiago.

After walking for 26 days, we desperately wanted to reach Santiago. It was the only thing on our mind. We were tired. Our feet hurt. At various times my wife and I would be tempted to give in and just take a bus to Santiago and be done with the whole walking thing. Such are the temptations when the journey is long. But we did not take a bus. We kept on walking and each day we moved closer to Santiago until one day we found ourselves in front of the cathedral, Santiago de Compostela. We had arrived. 

As I reflect now on what allowed us to overcome the temptation to give up and keep moving forward, I am struck by how often we drew upon each other, other pilgrims, and our faith. For example, one day, after walking over 20kms with a loonie sized blister, I sat down on a bench and told Carla I was done. I told her I was not going to move anymore. So she sat beside me. After 30 minutes of sitting, another pilgrim came by and put their backpack down by the old stone building behind us (built in the 1200s). He then asked us if we were planning to stay the night in the building as well. Unwittingly, we had stopped at an Italian rest station for pilgrims run by former pilgrims. That night, we were tended to and cared for by what some pilgrims call Camino Saints. There was a grand feast of pasta and wine, a foot washing ceremony, and first aid. A no-nonsense-tough-as-nails Italian woman came up to me and fixed up my foot while also telling me to toughen up and keep going! The next day, we kept moving forward towards Santiago. 

I hope the above story might shed some insight on our current times. First, we are near the end of the school year and many are counting the days until summer break much like we longed to reach Santiago. Second, we may feel at times like throwing up our hands and giving up on remote learning similar to Carla and I wanting to give up on walking. Three, we can be there to support each other. When I felt like quitting, Carla sat with me on the bench. She listened and she was present. There was no anger or hostility or judgment. Might we do the same for each other? Four, we can offer support and encouragement to strangers or to others outside of our immediate family. Our Italian hosts did not know us. We were only there for one night. But they treated us like family. The cooked for us and they cared for our ailments. Might we too look to connect with neighbors and others in our school community and perhaps offer help and support to them? Fifth, I accepted the help that came my way. Sometimes, we are too proud to ask for help or we fear others may judge. The Camino taught me to accept the help of others. If you are struggling with current life situations, I encourage you to ask for help and to accept help when it comes your way. Lastly, God’s divine providence is real. I do not know what provoked me to pick that particular bench but perhaps it was the Holy Spirit’s work. Perhaps it was God saying, “Chris I got you. Have a rest here. Just wait and see. Tomorrow will be better.” Trust in God’s loving care. 

I look forward to sharing these final weeks of the 2019-20 School Year with you.  

Our St. Jude Staff picture is clear for next year. We say goodbye to some familiar faces and hello to new ones. There will be a more formal goodbye to our retiring staff and to those not returning in a separate document closer to the end of the school year. However, I want to provide parents with our staffing for 2020-21:

Kindergarten: Mrs. Sue Ann Wong and Mrs. Sharon Stanley

Gr. 1: Miss Jessica Glinsbockel

Gr. 2: Miss Lauren Handy

Gr. 3: Mr. Lukas Fitz

Gr. 4: Mrs. Sonia DiFonzo

Gr. 5: Mrs. Angela Chao

Gr. 6: Ms. Rita Corea

Gr. 7: Mr. Erwin Mow

Learning Resources Coordinator: Miss Carolyn Smillie

Learning Resources Teacher and Music Teacher: Mrs. Dolores Collins

Educational Assistants: Ms. Judy Losna, Ms. Alison Hannah, Mrs. Lucy Spada, Mrs. Stephanie Mudrovcic, Mrs. Tessie Landigan, Mrs. Nana Rubina, Mrs. Rosella Pimentel, Mrs. Tess Hombrebueno, Mrs. Antonella Cannova, Mrs. Shannon McKenzie

Physical Education: Mr. Angelo Campanile

Patriots Club: Miss Mariah Pimentel

Office Manager: Ms. Irene Goh

Bookkeeper: Mrs. Aurora Gumban

Maintenance: Mr. Rendy Dacua

Cleaning: Briarwood Enterprises Ltd.

Principal: Mr. Chris van der Pauw 

Please click on the appropriate class to get your supply list for next school year.  Orders are placed with School Start and will be delivered directly to our school. 

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Kindergarten

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 1

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 2

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 3

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 4

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 5

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 6

St. Jude’s Elementary School – Grade 7

Cambridge Uniform has extended their “Save on the GST” discount until June 15.  They will guarantee uniform delivery prior to the start of the school year for all orders placed by June 15th.  

Check out www.cambridgeuniforms.com

St. Jude online school code is: TPA859

Returning clients: https://www.cambridgeuniforms.com/account/login

New clients: https://www.cambridgeuniforms.com/account/register

There has been a great response from the online Zoom fittings for families who require assistance with reading size charts, navigating the website and confirming their sizes.  Book an online fitting here: https://www.cambridgeuniforms.com/pages/book-an-online-fitting

The voluntary in person instruction continues with children of Essential Workers coming in 5 days a week.  Children in Kindergarten to Grades 5 are able to come Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Children in Grades 6 are attending Tuesdays and Grades 7 are attending Thursdays. 

Should you wish for your child to attend school in person, please email the office, so that seating arrangements can be made.  

We will be withdrawing the activity fees and re-registration fees on July 1, 2020. We will be withdrawing tuition (lump sum and first month of September), on August 1, 2020. 

Families must communicate with Richelle Akol, our PEC Chairperson (echairperson@stjude.ca), and Chris van der Pauw, our Principal (cvanderpauw@stjude.ca) if you need Tuition Assistance.