Dragon Notes 5.23.25
What a wonderful Party on the Point (in the Park) to wind up the year! Thank you to everyone who came out, brought games and sides, and played their hearts out. Special thanks to Mr. Mark and his band whose music made the night truly special! For anyone keeping count (as I was) we collectively ate 194 hotdogs and for the statisticians out there, ketchup was a much more popular topping than mustard, and both were more popular than relish. Please don’t tell anyone from Chicago.
I wanted to take this last regular weekly communication of 2425 to reflect a little about my first year here at St. Michael’s. It has been a joy to become part of this wonderful community, to see the School and the Church coming closer together, and to experience so much learning and growth from students. Last year, as I went through the interview process, people kept saying to me “there’s just something different about St. Michael’s. You can feel it when you walk into the building.” They spoke to me of how kind and helpful the students were, how inclusive, how curious and thoughtful. At first, I took it with a grain of salt – people were just engaging in the hard sell, and how could that really be true? – but as I’ve gone through this year, I’ve seen that it is true, that these children really are something special, and the way that they are willing to help each other out is nothing short of magical. Thank you for sharing your marvelous small people with me. It has been a delight.
I also appreciate this community’s flexibility. We have had a number of challenges this year; it seems like the Spring has been full of hard things. But in each instance, we have persevered; we have banded together and moved forward. We have supported each other and worked together. When so many of us came out of the basement last Friday to the schocking scene on Wydown, it was heartening to see how so many people’s first response was to help: to offer rides to get children home, to open their homes to people who were stranded, to move tree trunks with their bare hands to try to get cars out. The elementary children donned gloves and began cleanup efforts on the playground. When things got hard, we figured out a new path forward. Thank you all for being, in the words of Mr. Rogers, helpers we can look to when things get difficult.
I also wanted to take a moment to appreciate the phenomenal generosity of our community. Between the two major fundraising events (Trick or Trivia and Forest Park Adventure), Giving Tuesday, and end-of-year giving, we raised 107,692.95! This does not include two ongoing opportunities – The Bonnie Howard Memorial Library and Caring for Our Teachers. This fundraising supports vital activities at the school, purchasing materials and technology to help our students succeed. Thank you for your care for our community and your generosity.
Now for some nuts and bolts: power has been restored to the building. We are assessing other systems now that we have power. My hope is to invite families in to pick up belongings (and summer homework for returning elementary students!) on Thursday, May 29. I will update and confirm once cleanup efforts have made it possible to park near the building.
For now – welcome to summer! Be sure to read and bike and swim and have a wonderful time with family and friends!
Warmly,
Beth
