Saints Peter and Paul School Newsletter

Fall is certainly here as

the air is cooler and the leaves

have started to change color.

We have all settled back into

our daily routines at school. As

we look around us every day

we truly have many things to

be thankful for. The children

that we are blessed to work

with everyday bring us great

joy!

As you read this, Fr. Art

and I have been through 3

meetings to discuss the

revitalization of Catholic

schools in the Diocese of

Buffalo. The meetings have

been productive, and have

sparked some interesting

conversation. Fr. Art and I

have visited most of the

schools in our clusters to get a

feel for what each wonderful

school has to offer. We are

truly blessed to be surrounded

by so many wonderful

educational institutions.

Please continue to pray for

guidance for Fr. Art and I as we

help shape the future of

Catholic education.

We are providing a

superb avenue to pray for this

process. Please consider

joining us on Novemeber20th

as we pray the Rosary for

Catholic education. We will be

meeting in the church on

November 20th at 2:45pm. The

Rosary will be lead by Mrs.

Michele Hoff. We will also

hold this on December 18th.

Same time same location. If

you normally pick up your

children, please consider

parking the car, and joining us

in prayer.

Please know that with

this consolidation process we

have been asked to keep the

discussions confidential. The

final announcement will

happen around January 9th. If

there is anything that the Fr.

Art and I can share, we will,

but for the sake of the process,

and the other schools in the

area, we have to keep things

as confidential as possible.

As the weather begins

to cool, please remember that

we have a change in the

uniform code starting on

November 1st. Shorts may be

worn again starting April 1st,

2014. On another uniform

note, I ask you please refer to

the handbook for the dress

code on dress down days.

Please remember that track

pants, sweatpants, yoga pants,

pajama pants, and gym shorts

are not allowed. While the

dress down day is a chance to

relax a bit, we are still in

school. Many parents have

asked about allowing black

socks to be worn in school.

Black socks may be worn, but I

ask that you purchase solid

black or black and white socks

only. Please save the black and

other color socks for dress

down days, or for outside of

school.

November 2013

From the Principal Mr. Patrick Riester

er

Did you know that

there is a bill in the NYS

assembly that would help raise

money for scholarship for

students to attend religious

schools? There is! It is called

the Education Investment Tax

Credit bill. This bill would

encourage charitable

donations to scholarship funds

(such as BISON) that help our

families pay for tuition. If this

bill was passed years ago, the

diocese might not be in the

position it is currently in

regarding the consolidation of

schools. The NYS Senate has

passed this bill with bi-partisan

support. Sean Ryan, the

assemblyman who represents

the people of Hamburg and

Sts. Peter and Paul school, is

not supporting this bill at this

time. The diocese (Bishop

Malone, Sr. Carol Cimino) and I

are asking and encouraging all

parents who had children at

Sts. Peter and Paul, and/or

currently have children at Sts.

Peter and Paul to please

contact him to ask him to

change his mind on this

matter. The future of Catholic

education depends on

scholarships funds to grow.

Enclosed in the newsletter is a

flyer with Assemblyman Ryan’s

phone number. Please call him

and tell him to support this tax

credit. This is democracy in

action, and it is time we stand

up and be heard! Please note,

if you don’t live in his district,

please call anyways. The more

he hears, the more we get

noticed. Feel free to say you

live at 68 East Main Street in

Hamburg 14075.

Thank you to Mrs. Russ,

our band leader, for preparing

our children to play for our All

Saints Day Liturgy! As I write

this, I am sure they will do a

great job and bring a

wonderful end to Red Ribbon

Week. Please remember

November 1st, is a holy day of

obligation. Come enjoy the

liturgy with our kids! Feel free

to sit with them at Mass.

I ask for your patience

as we move into a very busy

time of year, which has been

compounded by the

consolidation meetings. If I do

not return your phone call,

please call back. The best way

to reach me is email

(priester@sspphamburg.org). I

will get back to you as soon as I

can.

If I don’t see you,

please have a wonderful

Thanksgiving, and keep an eye

out for information about

Advent! Our committee is

hard at work to come up with

a great, meaningful season

leading up to our Savior’s

birth!

Peace,

Patrick Riester

Principal

EPA Required Parent and Staff Yearly Notification Regarding Asbestos Ed Pawlaczyk, Maintenance

We are notifying you that according AHERA regulations we are in compliance of

all laws regarding asbestos. The asbestos management report for our school is always on

file in our office.

This notification is a requirement of the regulation and means that this building

meets all safety standards regarding asbestos.

Parents’ Guild Co-President’s Message Sarah Friedrich and Ginny Folts

It's hard to believe that it is almost Halloween and Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Time flies when you are having fun, and what a great time Oktoberfest was! Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to everyone who helped out. Maureen Casey and Jason Reid did a wonderful job coordinating everything and making sure that it all went smoothly. Thank you! After everyone finishes up all the leftover turkey and starts pulling out the Christmas decorations, circle December 13th on the calendar. Santa's Secret Workshop is going to be during the school day this year, and we could definitely use lots of help that day. It will be modeled similar to the Catholic Charities

Carnival school day, where classes will come down, staggered throughout the day, to do crafts, eat cookies and drink cocoa. More information will come in next month's newsletter. Before we rush the season too much, let us say that we are thankful for what each and every one of your families brings to our school. We appreciate and are thankful for all the hard work and dedication of the many people who volunteer in so many different ways throughout the school year. May your Thanksgiving be blessed with fruitfulness and overwhelming love! God bless!

Oktoberfest Sweepstakes ~ A Huge Success

The Parents Guild Oktoberfest Sweepstakes Fundraiser was a huge success! A sincere thank you and

appreciation to all the volunteers. This event would not have been possible without the overwhelming

support of SSPP Parents. Oktoberfest is the Parents Guild biggest fundraiser of the year. Thank you to

the numerous parents who volunteered at the party, the wonderful dessert makers and parents who

sold tickets after church masses.

Special thanks are extended to Try-It Distributing, Empire Merchants North and Immaculata Academy;

Eileen Lyon for ticket distribution and maintaining the database; Danielle and Nino Casucci for

managing the kitchen and delicious dinners; Pat Marchinda for coordinating the parish mailing; Bridget

Gernatt for school sales; Deb Anderson for handling sold tickets and Ally Nye and Mrs. Kirst for school

office coordination. A special thanks also to Jenny Attea for coordinating mass sales and helping us

many times along the way. Sincere appreciation to Shannon Jerome for chairing the Early Bird Party

and to Fr. Art and Fr. Pat and Mr. Riester for their support and participation.

Everyone’s generosity and hard work made this event a success. Thank you to all!

Maureen Casey and Jason Reid

National Junior Honor Society –

Needs your help!

The National Junior Honor Society is collecting small toiletries to stuff

Christmas Stockings for girls and boys in the Perry Housing Project. They have

requested 75 stockings to be filled. This is a BIG project and we appreciate

any help you can give us.

Donations of the following items are requested:

Travel size toothbrush, tooth paste, mouthwash, floss

Travel size shampoo and conditioner

Travel size hand cream/lotions

Travel size body wash

Deodorant

Hair brushes/combs

Please assist is with our mission and send in donations to Mrs. Jurkowski (Room

205) or Ms. McClenathan (Room 209). Donations will be accepted from Monday,

November 18 – Thursday, December 12, 2013.

*Don’t forget to purchase bake goods from the NJHS students during the

Parent Conferences in November. The entire proceeds will be put toward this

project!

Thank you in advance for your generosity!

May God Bless you always,

National Junior Honor Society Members and Advisors

Battle of the Books

It’s that time of year again when we start to think about The Battle of the Books!

The Battle of the Books Club is open to all students from grades 5-8. We meet once a week from February until our Battle

in May. We read 4 books and become experts on the characters, setting, plot, and details.

The 4 books that we will be reading this year (student suggestions!) are the first 4 books in Rick Riordan’s Heroes of

Olympus.

The Lost Hero

Son of Neptune

The Mark of Athena

The Demigod Diaries

Christmas is just around the corner so I thought I’d put the books out there if anyone needed some ideas for their Battle of

the Books Warriors!

Peace and Joy,

Mrs. Maggio

Happy Thanksgiving!

Editor’s Note Mary Kruszka

Please note the deadline to submit articles for the December Newsletter is

Monday, November 18th. Articles can be e-mailed to me at

craigmar@roadrunner.com or sent to the school office. Thanks!

Soccer Tammy Piwko

VARSITY 7th & 8th Grade Soccer Team:

Coach: Ron Hayes Asst. Coach: Conor Casey Stats: 3 wins, 3 losses 3rd Place Father Baker League Champions

Everyone put their best foot forward during the Varsity 7/8 grade soccer season this year. The team had a challenging year with 3 wins and 3 losses. Congratulations on a great season. Best of luck to all the 8th grade players: Sam Attea, Maura Casey, Shane Detra, Charlie DiPasquale, Jack Dombrowski, Ryan Galley, Lauren Gaume, Anna Hayes, Cole Kruszka, James Lyon, Joe Marchinda, Chloe McCulligan, Emma McCulligan, Nick Piwko, Jon Seymour, Michael Spencer, and Grace Stapleton. 7th

grade players include: Noah Besecker, Grace Gernatt, Keegan Hannon, Rory Hannon, Hannah Johnston, Noah Landers, Ben Pinkowski and Nicole Villarini.

JUNIOR VARSITY 5th & 6th Grade Soccer Team: Coach: Tammy Piwko Asst. coaches: Robby Piwko, Rich Proy, David Rhoads Stats: 5 wins, 1 loss Second Place Father Baker League Champions An amazing soccer season was had by the 5/6 grade team this year. They won 5 out of 6 games, losing only in the finals. Every game ended in a shut-out thanks to the head-defensive players, Caroline DiPasquale and Matt Proy, and goalies, Joe Rowell, Emily Finach and Paul Kruszka. Goals in the season were scored by offensive and mid-fielders alike: Ian Snyder, Ben Piwko, Natalie Muka, Teagan Johnston, Paul Kruszka, Ally Pinkowski , Daniel Spencer and Ben Stapleton. With that said, none of that could be accomplished without these key players, Emily Rhoads, Jackson Hannon, Colin Murphy, Joe Palisano, Blake Dase, Julia Dombrowski, Stephanie Gaume, Anne Attea, Matt Minton, Connor Galley. Congratulations on a job well done!

3rd and 4th Grade Soccer Team: Coach: Tim Farrell Asst. Coach: Paul Insera The SSPP's 3rd and 4th grade soccer season was a successful one. There were 27 kids on the team , and each one made significant progress in their ability to play soccer by season's end. Each child played hard, had fun and demonstrated tremendous sportsmanship. The coaches focused on teaching the kids how to correctly play the game of soccer, focusing on the fundamentals such as passing, staying in their positions and learning

Saints Sports Section

to play both offense and defense. Our final record was 4-2. The players learned from the coaches, and the coaches learned from the players. Overall, everyone that was involved with the team represented SSPP well. The players on the team included the following: Presleigh Brunner, Gavin Calkins, Molly Casey, Lily Daley, Colin Farrell, David Friedrich, Mia Insera, Sydney Landers, Brady Loretto, Taylor Loretto, Aidan McCarthy, Connor McGrath, Madison Martin, Ben Michalski, Grace Miller, Madeline Muka, Lauren Neyman, Meghan Palisano, Madeline Rola, Jason Rudnicki, Reece Schenfield, Gavan Schwenkbeck, Gunnar Schwenkbeck, Parker Shipman, Jill Stapleton, Ellie Vukelic, JahveerWilliams

1st & 2nd Grade Soccer Team:

Coach: Kevin Blake Asst. Coach: Dawn Lamberti Colleen Rola Another successful year was played by the 1st and 2nd grade soccer team this year. This year was really about introducing the kids to soccer while learning new skills and techniques. The team had 3 wins, 2 losses and 1 tie. Fun was had by all including: John Bauer, Sean Blake, Joseph Conte, Lauren Daley, Dominic Davis, Brett Eberz, Dylan Garey, Sal Giardina, Aly Gleason, Kiera Hannon, Christian Jerome, Zach Jerome, Ryan Kellner, Paige Lamberti, Mara Lipinski, Payton Mitchell, Daniel Neyman, Teddy Reid, Bret Rola, Shane Rola, Annie Piwko, Alex Pruss, Tanner Seymour, Owen Shipman, Nathan Stromecki, Charlie Thomas, Henry Thomas, Joe Tuber, Mara Vukelic, Jenny Zizzi.

Cross Country Sarah Friedrich

The cross country team is doing very well this year. They have placed in the top five schools in all of the meets so far. The runners have been training hard, most while balancing numerous other activities, too. Their hard work has paid off though. The runners have been

decreasing their times and moving up in where they place in each meet. Thank you to Mrs. Villarini and Mrs. Johnston for all the coaching and guidance!

Basketball Christie Henry

Basketball Season:

The 2013-2014 Basketball Season officially begins November 1st and all student/athletes who registered for the program will be contacted directly by their coach regarding their first practice date/time which will begin on Saturday, November 2nd.