Students at John Paul ll Catholic Secondary School created
hand-made cards and a banner for our troops in Afghanistan. It was
part of Random Acts of
Kindness Week. School Chaplain Pat Materiuk says the idea
ties in with so many of our values as a Catholic community,
including the Golden Rule and the Beatitudes. "We, as a school
community will be focusing on the Catholic Graduate Expectations
over the next few months, in the hope that our students will become
more familiar with them and understand how we can relate to them in
our daily lives, by our actions," she said. "This month,
our Expectation is A Responsible Citizen, with a sub theme
for next week of Witness Catholic social teaching by promoting
equality , democracy, and solidarity for a just, peaceful and
compassionate society.'" Some of the other activities at JP
ll this week included collecting Red Hands to send to the United
Nations to put a stop to the use of child soldiers; collecting
children's books and games to be donated to community partners; and
recognizing students who perform acts of kindness.
Did you know ... performing an act of kindness
can be good for your health?
Numerous scientific studies show that acts of kindness
result in significant health benefits, both physical and
mental.
• Helping contributes to the maintenance of good health,
and it can diminish the effect of diseases and disorders.
• A rush of euphoria, followed by a longer period of calm,
after performing a kind act is often referred to as a
"helper's high."
• Stress-related health problems improve after performing
kind acts. Helping reverses feelings of depression.
• Helping can enhance our feelings of joyfulness,
emotional resilience, and vigour, and can reduce the
unhealthy sense of isolation.
• A decrease in both the intensity and the awareness of
physical pain can occur.
• The incidence of attitudes, such as chronic hostility,
that negatively arouse and damage the body is reduced.
• The health benefits and sense of well-being return for
hours or even days whenever the helping act is remembered.
• An increased sense of self-worth, greater happiness, and
optimism is achieved.
(Source: Luks, Allan. The Healing Power of
Doing Good: The Health and Spiritual Benefits of Helping Others.
New York: Universe.com, 2001.)
Each year, the Catholic School Chaplains of Ontario Association (CSCO)
awards the Brian J. Halferty Award to a chaplain in Ontario for
meritorious service in chaplaincy. This year's recipient was Brad
Lewis, Chaplain at St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Brad is greatly
admired for his skill in the ministry of Chaplaincy by all who know
his work. He has often shared his experiences and best practices at
CSCO workshops over the years. At the end of last year, Brad Lewis
published a book called "High School Ministry from A to Z"
which answers many of the questions chaplains have as they develop
their ministry. Congratulation to Brad for his wonderful book and
this recent award!
Celebrating 100 Days!
"We've
been working in our classroom, For 100 days.
We've been working in our classroom, Here in the first grade.
Rising early in the morning, Bring our books and pencils too.
Every day we come to first grade, We learn something new."
... Author unknown
Students in the London District Catholic School Board celebrated 100
days of school this week - one hundred days since the start of the
2008-09 school year - leaving many to wonder "where did the
time go?" Above, Grade One students from St. George are
among the newest members of the Century Club, dressing like they
think they might look when they reach the age of 100. (Who knew
being in Grade One could be so aging?) Right, Grade One students at
St. Anthony Catholic French Immersion School celebrated "le
100e jour d'ecole" in hundreds of different ways, including
counting out 100 pieces of cheese, candy, toothpicks, hockey cards,
stickers, pennies, buttons and straws and other things. Mlle
Dutrizac's and Mme Rodrigues's students show off what they brought
to mark the 100th day of school.
To celebrate 100th day at Assumption School, Mrs.
Berry's Grade 1/2 class made glasses with 100 stickers and signed a
card with the LOVE of 100 Hugs!
The students of St. Francis
Princeton started their 100th day of school with their reading
glasses on.
Mrs. Vanden Hoven's Grade 1 class at St. Anne School celebrated 100
days by the numbers.
Celebrating Those Who Have Made a
Difference!
This will be the sixth year of an initiative to profile London
District Catholic School Board Graduates who live the Ontario
Catholic Graduate Expectations. Those selected must be
secondary school graduates of the London District Catholic School
Board or its predecessor Boards. They must demonstrate impact in
professional and/or personal life in the following areas: spiritual,
academic, aesthetic, social, or physical; demonstrate fulfillment of
the Ontario Catholic Graduate Expectations; and demonstrate
stewardship in Catholic Education. Nominators must complete a
nomination form, signed by the nominee and submitted to John Boles
at the Catholic Education Centre by February 28th, 2009. Printable
nominations forms are available Here..
There is a limit of one nomination per nominator. A Selection
Committee will review all nominations and make a final decision
based on the criteria. The graduate (s) will be profiled in
Spotlight, on the Board Website and during Education Week. This is
your opportunity to publicly honour someone you know who has made a
difference in the world around them! A list of previous winners is
available Here.
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Our
Mission
To serve the Catholic
student in a community that nurtures a living faith and provides a
quality Catholic education that enables the individual to become a
contributing member of the Church and Society.
or contact:
John Boles, Manager of Communications, 519-663-2088, ext
40015
Spotlight
is produced weekly by
the Communications Department of the
LDCSB.
Spotlight is a BRAVO Award
winner for demonstrated excellence, recognized by the Canadian
Association of Communicators in Education and a winner of the
Glorya Nanne Award from the Ontario Association of Parents
in Catholic Education for making a substantial contribution to
fostering better understanding of Catholic Education.
