The Panther Post Newsletter

December 5th, 2025

Presentation Community,

I hope you all had a restful and joyous Thanksgiving break filled with family and great food. It was fun to welcome the students back to a snowy week and see them have fun playing outside at recess.

I'm looking forward to another great Presentation community event this weekend - our Spirit of Advent event on Sunday evening. It's a wonderful way to kick off the Advent and Christmas season bringing both our church and school together as one. I look forward to seeing many of you there celebrating with us! Detail are found below in the events section of the newsletter.

Stay warm and enjoy the snow!

God Bless,

Matt

Report Cards are coming home today in Communication Envelopes. Please note that you do NOT need to sign and return them - they are for you to keep at home. Please reach out to your child's teacher with any questions.

We're so impressed with the AMAZING job Mr. John and the kids have done this week baking cookies for our cookie tray sales! Now it's time to sell! You can purchase a cookie tray for $20 (cash or check only please) at the following places/times:

• After all masses this weekend (Sat at 5pm, Sun at 9am and 11:45am) in the Kennard Street Entrance of Church
• During cocoa and cookies with St. Nick at our Christmas Tree Lighting on Sunday evening which starts at 6:30pm

All proceeds from cookie tray sales will come right back to the school, so spread the word to your family, friends, and neighbors that we've got wonderfully delicious items all packaged and

ready to go!

Also, thank you to everyone that donated ingredient items and an extra HUGE thank you to

Mr. John for coming up with this awesome idea, and for putting in so much time and care to make it a reality. You're the BEST, Mr. John!

Our final Lego Class took place yesterday afternoon, and our final Robotics Class will take place this coming Tuesday, December 9th. A big thanks to Mr. Jonathan for leading these classes. The kids really enjoyed them and we are hoping to partner with him again in the future for more fun!

We have had quite a few students coming each day without proper outdoor attire. Remember that we go outside for recess every day unless it is below zero. Please make sure to send your child to school with proper attire to stay warm outside - coat, hat, gloves/mittens, boots, and snow pants (if they want to play in the snow). It is important for their safety that they are properly clothed for the weather!

🎶It's the most wonderful time of the year...🎶

If you have never experienced a preschool classroom in the weeks leading up to Christmas, you are missing out! The magic of the season truly shines in everything we do at school these days. Students bring Santa Claus into everything they play, they admire the lights decorating the classroom, and sing "Jingle Bells" almost constantly. We have also been hard at work learning our Christmas program songs! Ask your student to give you a preview at home sometime.

I hope you can all join us for the Spirit of Advent event and in particular the Christmas Tree Lighting! Some of your teachers will be there with a special craft on Sunday night so we hope you will all stop by-- plus you'll want to pick up some of the cookies they decorated!

Upcoming Events/Reminders:

December 8: Family Christmas Tree Project Due (Discovery/Kinderstart)

December 11: Christmas Program, 6:30pm in church

*PRESCHOOL FAMILIES: Plan to have your student to school by 6:15pm. You will drop off your student in the Discovery classroom and then go to the church. We will all walk in together when it's our turn to perform. When we are done performing, please meet your student in the back of the church.

December 18 & 19: Birthday Parties for Jesus! Infants, Toddlers, Discovery, & Kinderstart students may wear pajamas to school these days.

December 22, 23: Christmas break child care days (RSVP required)

December 24-26: Closed

December 29-31: Christmas break child care days (RSVP required)

January 1, 2, 5: Closed

This year we have combined our annual Advent Music & Prayer service with our Christmas Tree Lighting for one beautiful celebration!

5-6pm:

Join us in church for prayer and music to get in the Christmas spirit!

After this service there will be light refreshments served in the Kennard Street Entrance of church.

6:30pm:

Head outside while Fr Peter blesses our Christmas tree and we flip the switch to light up the night!

After the tree is lit come into Kenney Hall to end the evening with cookies, cocoa, and a Christmas craft with St. Nick himself!

We look forward to seeing you all there to help us kick off the Christmas season!

Here is some helpful information regarding our Christmas Concert which will take place Thursday, December 11th in the church! It will begin at 6:30pm with church doors opening at 6:00pm.

Students should dress in nice clothes for the concert.

Band students should meet Mr. Starr in Kenney Hall at 6:15pm to warm up and tune instruments. Jackets and instrument cases can be left there. Once they are done performing they will return instruments to Kenney Hall and then sit with their class to await their turn to sing.

Preschool students should be dropped off in Ms. Susie's classroom by 6:15pm. Preschoolers will stay with preschool teachers while the band plays. After the preschoolers sing, parents will pick up their child from the teacher in the back of church and may return to their pew to enjoy the rest of the concert together.

Students in grades K-8 that are NOT in band should meet in their classrooms at 6:15pm (please note that Kindergarten students should meet in Mary's Room, across the hall from the office). Classroom teachers will then lead students over to the church where they will sit as a grade with their teacher.

Do not leave any jackets in classrooms.

You will not have access to get back into classrooms after the concert!

If you have questions regarding anything, please reach out to the school office at 651-777-5877 or directly to your child's teacher.

Please mark your calendars for December's All-School Mass on Sunday, December 14th at 9am. We invite ALL FAMILIES to attend and ask that students come dressed in their uniforms. It would be great to have a BIG showing of school families there! Our parishioners do SO MUCH to support our school and joining them at Mass is just one small way we can show up and show our appreciation for all the ways they ensure our school continues to thrive.

We'll see you ALL there!

Saddle up!

We're rounding up all Presentation of Mary School families, alumni, and patrons to celebrate the 2026 Panther Pride Benefit! Join us on Saturday, April 18, 2026 at Presentation of Mary School for dinner, games, and a live and silent auction all in support of our wonderful school!

Stay tuned for details on how to purchase tickets and register!

Nov 25: Trimester I Ends; Mass of Gratitude

Nov 26-28: No School - Thanksgiving Break

Dec 1-5: Bake Cookies with Mr. John

Dec 2: Robotics Class

Dec 3: Creative Writing Club

Dec 4: Last Lego Class; Preschool & Kindergarten Info Night

Dec 5: Picture Retake Day

Dec 7: The Spirit of Advent Event

The Respect-Life Committee along with the Mother Terese Sewing Group are sponsoring a baby drive for Options for Women East life Care Center, Bundles of Love, Cradle of Hope, First Care, and Catholic Charities Family Services. From November 30th through January 4, we will collect baby items for moms in need and their infants, newborn to size 2T.

We prefer all donations be new, but we do accept gently used clothing. Items can be placed in the creche in the Kennard Street entrance. You may also call the office if you need to drop items off outside of church times.

Save the date for Presentation Hmong New Year Celebration on Saturday, December 27th, 2025. We’ll have Hmong arts and crafts, food, and great entertainment for all!

We are still looking for people to join our committee and show their talents. If you have questions or are interested in helping out, please contact Zoua Pha at zouapha@gmail.com or

(651)-815-2602.