Dear OLVCS Families,

Tomorrow is your last chance to hand in any spare change you can find for the Walk-A-Thon coin drive! The class with the highest total will win a prize! Next Friday, 10/02, is a Dollar Dress Down Day to raise money for Walk-A-Thon. Requirements for Dress Down Day will apply: https://www.olvcatholicschool.org/registration/uniform-home/dress-down-day. Monday, 10/05 will be a Dress Up Day as it will be Fall Picture Day. Order forms will come home next week.

I was thinking back today about past years when the PA state budget had not passed and we, along with all PA schools, were without books to begin school. We were blessed this year as the budget passed over the Summer and we began the year with books we needed. Thank you Lord!

The 2026 Walk-A-Thon is quickly approaching and we are dedicated to our goal of raising $200 per family (100% participation). Please be mindful that all of these funds go directly to our school and your children. You will receive a total of what your family has contributed toward your $200. Please let us know if you have any questions. We ask that all money be returned by October 2nd, or submitted online by midnight October 2nd for classroom and individual prizes.

Today our students learned that we are honoring Bishop Fulton J. Sheen today, a beloved Catholic bishop, teacher, author, and evangelist who shared the message of Jesus Christ with millions of people through his preaching, writing, radio, and television programs. Bishop Sheen was declared Venerable by the Catholic Church in 2012 in recognition of his life of heroic virtue. Today he will be the first American bishop to be beatified, making him one step closer to being declared a saint. Mr. & Mrs. Weakland attended this event in Peoria, Illinois, praying for our school. **See photo below. May Bishop Sheen inspire us to share our faith with courage, kindness, and joy.

Thank you for your ongoing support of our school.

Choose Virtue. Make it a Great Day!

Anne

Pictured: Former principal, Mrs. Weakland, with one of our first graders at the Beatification!

There’s an amazing reason to keep those Walk-A-Thon donations coming in! The OLVCS family that raises the most money for the 2026 Walk-A-Thon will receive a $1,500 Family Weekend in New York City, generously donated by Jolly Good Travel! ✨

The prize includes:

🏨 $750 to use towards a two-night hotel stay

🚗 $100 to use towards transportation

🍽️ $400 to use towards food and beverages

🎭 $250 to use towards tickets to the show or attraction of your choice

And to make the trip even better, Samantha Russell of Jolly Good Travel will help the winning family plan their getaway and share all of her tips and knowledge about traveling in New York City with Kids!

Every donation helps support OLVCS and brings your family closer to an unforgettable weekend in NYC. 💙👟

Start sharing about Walk-A-Thon with grandparents, relatives, friends, neighbors, and coworkers. Every donation counts toward your family's total and supports OLVCS's only school-wide fundraiser!

A huge thank you to Jolly Good Travel for this incredibly generous donation and for supporting our OLVCS students! 🌟 Be sure to follow @JollyGoodTravel on Instagram for family travel ideas, tips, destination ideas and inspiration for your next adventure!

Here's What Parents Have To Say About The Walk-A-Thon!

"The Walk-A-Thon is such an essential event for OLVCS. It has a significant impact on the school! The safety upgrades have been especially important to our family. I can't say enough great things about OLV. We love the service-oriented, value-based education along with the strong academic foundation they're building. MOST importantly, OLV is teaching them what it looks like to be good people who care about others and the world around them."
"I love the Walk-A-Thon day for my children, for all of the ways the funds support our school, especially to make it a safe school and teaching the children the values of service, love, faith, dignity, and integrity as well as working together as a Catholic community!"
"The Walk-A-Thon is a fun way to raise money to help with specific school needs, such as field trips, technology needs, and athletics."
The Walk-A-Thon is a great way for the students to come together as a whole. The outpouring of support from the community and families helps to benefit our faith based school in so many ways."
"The funds from Walk-A-Thon impact our children in so many ways from technology, classroom supplies, field trips, athletics, co-curricular activities, and safety and security enhancements. Our children also get to witness the impact that a faith community can have as the Walk-A-Thon is supported by their friends, families, fellow parishioners, and local businesses."

About one week until our school's only all-school fundraiser, the Walk-A-Thon! Thank you for your generosity and continued support! These funds support so many crucial aspects of our school!

We will accept donations at any time, but donations are due BY MIDNIGHT, Friday, October 2nd to count towards class, student, and family prize eligibility. We currently have 30% of our families that have met the goal of $200. Click HERE to donate!

You will receive a special edition Walk-A-Thon Update on Wednesday, September 30th. It will contain everything you need to know for OLV Day and the Walk-A-Thon on Wednesday, October 7th.

We hope you will join us for Mass at 9:00am on Wednesday, October 7th to celebrate and give thanks for our amazing school.
The afternoon Walk-A-Thon and assembly will begin at 12:35pm. We welcome all families to join us! You may walk with your elementary child, run with or cheer on your middle schooler, watch the prizes get handed out at the assembly, and witness the big TOTAL reveal. It really is an amazing site to see!

All families of K and 6th graders should turn in updated physical forms
All families of K, 3rd and 7th graders should submit an updated dental report.
Here is the forms link for your convenience: https://www.olvcatholicschool.org/registration/forms
They can be emailed to our school nurse upon completion at mclaughlink@olvcs.org.
Dental screenings are available for families who may be uninsured via Centre Volunteers in medicine. Please see the below flyer. Families interested in participating can request a registration packet by contacting CVIM: 814-231-4043 or jcole@cvim.net.

Damascus Summer Camp 2027 Pre-Order registration is open. Because our group placed a Pre-Order, your camper has early access to our reserved spaces before general registration opens.

Please register by October 31st at 5 PM. After this deadline, any unregistered Pre-Order spaces will be released and made available to other groups and the general public.

Middle School Registration Link

Group Registration Code: VICTORYSTACOL27

Here is a highlight video: https://youtu.be/goabrWu6OSA

If you have questions contact Melanie or Chris Smith (melanie.yonushonis@gmail.com or cssmith2@gmail.com)

OLV middle school students needed to volunteer at the upcoming Jared Box event.
Students needed on Friday, October 2, for about an hour, from approximately 12:30–1:30 p.m.
Other volunteers will be bringing plastic boxes, toys, and supplies to the Activity Center to assemble 800 Jared Boxes. We will have access to the Activity Center at noon, and students would help carry in supplies and assist with setup.
We are asking everyone who would like to volunteer on Saturday to register using this link:
Jared Box Volunteer Registration