The Good News October 23rd, 2026

In this Sunday’s Gospel (Matthew 22:34–40), a scholar asks Jesus which commandment in the law is the greatest, and Jesus responds with two simple yet profound directives: love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself. This message comes to life beautifully through the tradition of the Living Rosary, which we celebrated as a school community on Thursday. Our students came together—each acting as a single bead—to pray the Rosary as a unified community. Just as each bead is essential to complete the chain, every member of our school and family community plays a vital role in sharing God’s love. By lifting our hearts in prayer together and taking on our individual parts with care, we demonstrate both our devotion to God and our support for one another, turning our shared faith into a vivid, moving picture of love in action.

Warmly,

Mrs. Erin Croft (Principal) & Mrs. Jennifer Maynard (Assistant Principal)

Monday, Oct. 26

• Linking Generations 3/4G
• SAB Visits N4

Tuesday, Oct. 27

• Regular school day

Wednesday, Oct. 28

• Early Dismissal
• Parish Visit

Thursday, Oct. 29

• SAB Visits N3

Friday, Oct. 30

• Dress up in your costume- We will celebrate Halloween! Halloween Parade 2 pm (Parents Welcome)

Nov. 3 - 6 - Book Fair

Nov. 2 & 3 - Picture Retake Day

Nov. 3 - Parent Teacher Interviews 4-7 pm

Nov. 4 - Parent Teacher Interviews 3-6 pm

Nov. 4 - NO kindergarten Scheduled for any of the classes (this also includes Nature Kindergarten)

Nov. 4 - Métis fiddler 12:30pm-1:30pm.

Nov 6 - 10:30 am Remembrance Day Celebration (All parents welcome)

Nov. 6 - Sock Toss

Nov. 9-13 - November Break (No School)

Nov. 17 - Hot Lunch - Booster Juice

Nov. 24 - Guest Speaker for parents of our school community (See poster below for more information)

Nov. 26 - Hot Lunch - McDonald's

Dec. 9 - St. John XXIII Christmas Concert (Afternoon and evening performances- more information to follow)

Remember:

• Students and staff come dressed for the day on Friday, October 30th! (M/R Kindergarten will be celebrating on Thursday, Oct. 29th). Please have children come dressed and ready for the day so parents can assist with any makeup or tricky costume pieces at home before school.
• Students dressing up are asked to keep costumes school-appropriate (not too scary or gory) and leave any weapons at home. We have very young students at St. John XXIII, and we want Halloween to be a positive school experience for all.
• There will be a "Halloween Parade" in the gym at 2:00 pm. It will begin with Pre-K and end with Grade 4, for the students to share their costumes with our school friends.
• Some classes may be having class parties and individual homeroom teachers will be sharing this information with you through class dojo.
• A reminder that our school has a no food sharing policy.

Thank you parents for your continued support and for helping us infuse JOY for our kids! It's going to be "spooktacular"!

2026-2027 school fees were applied to your child's account in PowerSchool on Tuesday, September 29th.

If you require assistance with the online payment, please refer to the link at the bottom of this newsletter, and contact our school at 780-998-7777 if you need further assistance.

If you are experiencing financial hardship please review the fee waiver here.

On Friday, November 6, students will throw socks, all for a good cause. Bring in NEW individually wrapped socks with your child's name. Students will get to practice their throwing skills by throwing the socks in baskets. All socks will be donated to the Bissel Center.

• Tuesday, November 3rd from 4:00-7:00 pm
• Wednesday, November 4th from 3:00-6:00 pm

All conferences will be in person.

Kindergarten will have additional time slots all day on Wednesday, November 4th from 9:00 am - 2:30 pm.

All conferences are booked through the School Interviews Program, please check you email for links and details. The program will close on Monday, November 2nd at 12 noon.

No parking on the north side of the bus parking lane to allow for all buses to drop off and pick up students.

Please ensure that you are sending cutlery with your child (if needed), and a thermos that they are able to open by themselves.

We have three lunch time supervisors who started on October 1. We are still seeking more people to join the team, so if you are interested in a paid position and the commitment would be one hour per day, please email us at stj@eics.ab.ca or by calling the school at 780-998-7777

Parent council is excited to announce that the November hot lunch session will open at 5 pm on Friday, October 23rd, in PowerSchool. Payments can be made easily using Visa, Mastercard, debit-credit card.
https://www.eics.ab.ca/parents-and-students/powerschool-log-in
Go to: “Student Fees and Field Trip Forms”

November 17th - Booster Juice
November 26th - McDonald's

The form will close at 11:59pm on Wednesday, November 4th (there will be no extensions).

*Please visit the school website to review the “How to Order and Pay in PowerSchool” documents if you require assistance.

If you require further assistance, please reach out to: Hotlunchstjohnxxiii@gmail.com

Support Our School with a COBS Bread Loaf Card!

Bring home fresh bread all year long while supporting our school! For $45, the COBS Bread Card provides 12 complimentary loaves, one each month from January 2026 through December 2027 — that’s 12 loaves for only $3.75 per loaf!

This form will go live in PowerSchool on Friday, Sept. 18th at 4pm. If you are having trouble ordering, please refer to the ordering link at the bottom of every newsletter or go to the PowerSchool page on our school website.

Cards will be sent home with students on the week of December 14th.

St. John XXIII Parent Council is happy to partner up with the other Catholic Schools Parent Councils in Fort Saskatchewan to offer parents this informative session by Daniel Sundahl. All Parents welcome!

As a school community, we gathered to celebrate the Living Rosary. We are very proud of our students for participating and for many of them who had a speaking role.

Students enjoying the last few days of our beautiful fall weather!

Last week students learned how to safely evacuate the bus during our bus evacuation safety drills.

Email: stj@eics.ab.ca
Website: https://stj.eics.ab.ca/
Location: 9526-89 Street, Fort Saskatchewan, AB, Canada
Phone: 780-998-7777
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/St.JohnXXIII
Twitter: @St_JohnXXIII