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Everest Academy "Stand for Dan" Fundraiser
The Student Council members at Everest Academy are sponsoring a fundraiser "Stand for Dan" to raise money for a Lemont boy who recently suffered a paralyzing injury while diving. The students have been selling T-shirts and wrist bands to support Dan, and have also written letters to him offering their encouragement and prayers. The late Pope John Paul II has been named the patron of Dan's hopes for a full recovery. Please visit the official website www.standfordan.com or contact the school for more information on how to help.
To read more about the Student Council's fundraiser for Dan, please view the full article here.
The Student Council members at Everest Academy are sponsoring a fundraiser "Stand for Dan" to raise money for a Lemont boy who recently suffered a paralyzing injury while diving. The students have been selling T-shirts and wrist bands to support Dan, and have also written letters to him offering their encouragement and prayers. The late Pope John Paul II has been named the patron of Dan's hopes for a full recovery. Please visit the official website www.standfordan.com or contact the school for more information on how to help.
To read more about the Student Council's fundraiser for Dan, please view the full article here.
On Friday, December 9th, Everest Academy performed the musical "Miracle on Bethlehem Street" for a packed gymnasium. Please see below for the Triblocal news article covering the event, or click here to view the article.
Everest Academy Performs Miracle on Bethlehem Street
On Friday, December 9th, the students of
Everest Academy performed “Miracle on Bethlehem Street” for a full audience of
family, friends, teachers and community members. The musical was produced and directed
by drama teacher Mrs. Jenna Treanor. Written by Don Hart and Lowell Alexander,
this Christmas musical written for children retells the Christmas story through
the eyes of busy Bethlehem innkeepers.
Whether singing or acting, all of the students at
Everest, from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, have been involved in the production
in some way. Each grade had a different role, including sheep and angels for
the younger grades, and shepherds and the lead characters for the older
children. All the students were actively involved in creating their costumes,
learning the songs and choreography, and making the sets. “The kindergarten class has really come out
of their shells with this production. They love the songs and have been
practicing them non-stop” said Mrs. Joanna DiSabato, the Kindergarten teacher
at Everest.
Everest Academy is a Catholic school for
pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, and gives great importance to forming
leadership and public speaking skills in the students. The annual Christmas
production is just one of the many activities in the curriculum in which
students have the opportunity to perform and speak in front of an audience.
“I’ve seen tremendous growth in the students since the beginning of the year. They
have become more confident in themselves and their talents,” said Molly Maher,
Dean of Students.
The musical was produced and directed by Mrs. Jenna
Treanor of Lemont. Mrs. Treanor has produced and directed five children's
musicals, including the rock opera Tommy
and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat. She currently resides in Lemont and is setting her sights
on creating more opportunities for the youth to engage in the performing arts.
Everest Academy is an independent Roman Catholic
school in Lemont educating children from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.
The teachers and staff are dedicated to forming the whole child by providing
the highest level of academics, by building character, and by developing a
strong apostolic faith in the students. If you would like to learn more about
Everest Academy’s approach to education, please contact Heidi Matelich at
630-243-1995 or visit www.everestadvantage.org.
Dear Everest Academy Parents and Friends,
This is the time of year that we really reflect back on all that we are grateful for: our faith, our families, our friends. In a special way we say thank you to all of you, as it is due to your generosity and support that we can offer an Everest education to our students.
November has been an eventful month that has definitely passed with record speed. Looking back, we lived it fully by attending to our studies, accomplishing our first report card, attending to Parent Teacher conferences, concluding the coat drive, hosting the middle school retreat, participating in the Lemont Loves the Arts, celebrating All Saints Day, carrying out Poinsettia sales, hosting open houses, celebrating the Big Brother-Big Sister Thanksgiving Feast, beginning the Christmas Pageant rehearsals, preparing for Grandparents Day, hosting a Book Fair, kicking off the Gala, celebrating the Feast of Christ the King, assisting with the Zaccheus House Fundraiser, and finalizing the marketing plan at its best...just to name a few.
This month began with the triumphant celebration of All Saints Day and we fully enjoyed the mighty and colorful saints at Everest Academy. The costumes, teamwork, competitions and festivities of the day were very impressive. The student leaders were excellent in motivating their teams to give 100%. We concluded the month with a most heartwarming event: Grandparents Day. The students could not wait for this day to share with their grandparents what they had prepared.
We are impressed as to how much God really loves us when we see that love reflected in the unique relationship of Grandparents and their Grandchildren. We thank the Parents' Association and all those who contributed to making this a special gift to our Grandparents.
As you may have seen, we have new technology to integrate in our classes. Although not completely part of the original plan, further research on the optimal products for our investment dictated moving forward with a combination of the Mimio Bar for versatility, as well as the installation of the Epson projector for optimal interactive white board use. Stay tuned for further information on this. We also have on loan a PolyVision interactive board, to broaden our possibilities. As a faculty, we attended a technology in-service to help build our experience and learn new ways to incorporate programs available on the internet in our daily lessons.
Our annual Book Fair was a success! Thank you for your support. The sale continues up until the 15th of this month as we still have many inspirational books from Ignatius press. These make excellent Christmas gifts.
Two main fundraisers are now underway. First, our Gala Committee is planning an amazing event - it will have to be to top last year’s Gala! Gala informational packets including the raffle tickets have been sent home so please review these materials to see how you can assist with this important fundraiser. Second, please remember to send in your pledge for our Annual Fund Campaign. Pledge cards are available at the office. Thank you for your participation.
Please do not miss promoting our Open House on Sunday, January 29th. Spread the word and let’s get as many as possible attending. On this note, our Marketing team needs your support. Please help us to promote Everest Academy as much as possible. Contact Heidi for more information. We will hold an informational meeting on December 19th to activate teams to fulfill our marketing strategies. One marketing tip: consider sending an Everest info card out with some of your local Christmas cards to share with as many as possible our gift of education: the integral formation of Christian leaders.
We have begun Advent: a time of prayer, reflection, and peace; a time to appreciate and prepare for the coming of Christ at Christmas, which is the greatest miracle of all. In assembly, we will light the Advent Candle and reaffirm the commitments we have made to live Advent in a way that opens our hearts to Christ in the anticipation of his arrival. I hope that you will join us as our children are joyfully preparing to celebrate and present Jesus as the reason for the season with the Christmas Pageant, Miracle on Bethlehem Street. I look forward to seeing you then.
God bless you,
Sincerely in Christ,
Christine Gamache
The Everest Coat Drive
A very warm congratulations to all the students for last month’s Coat Drive! We collected more than 70 coats and other winter clothing to benefit the needy of the town of Lemont. On Nov. 8, the 5th-6thgrade class sorted and folded the coats for delivery to the Lemont Police Station. In the pocket of every coat they placed a holy card to help comfort the one who receives it. Thank you to all who contributed! 
Change 4 Change
Congratulations to the 3rd-4th
grade class for collecting the most this month. They brought in $41.10 - that’s
70% of the total for the month!
A big “Thank You” to all the
students for their participation this last month in the Change-4-Change
school apostolic project! Our total year-to-date is now $290.64.
Our goal for the year is to provide
a scholarship for 2 underprivileged children in a Mano Amiga school in Mexico. The
two students are a 2nd grade boy named Juan Pablo and a Kindergarten
girl named Amayrani. Both scholarships together total $1,500. Hopefully, with a
bit of the spiritual motivation of Christmas, we can surpass our monthly goal
of $200, (that’s approximately $4-5/student).
The Mano Amiga schools are run by
the Legionaries of Christ and provide a free education to children from
underprivileged families in Latin America. We are happy to sponsor these two
students through their schooling, so that they may have the opportunity to
succeed in life and support their families.
Dear Families,
Advent is here, and I hope that you are all enjoying this
beautiful season as we prepare to welcome Baby Jesus! This is a season for
gratitude – to take time to reflect on God’s love and on all the gifts that He
has given us. I thank God daily for the gift of each of your families to the
Everest community, and hope that we can bring more families to benefit from
Everest Academy!
The Christmas season also means that we are fast approaching
enrollment season! We will be holding an open house on November 30, and are
also excitedly preparing for our big open house on January 29 to conclude
Catholic Schools Week. Hopefully all of you can bring at least one friend to
learn more about our school!
The marketing committee has been working hard on a strategic
marketing plan, and we are now ready to implement key goals. Any parents who
would like to help, in any way, shape or form – we need your help and talent to
make our marketing plan a reality! Even if you only have a little time to
spare, any help will be greatly appreciated to help share the gift of Everest.
Thank you in advance for your help! God bless you & your families this
Advent.
Heidi Matelich
The
Everest Academy faculty and staff is making strides in technological
applications in the classroom. On November 7 they joined the Archdiocese of
Chicago at a technology conference on Best Practices in
Technology Integration with
educational expert and featured Speaker, Meg Ormiston.
Meg is passionate about transforming teaching and learning through the power of
digital tools. Meg’s extensive experience as a classroom teacher for over a
decade and as a school board president enables her to connect with teachers and
administrators across curriculums and grade levels. She is developing online
professional development to engage staff anytime and anywhere. Meg was just
awarded the prestigious 2010 “Book of the Year” award for her book, Creating
a Digital Rich Classroom.
There
were over 20 breakout sessions including
“Personal Professional Development Using Twitter” and “Technology to
Differentiate Instruction.” There were interactive white board and software vendors
on display, allowing the Everest team to explore the best possible technology
sources for the classroom.
Everest
Academy Supports Zacchaeus House Fundraiser
for
St. James Parish
Everest Academy 8th grade students Michael Spell, Libby
Thomas, and Veronica Kopec take time out of their Saturday to provide
entertainment for the Zacchaeus House Fundraiser, held at St. James Parish Hall
on November 19, 2011. Michael Spell played the piano during the luncheon. The
Everest 8th grader later returned the stipend he was given, donating
the money to Zacchaeus House.
Zacchaeus House offers
mercy and grace, as well as a home to men in need. In a former convent on the South Side, homeless men can sit at a kitchen table and
be served breakfast with orange juice each morning. A few feet away are a
laundry room and storage room equipped with new linen and new clothing for
these men, who now call Zacchaeus House home.
Deacon Coleman, the
Director, has been serving the poor and needy in Chicago for over twenty years.
Zacchaeus House is a home for men who are hurting and need time to heal and a
place to call home.
Chicago's Cardinal
Francis E. George, describes Zacchaeus House as a "transitional safe
house" for men who want spiritual direction. Zacchaeus House is not a
treatment center, halfway house or shelter; it is a place of evangelization
for men who want to stabilize their lives and find Christ.
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The Pilgrim Queen
Pray together as a family and honor Mary as a special guest in your home.
Prayer for Everest
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for making Everest Academy a reality. With the aid of the Holy Spirit, may we touch the lives of many people and bring to our community the joy of knowing and loving Jesus Christ. We thank Our Mother Mary for her help and ask for her continued care and protection. Amen.
School Masses
Join us for All School Mass on Friday at 2:20pm or Morning Mass at 7:15 am Tues., Wed., and Thurs.
Lean on Me Holy Hour
Spend some time with Jesus every Thursday, after morning Mass 7:45am