St. Edmunds Newsletter – October 2025
As we step into October with its cooler mornings and colorful leaves, we are reminded to give thanks for the many blessings of our school community. The first month of the year has been a joyful and faith-filled beginning, and I am grateful to our staff, students, and families for working together to make it so wonderful. Rooted in our theme of proclaiming our faith, we are reminded that gratitude is not only something we feel but something we live out through prayer, kindness, and acts of service. This month, we look forward to encouraging our children—and ourselves—to embrace gratitude more fully by offering prayers of thanksgiving, extending compassion to those in need, and finding simple ways to share God’s love with others.
With Appreciation & Gratitude
We are thankful to everyone who attended our Meet the Teacher Evening. If you were unable to join us, we encourage you to reach out to your child’s teacher to stay informed about classroom routines and school updates. It takes a collaborative effort to guide your child(ren) on their educational journey, and we are truly blessed to be part of such a supportive and dedicated community of families and educators.
A heartfelt thank-you to all who joined us for our Welcoming Coffee Hour—it was a wonderful way to begin the year in fellowship and community. We are especially grateful to our PAC for hosting this event and to the generous donors who provided the coffee and delicious treats. Your thoughtfulness and support help make St. Edmund’s such a welcoming and vibrant school community.
School Reminders:
Medical Alerts & Allergies – Creating a safe and healthy school environment is a responsibility we all share—students, parents, and staff. Some of our students live with severe nut allergies, and even small traces of peanuts or tree nuts can pose a serious risk. To help maintain a nut-aware school, we ask families to avoid sending any snacks or lunches that contain nuts or nut oils. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
Lunches & Snacks – Please ensure your child brings a healthy snack and lunch each day, along with a refillable, labeled water bottle. To reduce waste and support our commitment to environmental stewardship, all leftover food will be sent home for composting. We encourage families to pack lunches in reusable, labeled plastic containers (no glass) to help minimize landfill waste. We also remind you to send utensils with your child on days the have “hot lunch” as these are not included with the lunch orders.
Lunch Program – orders are placed via our Hot Lunch Link on our school website. Our menu is updated regularly to reflect the BC School Food Guidelines which emphasize whole foods, plant-based options and fewer processed and sugary items. Please remember to send utensils with your child on lunch days as these are not included with lunch orders. Thank you to Ms. Van Eck for setting up our hot lunch program and to our PPP hot lunch volunteers. If you have any questions, please contact the office. We appreciate your support of our lunch program!
School Bags – We kindly ask that students avoid bringing rolling bags to school. While convenient, these bags create a tripping hazard in our cubby areas and hallways. For safety and ease of storage, traditional backpacks are strongly preferred. Thank you for your cooperation in helping us keep our school environment safe for all students.
Uniform – Thank you for all your help in ensuring that your children are ready each day with their school uniform. At morning assemblies, we have discussed how our uniform is an outward sign that we are all part of a special community and a way to show school pride. A reminder that:
- All clothing items should be labelled with your child’s name.
- School sweaters are to be worn daily and should be in good condition. Gym hoodies are for gym only and not to be worn in lieu of the regulation school sweater.
- Hemlines of tunics, skirts & dress shorts should not be more than 4 inches/10 cm above the knee.
- School dress shoes are all black, non-marking
- Hair should not be dyed or coloured in any way. Hair accessories that tie back long hair should be subdued in nature. (Plain black, blue or tartan pattern)
- Jewelry must be subdued in nature. Only stud earrings are permitted.
- Nails should be clear (no colour polish) and make-up is not to be worn.
Student Drop Off / Pick Up Procedure – Thank you for continuing to follow our “safety first” procedure for dropping off and picking up your children and assisting with the safe flow of traffic in front of our school. Please be mindful that from 8:00 am – 5:00 pm Mahon Avenue in front of the school is for drop-off only – NO PARKING. The Fire Zone is also a NO STOPPING area. If you need to assist your child in getting out of the car, you must park on another block and walk your child to the gate.
Please see St. Edmund’s Safe & Active Routes to School and thank you to those families who are using active transportation for their trips to school. Walking, biking, or scootering helps reduce congestion in our neighbourhood and helps students arrive at school energized and ready to learn.
Many thanks to Crosswalk volunteers who are greeting our students on the way to school and keeping everyone safe on the crosswalks.
School Events:
Apple Fundraiser – Orders due Oct. 6; Delivery on Oct. 22
As some of you already know, our apple fundraiser is back! These apples are grown at Sun Oka Farm in Summerland, B.C. at the very heart of Canada’s premier fruit growing region – the Okanagan Valley. Incredibly delicious and conveniently priced, we all benefit from this healthy snack as well as raise funds for additional resources to enrich our school athletic and arts programs!
The only thing to do is to open this link here:
Thank you, Class Parent, Ms. Martins for organizing this fundraiser for our school!
Individual Photo Day – Tuesday morning, Oct.14
Mark your calendars! Artona Photography will be taking individual student photos on Tuesday, October 14th. All students are to wear their full school uniform on this day (school sweaters, hair accessories in school colours only). If your child misses the October 14th date, photo retake day is November 13th.
Communicating Student Learning – Thursday Oct. 23
As a way of keeping you informed about the effort your child is making this term, parent teacher interviews are taking place on Oct. 23. Please note there are no classes on this day, but you are asked to make an appointment to meet with your child’s teacher to discuss observable strengths, work habits, and possible areas of improvement. Formal written reports will be going home on Friday, December 5th.
Information on setting an appointment via our online portal was emailed home last month and we are grateful to many of you who have already booked your session!
Professional Day – No School on Friday, Oct. 24
St. Edmund’s Staff is participating in the province-wide professional day. There is no school for students on this day and the office will be closed.
All Hallows Eve, All Saints Day, All Souls Day – October 31st
With the approach of All Hallows Eve (Hallowe’en) on October 31st, All Saints’ Day on November 1st, and All Souls Day on November 2nd, it is important to recognize our faith heritage in a special way, while also recognizing the aspects of fun and school spirit.
As a Catholic school, we will be reminding the students of the origin of All Hallows Eve. Students are welcome to wear orange and black or dress in appropriate costumes. Please ensure that costumes are safe and appropriate for a Catholic elementary school. No full masks or “weapons” of any kind are permitted at school and no make-up resembling blood. Be aware that your child will be in a costume all day – if this is a very special or elaborate costume, you may wish to consider something more “outside friendly” as students will still be outside for play.
Extra-Curricular Programs:
Student Council – Congratulations to all our candidates who have been campaigning to earn a seat on Council as an executive member. The election took place on Monday, September 29th after the presentation of candidate speeches. Let us pray for them and their efforts in this upcoming year. Everyone is enthusiastic for a new leadership team to plan fun and memorable events for the student body. We would also like to thank Ms. Salituro, Mr. Embuido and Ms. Lorezca for assisting all our candidates with their campaigns.
Athletics – We are also proud of our student athletes in cross country and volleyball who have had a great start to their seasons! Please see our school calendar for upcoming meets, home and away games.
Prayers for Peace – takes place on Thursday afternoons (3:00-3:15) with Ms. Salituro. We look forward to having more students join us this year to grow in their prayer practice and to pray for others.
On the 4th Sunday of every month, the 11:00 AM Mass will be celebrated for all students and parents of our school. We kindly request that all students and parents attend and join us in this special celebration. Thank you for your support, and we look forward to seeing you there!
October Calendar Highlights:
Wed. 1 Cross Country Championships at Swangard
Mon. 6 Early Dismissal 12:00
Wed. 8 Whole School Mass 9:00
Mon. 13 Thanksgiving Stat. – No school
Tues. 14 Individual Photo Day
PAC Meeting 7 pm
Wed. 15 Gr. 3 Class Mass
PEC Meeting 7 pm
Thurs. 23 Learning Update Parent-Teacher Conferences – appointed times, No Classes
Fri. 24 Provincial Pro-Day – No School
Sun. 26 11 am Children’s Mass
Fri. 31 Dress Down Day – All Hallow’s Eve