Faith, Excellence, Service all year

By Joan Matys
Head of School, All Saints Academy, Webster

The faculty and staff at All Saints Academy in Webster strive to guide students to be good citizens of the world, to love God and neighbor, and to enrich society with the messages of the Gospel and through the example of faith. This guidance is not limited to the annual Catholic Schools Week, but rather permeates each school day throughout the year. 
The theme of Catholic Schools Week this year was “Catholic Schools: Faith. Excellence. Service.” All Saints Academy has addressed each of these areas through various activities.
To share and learn about faith, students replicated a stained-glass cross that illustrated how each of them live their lives by Jesus’ example. Some of their examples included: “Jesus, use me to spread positivity and creativity,” and “Jesus, use me to spread hope.” Students were also treated to special guests who virtually visited with each class and spoke to them about vocations. Making it even more special, these discussions were facilitated by former faculty and staff members.
All Saints Academy provides a loving and nurturing environment in which students strive for excellence, both academically and personally, because the focus is on the whole child: mind, body and spirit. The school has had in-person instruction since August, and students and staff have been working hard to excel in a challenging and changing environment. 
The students worked hard to create mini poetry anthologies to share virtually with families and special persons in a Poet-Tea event. Additionally, students in all grades created a large replica of the United States flag, made up of all the countries that represent their heritages, demonstrating that while we can acknowledge and celebrate our differences, we still have much in common.
The entire school community serves others in one form or another. This year, because of the pandemic, students cannot personally serve at area establishments that need help, so they are helping in other ways. As the school marked the 100th day of school milestone, Operation 100 was well underway. Students and families donated cake mixes, cooking oil, shelf-stable milk and frosting to create Birthday Bags for food-deprived children, because all children deserve to celebrate their birthday with cake. 
Students also collected and created First Responder Care Kits, containing personal care items, snacks and bottled water, because it is important to care for the ones who take care of everyone else.
The original goal was to create a combined 100 gift bags, but the response has been overwhelming and will likely reach 100 bags each for the Birthday Bags and First Responder Kits.
All Saints Academy and its families are proud of the accomplishments of their students. While Catholic Schools Week happens once a year, they know that living in faith, excellence and service takes place every day throughout the year.

See CSW Photo Album