WOH, Tuesday December 5, 2023
Joy to the World! By Patra Mueller, Family Life Minister
I love this time of year as we prepare for Christmas. What a delight to walk into a store or turn on the radio to hear the words of our favorite Christmas carols. One of my favorites is Joy to the World. I love the reminder that God sent Jesus into the world to offer true joy to everyone. Often we get busy and distracted and we miss this. But Christmas is all about receiving the gift of JESUS and sharing the hope and joy that He brings with Others.
We have lots of opportunities to celebrate the joy of Christmas through our Christmas programs and worship services. We also have a great opportunity to serve those in need in our community through our Giving Tree Ministry where we provide gifts for fifteen public schools in West Seattle.
We are also supporting Living Water International through our chapel offerings to provide clean water in countries that don’t have it. Julie Hill from Living Water will be leading chapel on December 6 and will share with our students how they are making a difference. There are many opportunities to experience and share the joy of Jesus!
“Joy to the World the Lord has come, let earth receive her King.
Let every heart prepare Him room and heaven and nature sing.”
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Mon-Fri, 12/4-12/8: Scholastic Book Fair
Tues, 12/5 6:30pm: Christmas Concert (Grades KG-4)*
Wed, 12/6 8:40am: Chapel Guest from Living Water Intl
Fri, 12/8 6:30pm: Preschool Christmas Concert*
Sat, 12/9 4:00-8:00pm: Hot Cocoa at the Junction Holiday Night Market
Mon, 12/11 6:30pm: PTH Auction Meeting
Tues, 12/12 7:00pm: Christmas Performance (Grades 5-8)*
Fri, 12/15: Early Dismissal (K-8); PS/ESC all open
Sun, 12/24 5pm & 7pm: Christmas Eve Services
Mon, 12/25 10am: Christmas Morning Service
*PTH will have a photo area set-up in the Commons after the Christmas concerts to help you take a DIY family picture
SCHOOL NEWS
Hot Cocoa at the Junction – December 9
Ring in the Christmas season with hot cocoa at the West Seattle Junction! Hope Student Council will be handing out cups of hot cocoa and candy canes at the tree lighting from 4 to 8 pm. Last year we served over 600 people! We need volunteers to help set up and take down, manage the hot water production at Hope Church, cart water from the church to our location and prepare and serve the cocoa. PIP hours apply for parents. To sign up, click here.
Eagle Excellence Fund Helps Hope Soar!
We love our school, and it’s because of our amazing families and your generosity that support the work we do here. Many of you have already given to Hope this year and we thank you! There is still time to make a gift; no gift is too small to make a difference. We’re inviting every family to make their best gift by December 31st. Gifts are tax-deductible, and every gift makes a difference! It’s easy to give on online or by submitting a check to the school office. Many employers match employee donations, so be sure to ask about a company matching program. Thank you for your generosity and Go Eagles!
ADMISSIONS
Re-enrollment for Fall 2023 will begin January 15-31, 2024. Current families will re-enroll for the following year through GradeLink beginning January 15th and submit the $200 registration fee/child at the end of the registration process. If you need to enroll a sibling new to Hope, please fill out an application for them through this link. This would include students entering preschool or new to the elementary or middle school programs. Beginning February 1st, new applications will be processed and placed into programs, so in order to secure a spot for your child next fall, please make sure to apply or re-enroll them before January 31st.
IMPORTANT LINKS:
NEW! Lost and Found Link: https://photos.app.goo.gl/A4xXhE1L3qVUEcqHA
Deadline: Dec 15
Instructions: Comment on the picture of your belonging with name and kid’s grade. I will bring it to the office by Dec 15th. I usually get to the office within a day or two after commenting.
All uniforms will be in the office.
Thank you for claiming your item(s). Unclaimed items are donated.
Payment Portal
Sports, Milk and Bible Link- https://bngn.blackbaud.school/?id=xnxrcid4vjy
SCHOOL EVENTS
KG-4th grade Christmas Concert: Tues, 12/5 6:30pm
The Church doors and the front school doors will open at 6:10pm. Students will join their classes & parents are free to go through the Book Fair or find seats in the Sanctuary.
Preschool Christmas Concert Fri, 12/8 6:30pm
Please drop off your preschooler at the north preschool doors. Doors will open at 6:10pm. Parents may then walk around the outside of the building and enter in at the Commons doors. Parents are free to go through the Book Fair or find seats in the Sanctuary.
5th-8th Grade Christmas Performance
Tues, 12/12 7:00pm
Hope Christmas Dress-up Days Coming
Student Council is excited to sponsor spirit days coming up December 12-16! Show your school and community spirit by dressing up in the theme for each day. Students not wearing spirit day apparel must be in school uniforms except for Dec 16 which is a free dress day.
Dec 11 – Christmas Morning (Christmas pajamas and robes)
Dec 12 – Christmas Tree Toppers and Mistletoes (Christmas socks and tights, hats, headbands, antlers, or that type of thing with school uniform)
Dec 13 – Christmas Colors (Wear Christmas colors)
Dec 14 – Christmas Card Day (Christmas ugly sweaters)
Dec 15 – Christmas Explosion (all Christmas colors, themes, characters, etc.- go all out!)
Santa Grams – Sold Dec. 6-13
Student Council will be selling Santa Grams Dec. 7-14 before school. Purchase in the school lobby for $1 per Santa Gram or 3 for $2. These are special messages that can be given to peers, teachers, or family members. They are then attached to a candy cane and delivered to classrooms on Friday, December 15th. Merry Christmas from your Student Council.
Hope Praying Parent Group
This group will meet on Thursdays at 2:30-3:00 pm. Can you come a little early before pickup and join us as we pray for our Hope students and teachers? You don’t have to be an expert at praying out loud to come. You can listen and pray silently as well. We will gather in front of the church office entry and meet in the Fireside room. Questions contact patramueller@hopeseattle.org.
Chapel Offerings for November and December
Thank you for your chapel offering donations during the months of September and October! $554 was raised for Maui wildfire relief, and was sent to Emmanuel Lutheran Church and School in Maui. Chapel offerings for November and December are being donated to Living Water International. Living Water provides clean water to communities throughout the world that do not have access to clean water by building wells.
EAST COAST TRIP FUNDRAISING EVENTS
More fundraising opportunities are coming soon. If you want to be added to the ECT volunteer email list, please email ECTFundraising@hopeseattle.org.
PTH EVENTS
Auction Invites: Early Bird Tickets available on Thurs, 12/7 & Fri, 12/8 only!
The auction invites will be coming home to you today in your student’s yellow envelope. Don’t miss out on a great night! Please note that the Auction Early Bird Tickets will go on sale this week only, December 7th and 8th. Regular ticket pricing of $90.00 per ticket begins December 9th.The Early Bird pricing is $70/ticket, rather than the regular price of $90/ticket. You may order Early Bird Tickets here
This event provides funding for the PTH budget only, which supports classroom enhancements, teacher funds, and so on.
Next Auction Meeting: Mon, 12/11 at 6:30pm – 7:30pm in the Commons. Come help us plan our auction and earn your PIP hours! (Auction will be on March 9, 2024). The Auction Committee meets on Tuesdays (unless otherwise posted).
Auction Volunteers needed: Many hands (and hearts) make light work, and we need many volunteers to have a successful auction. There are many opportunities to work from home as well. Please use the link to sign up to help. https://hopeseattle.ejoinme.org/volunteer
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES – Earn your PIP hours!
Scholastic Book Fair
It is time for some holiday book shopping at our Scholastic Book Fair in December. We are needing volunteers to help set up and cashiers to help students and families pick out the just right books. Times and dates are on the signup genius link. This is a great opportunity to earn PIP hours.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F054CACAA23A4FA7-45745464-scholastic
CHURCH EVENTS
Deacon Dan Jackson’s Memorial Reception
We are looking for a group of about eight people that could help set up tables and chairs in the gym for Deacon Dan Jackson’s (Mrs. Seraile’s dad) reception at 11:30am on Saturday, 12/9/23. Please contact Tammy Shelver (office@hopeseattle.org) or Greta Thode (gretamthode@msn.com).