HRA WEEKLY UPDATE – POETRY & SONG

Here are some preliminary notes and reminders before the summary of the week behind and the week ahead:

ANNOUNCEMENTS & REMINDERS

• HRA will be hosting a Student Gallery Event in St. Dominic’s Hall on Friday, May 12^th from 3:30-6:00 p.m. Select student art projects from all grades will be on display in St. Dominic’s Hall. We will post participant names in the next Weekly Update.
• Holy Family Cathedral will be celebrating a Fatima Centennial Event on Saturday, May 13^th at 8:30 a.m. with rosary, Mass, and a talk by Fr. Christopher Brannon O.P.
• The Yale Whiffenpoofs, featuring HRA 2013 graduate Michael Tappel, will be performing at Patrick Church at7:00pm on Thursday, May 25th. The Whiffenpoofs are the nation’s oldest collegiate a cappella group, and perform in over 250 concerts in 20+ countries annually. They are thrilled to be visiting Alaska for the first time in the group’s history. Tickets can be purchased online through the Whiffenpoofs’ website, www.whiffenpoofs.com.
• Archbishop Etienne is sponsoring a Golf Tournament for seminarian education on June 7^th. Sponsorship information is available through Laurie Evans-Dinneen at ledinneen@caa-ak.org or (907)297-7789. (Sponsorship forms are attached to this email.)

SPECIAL THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

• Thank you to Mrs. Dixon for subbing for Mrs. Shaut on Friday afternoon.

WEEK IN REVIEW 

MONDAY 5/1: Miss Neumayr made the following announcements at the Morning Assembly:

• We only have three weeks of school left.
• May is the month dedicated to Mary –
  • On May 1^st we celebrate May Crowning and the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker.
  • Everyone is encouraged to pray for their families this month in honor of the Holy Family, who were the first Domestic Church.
  • Miss Neumayr read the following meditation written by Pope St. John Paul II from his Act of Entrustment to the Immaculate Heart of Mary:

Mother of all individuals and peoples, you know all their sufferings and hopes. In your motherly heart you feel all the struggles between good and evil, between light and darkness, that convulse the world: accept the plea which we make in the Holy Spirit directly to your heart, and embrace with the love of the Mother and Handmaid of the Lord those who most await this embrace, and also those whose act of entrustment you too await in a particular way. Take under your motherly protection the whole human family, which with affectionate love we entrust to you, O Mother. May there dawn for everyone the time of peace and freedom, the time of truth, of justice, and of hope.

• We encourage continued prayers for the following people:
  • Robert Whitney & Dcn. Bryce Evans as they prepare for their Priestly Ordinations.
  • Archbishop emeritus, Roger Schweitz, who went to the hospital with chest pain over the weekend.
  • Stephen Moore, pastor at SEAS, who is suffering a relapse of his cancer and several broken ribs after a recent fall.
• Miss Neumayr read a lovely invitation she received from the Dominican Nuns of Corpus Christi Monastery to witness the First Profession of Religious Vows of school benefactor, Tara Clemmens, who will take the name Sister Marie Dominic of the Incarnate Word on the Solemnity of the Ascension of Our Lord, Sunday, May 28^th in Menlo Park, California.
• Wrestling News:
  • HRA made a great showing at the State Wrestling Tournament! Our students competed in all four wrestling divisions: Women’s, Folkstyle, Greco-Roman, and Freestyle.
  • Arianna Manuel (K) placed 1^st in her weight class for the Women’s division and 5^th in her weight class for Freestyle.
  • Kaili Manuel (2^nd) earned first place medals for both the Women’s and Freestyle divisions in her weight class.
  • Belicia Manuel (3^rd) placed 1^st in the Greco-Roman division and 2^nd in the Women’s division.
  • Amarisa Manuel (5^th) is the first woman in Alaska to win gold medals in all four divisions in the same tournament.
  • Benjamin Lincoln (1^st) placed 6^th in his weight class.
  • Michael Lucas (11^th) participated in the 2017 Western Junior Regional Greco-Roman and Freestyle Tournaments in Las Vegas, NV last week, competing very well and winning over half of his matches. Over the weekend, before returning home, he also competed in the U.S. Open Juniors Folkstyle Tournament, placing 3^rd.

MONDAY 5/1: The annual HRA May Crowning ceremony was absolutely beautiful. The clouds and chilly breeze sent us into St. Dominic’s Hall with our flowers for Mary. Fr. Manzano led us in prayer before the Seniors and Juniors led us all in a rosary. Then we sang hymns as each student, guest, and staff member placed a flower in the vases at the foot of Our Lady.

TUESDAY 5/2: Kindergarten-12^th Grade worked with Mrs. Duncan for the afternoon in a dress rehearsal for the Festival of Poetry & Song. She commends all of the students for rehearsing so attentively and so well. The work did not take as long as expected and students were able to return to classes or have recess for the remainder of the day.

WEDNESDAY 5/3: Kindergarten Sibling Day – It was delightful to have the HRA younger siblings who are enrolled in the 2017-18 Kindergarten class spend a day with Mrs. Shaut and the current Kindergarten. Everyone had a lot of fun.

WEDNESDAY 5/3: 4^th & 5^th Grades went on a field trip to Campbell Creek Mine. Thank you to the parents who helped as drivers and chaperones: Ms. Allen, Mrs. Bittner, Mr. Broek, Mrs. Grandel, Mr. Le, Mrs. Lederhos, and Mr. Pimentel.

THURSDAY 5/4: Fr. Manzano said the All School Mass in St. Dominic’s Hall. He also gave a special blessing for the donations we collected for Annika Dyer and her family this week. Thank you, Fr. Manzano. We would also like to thank those who helped with the Mass in particular ways:

• Altar Servers: John Lastimoso (10^th) and Justin Persson (10^th)
• Readers: Jon Syren (11^th) and Alec Grandel (12^th)
• Cantor: Mrs. Duncan

THURSDAY 2/4: The Holy Rosary Academy High School Track Team participated in the Kodiak Invitational Track Meet at West High School. HRA placed 5^th in the Men’s 4×100 Relay, Peter Anderson (10^th) placed 14^th in the Men’s 800 m, 12^th in the Men’s Long Jump, and 10^th in the Men’s 1.6 kg Discus. John Lastimoso (10^th) placed 19^th in the Men’s 200 m, 11^th in the Men’s Long Jump, and 8^th in the Men’s 1.6 kg Discus. Stephen Woyte (11^th) placed 22^nd in the Men’s 200 m and 15^th in the Men’s Long Jump. Michael Lucas (11^th) placed 12^th in the Men’s 200 m and 1^st in the Men’s Long Jump with a personal best. Go Knights!

FRIDAY 5/5: Upper School Mary Schedule – Students went to the JPII Chapel in the afternoon for a First Friday Holy Hour.

FRIDAY 5/5: It was great to see all the families at the Festival of Poetry & Song! The performance was full of fun and humor. The Kindergarten, First Grade, and Second Grade sang a delightful song about the intolerable temptation of chocolate chip cookies which was just adorable. Fourth Grade acted out their recitation of “Casey at the Bat”. The faculty acted out Nursery Rhymes as the younger students recited them with Miss Neumayr. We commend all the performers for their fine efforts. We would also like to thank the volunteers who helped with set-up and clean-up at Deacons Hall: the Petrash family, Mr. Patton, Mr. & Mrs. Sanchez, the Nakada family, Mr. & Mrs. Bune, Mrs. Gonzalez, Mr. Koop, Mrs. Ndedi, Mrs. Reimann, Mrs. Benton, Mr. Sammons, and the Lucas family. The following students were invaluable help during clean-up: Eric Bjelland, Drew Benton, Juliana Biegel, Stephen Woyte, Thomas Biegel, Elena Biegel, and Ava Longlet. Thank you to all who helped.

SATURDAY 5/6: The Juniors & Seniors hosted a charming Upper School Prom. Congratulations to the new King & Queen of the Prom: Atlin Bell (11^th) and Gabrielle Holder (11^th). We commend all the Juniors and Seniors who worked so hard on this event under the guidance of Mr. Welsh. Stephen Woyte (11^th) organized the beautiful location. Juliana Biegel (11^th) and Lael Droege (11^th) led the decoration efforts. Mary Tappel (12^th) and Ciara McMorrow (11^th) made cakes for everyone to enjoy desert. We thank our chaperones: Mr. Welsh, Mrs. & Mr. Shoop, Mrs. Schirda, Miss Neumayr, and Mr. Mason. We were thrilled to have so many parents join us as well as alumni, Jessica Smith (’15) and Lee Cookson (’15).

THE WEEK TO COME

MONDAY 5/8: Morning Assembly – 8:00 a.m. in St. Dominic’s Hall

MONDAY 5/8: The Junior Thesis Defense for Michael Lucas will take place in St. Dominic’s Hall from 2:20-3:00 p.m.

TUESDAY 5/9: Lower School Mass with Fr. Brosamer in the JPII Chapel at 2:15 p.m.

WEDNESDAY 5/10: Each HRA class will offer a sung Salve Regina for the repose of the soul of benefactor, Vern Hickel, on the anniversary of his passing.

THURSDAY 5/11: First Grade will take a field trip to the Court House in the morning and then visit the Fish Hatchery in the afternoon.

THURSDAY 5/11: Second Grade will visit the Campbell Creek Science Center for the day.

THURSDAY 5/11: Upper School Mass in the JPII Chapel at 9:45 a.m.

THURSDAY-FRIDAY 5/11-12: Senior Exams will take place in the St. Thomas Aquinas Library throughout the day.

FRIDAY 5/12: Upper School Joseph Schedule with Community Service in the afternoon

FRIDAY 5/12: Art Gallery Evening on campus

UPCOMING IMPORTANT EVENTS

• 7^th-11^th Grade Exams will take place on May 15^th & 16^th.
• 12^th Grade Baccalaureate Mass & Reception – Tuesday, May 16^th at Holy Family Cathedral
• 12^th Grade Graduation Mass and Ceremonies – Noon, Wednesday, May 17^th at Our Lady of Guadalupe Co-cathedral. All students, faculty and staff will attend the graduation. Students must be picked up at OLG by 3:30 p.m. There will be no After School Care on this day.
• K-6^th Grade Field Day at Our Lady of Guadalupe Co-cathedral on Thursday, May 18^th
• 7^th-12^th Grade Field Trip on Thursday, May 18^th
• 6^th & 8^th Grade Graduation Ceremony and Reception Thursday, May 18^th at 7:00 p.m. in St. Dominic’s Hall
• End of Year Awards Ceremony & Kindergarten Graduation Friday, May 19^th
• End of Year BBQ Friday, May 19^th with 1:00 p.m. dismissal. There will be no After School Care on this day.