From the Desk of Mrs. Tiezzi

Dear St. Rita Parents/Guardians,

Congratulations to our Boys Varsity Basketball team for winning the New Haven Deanery Championship after defeating the Assumption Cagers by a score of 46-42. The boys have a bye to the 1st round play in the Archdiocesan Tournament games this Saturday, March 9. However, they will be playing on Sunday, March 10, at 12:30 P.M. at St. John’s School in Watertown. The Girls Varsity team will also be playing in the Archdiocesan Tournament this Saturday, March 9. They will be playing at 11:45 A.M. at St. John Paul the Great Academy in Torrington. Their opponent will be the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Waterbury. The admission fee is $5.00 per adult for each of the games. 

Tomorrow and Friday are early dismissal days for optional Parent-Teacher Conferences. Teachers have sent out a link for parents to sign up for conferences. Please contact your child’s teacher via the link if you would like to schedule a conference. The grade portal will be closed tomorrow morning as the marking period has ended. Report cards will be sent home next Wednesday, March 13. If your tuition account is past due, your child’s report card will be held until the account is made current. 

We are half-way through the season of Lent and our Lenten service project, which will help with the rebuilding of Sacred Hearts School in Lahaina, Hawaii, has surpassed the $2,000 mark. Many of our students are assisting at home by performing additional chores or sacrificing their lunch snack in order to help the students at Sacred Hearts who lost everything, including their school, to the wildfires last August. We will continue to collect donations until after Easter. Thank you to our families for teaching their children the importance of sacrifice and almsgiving. 

Our Lost & Found is once again overflowing with green fleeces, navy sweatshirts, green polo shirts, water bottles, pink earmuffs, winter hats, winter jackets, lunch boxes, and other assorted items. If your child has come home missing items, please have them check our lost and found. The school uniform items will be recycled and the other items will be placed in the church donation bin if they are not claimed by April break. Any item properly labeled with your child’s name will be returned to him/her. 

During this Lenten season, our students in grades 3-8 will be receiving the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, also called confession. In confession we meet the Lord, who wants to grant forgiveness and the grace to live a renewed life in Him. All churches in the Archdiocese of Hartford, during the season of Lent, are making it easier for Catholics to experience God’s love and mercy in this sacrament by offering confessions every Monday. Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church will be open for Confessions every Monday during Lent from 6:00 to 7:30 P.M. 

The dates for First Communion and Graduation are now finalized. Our First Communion Mass will take place at St. Rita Church on Saturday, May 11 at 9:30 A.M. Graduation for the Class of 2023 will take place at St. Rita Church on Friday, June 7 at 6:00 P.M. Graduation Mass will be held at 9:00 A.M. on June 7. Parents and relatives are invited to join the St. Rita School community in celebrating the Class of 2024. 

During this season of Lent, Pope Francis invites the faithful to sow seeds of goodness so that we might reap a harvest of salvation for ourselves and others. Throughout this season let us take some time as a family to reflect, pray, and sacrifice, and by doing so, grow closer to God, the church, and each other.

Thank you for entrusting your child/ren to our care.

God Bless,

Mrs. Tiezzi

Principal

This Weekend!

Girls Varsity

Saturday, March 9 - 11:45 A.M.

at St. John Paul the Great Academy in Torrington

v. Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Waterbury

Boys Varsity

Sunday, March 10 - 12:30 P.M.

at St. John’s School in Watertown

St. Paul VI Parish

Holy Week Schedule

Morning Drop off



Parents - if you arrive before 7:50 am for drop off, please form only 1 line in front of the entrance, or park in a parking space. The teachers/staff are having trouble entering the parking lot in the morning when both lanes are blocked. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.

Church Etiquette

St. Rita Church, as well as any other sacred spaces, is a place of prayer and worship. We teach our students to be respectful of these sacred spaces by following some simple rules of etiquette. We ask that our parents and grandparents do the same. Below are some respectful practices we ask you to follow when joining our students at Mass.

• Arrive for Mass on time - genuflect when entering the pew, kneel down and say a prayer before sitting.
• Do not talk during Mass unless you are responding to the priest
• Do not take food, water bottles, or coffee/tea into the church. Should your young child need a snack, please be sure you clean up if they make a mess.
• Visit the restroom before the Mass to take care of any grooming needs such as combing hair or touching up make-up.
• Stay off your cell phone and please have it on silent mode
• Baseball hats should not be worn during Mass.
• Dress appropriately – such items as pajama pants, wrinkled and dirty clothing, or revealing clothing such as bare midriffs, short shorts, and strapless tops, are not church appropriate.
• Please work with your children on being attentive during Mass. Allowing them to talk loudly, kick the back of the seat, lay on the pew, eat and drink food or candy, play with toys or electronic devices, mistreat hymnals, and bother others is not allowed when they are in school and should not be allowed when they are with parents.

Thank you so much for helping us model for our students’ proper church etiquette.

We are currently accepting new enrollments for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year. If you know of a family who is interested in learning more about St. Rita School, please have them contact Mrs. Bruno, our admissions director, to set up a tour or learn more about our wonderful school. Our parent referral program is now open and details on how to receive a $250 referral tuition credit for the upcoming school year can be found on our website.

Visit our Family Referral page for more information:

 https://www.stritaschool.org/Referral-Program

PALM CROSS SALE STARTS THIS WEEKEND

The St. Paul VI Knights of Columbus are again selling blessed Palm Crosses for Easter beginning this weekend at all churches. These beautiful crosses measure 24” high by 12” across, include a variety of colored ribbons and feature an artificial lily, suitable to adorn your yard or respectfully placed at gravesites of beloved family members.

           The crosses are $13.00 each and 2 for $25. Order forms are at the exits through the weekend of March 16-17, 2024 or on the parish website. Order forms with payment can be deposited into collection boxes located at all churches. Crosses will be available for pickup on Palm Sunday weekend, March 23~24, 2024 from all churches at the times designated on the order form. Spanish order forms will be available at Blessed Sacrament church. Thank you for your support!

HSA

Home/School Association

Easter Egg Hunt

Saturday, March 23

Donations for St. Rita School

Online Auction!

We are holding our annual online auction to raise money for St. Rita School starting on Mon April 29th, 2024 @ 6:00 AM EDT and ending on Mon May 6th, 2024 @ 9:00 PM EDT.

If you or someone you know would like to donate an item or service to the auction, have them follow this link:

https://yourcharityauction.com/item_donation.php?a=3429 

If you have any questions, email us at hsasrs.stritaschool@gmail.com by 4/27/2024.

Please forward this email to anyone you know that may be interested in helping!

Your generosity and assistance is what keeps St. Rita School thriving. We hope that you will participate in the auction! Thank you for your continued support.

Sincerely,

St. Rita HSA

Nurse's Corner

Please pray for all the deceased members of our

St. Rita Community.