August, 2007

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Welcome to Nativity BVM School and to our new school year! I am certain that this 2007-2008 school year will bring many opportunities for us to share, pray and work together.

I would like to extend a special welcome to all of you who are new to our school. Some of you are familiar to us and some of you are brand new to the area. My prayer for you is that you will feel welcome and part of Nativity School and our Biloxi Community very quickly. Please know that we are all here to help you make that adjustment to our school/area.

Two new staff members have re-joined our Nativity family. Martha Montiforte, who was part of the Cafeteria staff many years ago, has returned and has accepted the position of Cafeteria Manager. She has had extensive experience in other school districts and is eager to share some of these ideas with us. Kim Audo, who at one time was one of the preschool and kindergarten teachers here at Nativity, has returned to our preschool three class as an aide. We are delighted that both of these talented women have become part of our school staff once again.

Over these short summer months, construction workers have been busy with "phase two" of our reconstruction project. Projects either completed or in process include: the renovation of the Kindergarten/PreK bathrooms, the installation of a new gym canopy, the renovation of the upstairs bathrooms, the replacement of cafeteria windows and office windows, the re-glazing of some of the gym windows, the installation of new exterior lights on the gym and last, but certainly not least, the painting of the hallways. As you can see for yourself, some of these projects have been completed, some are in process and some are yet to come. We are so appreciative of the hard work of the personnel of Starks Construction Company and of their workers.

If you had an opportunity to do some careful reading of the "classified section" of the newspaper, you may have seen an advertisement for bids for work here at Nativity BVM School. As many of you know, following Hurricane Katrina, the City of Biloxi asked permission to use our school grounds in order to feed and care for the first responders. These people included our own Biloxi police, fire, emergency and city workers as well as those who came from across the country and around the world. For nearly six weeks, our home became their home and our cafeteria and grounds were filled with these wonderful people who worked tirelessly to help us. Because of the use of our building and grounds and the "wear and tear" on specific areas, our school is eligible for FEMA funds. We are so grateful to Mayor Holloway and to all who have made this possible. Work will begin soon on the replacement of cafeteria doors and the exterior doors nearest the cafeteria. Work will also begin on re paving the driveways and parking area of our school. As that work begins, we many have to do some adjusting of our drop-off/pick-up procedures. What a blessing this all is to our school!

Several events are noted in the August school calendar. ALL new families are invited to our annual New Family Spaghetti Dinner on Thursday, August 16th at 6pm in our cafeteria. ALL PARENTS/GUARDIANS are invited to the School Information Night on Tuesday, August 28th beginning at 6:30pm. Finally, you are encouraged to participate in a family picnic on Friday, August 31st from noon to 1pm. Bring your own picnic lunch for you and your family and take this opportunity to meet other families and children of Nativity. Of course, you are welcome to attend and and all special events listed on the calendar.

One of the blessings of a Catholic school is that we can openly pray and ask for prayers for one another. Your prayers are requested for Mrs. Cook's grandson, AJ, who just completed our sixth grade. Doctors have discovered a growth on his neck and he will have extremely series surgery on Monday, August 20th. I know you will keep AJ, his parents, brothers and family in prayer.

Again, welcome to Nativity BVM School. May God surround you and members of your family with blessings of health, of happiness and peace.

/s Sister Mary Jo