Principal steps aside for the day
Sixth-grader Camryn Skaggs served as "Principal for the Day" at Valle Catholic Grade School on Dec. 8. She earned the honor by reading the most minutes (8,825) during the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge this past summer. Camryn set up the morning staff meeting with coffee, cocoa and snacks, took care of principal Jill Metzger's pet fish, performed cafeteria lunch duty and asked trivia questions of classes throughout the day. Her final activity of the day was decorating the Christmas tree in the lobby and putting out the Nativity set with the help of third-grader Elcie Schweigert.
For the love of science
Eighth graders from St. Mary Magdalen School in Brentwood recently participated in the Young Scientist Program at Ferrell Learning Center on Washington University's Medical Center Complex. The students performed a genetic experiment extracting DNA from a strawberry using shampoo, salt, alcohol and water. They also experimented with a Slinky to identify different effects that determine the speed of sound waves. They were looking at relationships between wave length and frequency because wave length times frequency equals the speed of the wave. "We were thrilled to get the opportunity to participate in this program," principal Kathy Wiseman said.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Christmas carols
A Christmas carol sing-a-long will be held at the L'Arche St. Louis Sunrise House, 2900 Marshall Ave. in Maplewood from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 20. Feel free to bring cookies to share. L'Arche St. Louis is a faith-based community, rooted in the Roman Catholic tradition, of people with and without disabilities who share their lives in profound ways.
Performances benefit Franciscan Sisters OLPH
The Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help will benefit from two sets of performances at the Fabulous Fox Theatre. The Moscow Ballet's Great Russian Nutcracker will have two shows on Saturday, Dec. 23, at 3 p.m. and at 7 p.m. Then, "A Celebration of Peace and All Good" — the debut live performance of Dawn Weber & Friends' new jazz album — will be at 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 14, in the Curtain Call Lounge at the Fox. Tickets are limited, with a $50 donation per ticket. For information, visit fsolph.org or call (314) 965-3700.
YCM Christmas concert
The 40th Christmas Concert of the Young Catholic Musicians will be held from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 28, and again Friday, Dec. 29, at Seven Holy Founders Church, 6737 S. Rock Hill Road in Affton. Msgr. Dennis Stehly, vicar general of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and moderator of the Curia, will read the narration on Dec. 28, and Theresa Ruzicka, president of Catholic Charities of St. Louis, will read the narration on Dec. 29. Tickets are $10 for reserved seating in front and $5 for general admission in the last seven rows of the church. The Young Catholic Musicians are singers and instrumentalists from throughout the metro St. Louis area. For information call (314) 962-9260 or email [email protected]. Make checks payable to YCM Concert Tickets, c/o Mary Smith 144 Cottage Ave., St. Louis, MO 63119.
Basketball with a heart
The annual Mary McDermott Third Grade Basketball Tournament will be held the weekend of Dec. 28-30 at Immacolata Parish Gym, 8900 Clayton Road in Richmond Heights. All proceeds benefit SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, in particular the Cardiac Catheterization Suite named in honor of Mary McDermott, a former patient who was born with heart and liver problems and lived to age 24. A silent auction will feature sports memorabilia items, including a St. Louis Cardinals jersey signed by Dexter Fowler; a St. Louis Blues sweater signed by Vladimir Tarasenko and a game-used stick signed by Alexander Steen, plus four tickets to the March 21 game; a U.S. Women's National Team shirt signed by team captain and St. Louisan Becky Sauerbrunn; four tickets for the Sept. 8 University of Notre Dame home football game vs Ball State; a Manchester City shirt signed by members of the current EPL team; an official Barcelona shirt signed by Lionel Messi; and more. An expanded menu of food will be available. To contribute to the cause, make a check payable to SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation, 3800 Park Ave., St. Louis, Mo. 63110, with "Mary McDermott" on the memo line. For information, email [email protected] or call (314) 577-5605.
MLK Celebration features jazz concert
Chaminade College Preparatory School will host the sixth annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration on Friday, Jan. 12. The event will consist of jazz workshops throughout the day and a jazz concert in the evening, beginning at 7 p.m. The concert will feature headliner Good 4 The Soul as well as jazz bands from Chaminade and Riverview Gardens Senior High School. Concert tickets are $12 at the door or $10 in advance at www.chaminade-stl.org. Proceeds benefit the St. Joseph/St. Jude Scholarships for minority students at Chaminade. The workshops will include a number of area school bands: Chaminade, Riverview Gardens, Normandy High School, St. Dominic High School, St. Joseph School in Cottleville, Jackson High School (Jackson, Mo.) and Fort Zumwalt West Middle School.