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JANUARY 27, 2011

         The highlight of this beginning of the New Year was undoubtedly the long-awaited arrival of two of our three sisters, Sisters Mary Catherine and Maria Barbara. It was on Tuesday January 4 that they arrived, and began to settle in to their new home, St. Therese of the Child Jesus convent in Wellesley. The lower level of the convent was still in the process of being remodeled and they had to temporarily stay upstairs until the cloistered area was completed on January 17.

The St. Therese of the Child Jesus convent, home of the Oblate sisters of the Society of Saint Pius X in Wellesley, near New Hamburg, Ontario.

The Sisters in their immaculate clean convent kitchen.

          The sisters immediately began to take up their functions at the Academy. Sister Mary Catherine is henceforth the school cook, and Sister Maria Barbara is in charge of laundry and of maintaining cleanliness in the boarding facility – neither of them being an easy task.

          It was in the midst of a snow storm on Saturday January 15 that the altar and necessary sacristy items were installed in the newly completed chapel in the lower level of St. Therese of the Child Jesus convent. Then on Tuesday January 18 the first Mass was celebrated in the new chapel, a votive Mass in honor of its patron, the Little Flower. Henceforth the Blessed Sacrament is reserved, and Mass is celebrated in the chapel once a week, usually on a Friday morning.

Father May celebrates Mass in the convent chapel for the Sisters at St. Therese of the Child Jesus convent in Wellesley.

          It was a scramble for the boarders to make it back for the beginning of the second term barely more than a week after Christmas, but most of the students were enthusiastic to start again on Monday January 3. The first important task was to prepare for the talent show on Thursday January 6, feast of the Epiphany. There was no school that day, but after a High Mass and pot luck dinner, all retired to the gym for a presentation of a variety of drama, music and recitation, prepared by the students and directed by English teacher, Mr. Francis Nwadibia. The high school boys presented several skits and plays, adding comedy entertainment to the afternoon, whilst students of all ages sung or presented some keyboard pieces, or poetry recital, and a violin quartet.

          The first week back after Christmas was also the occasion to welcome the addition of a new faculty member, which enabled the combined 4th and 5th grade class to be divided into two different classes with six students each. Miss Bryan now takes the fifth grade, whereas Mrs. Kotsos retains the fourth grade students. This addition will both remove the pressure from the teachers and improve considerably the quality of the education the Academy can offer.

          Excellent falls of snow during the month were much appreciated by the skiers, especially on Friday January 14, on which day two groups of skiers, from the grade school and the high school, took off to Bechtel Park in Waterloo for lessons in Cross Country skiing. They were less appreciated by those who love ice skating, since the efforts to construct an ice rink were continually thwarted by the snow falls.

          The next big event was the school`s annual science fair, which was judged and presented to the parish on Sunday January 16. All the students from 4th – 12th grades were obliged to present their own research project in writing and verbally, both to the judges and to the parishioners. Prizes were awarded to the best students in the High School, Junior High and grade school divisions.

Here a fifth grader explains his science project to Sister Maria Barbara at the Science Fair on January 16 in the gymnasium.

Here an 8th grader explains his winning project at the Science Fair - the development on an egg into a chick, which chick entertained the classroom also.

           The hockey players had their chance on Thursday January 20, on which day Father May took the high school boys to the Wilmot Recreation Centre hockey rink for a one hour competition.

          From then on until the end of the semester on Friday January 28, it was all tests and examinations, cramming, studying and preparing, intermingled with snow fights and snow fort building.

Schola practice. Mr. De Vriendt uses his classroom for schola practice for the Academy boys who sing the Gregorian Chant for the High Mass every Sunday.

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