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St.

Augustine Academy
130 South Wells Road Ventura California 93004 805-672-0411 Fax 805-672-2365 e-mail StAugAcad@juno.com www.SaintAugustineAcademy.com

March 7, 2014 Dear families

Sts. Felicity and Perpetua

Board of Governors President Thomas Q. Ellis Secretary Robert R. Orellana, Esq. Treasurer Michael C. Collins Members Abel Montiel Jeff Schuberg Michael F. McLean, Ph.D. Louise Warnert

Last week we got to consider some wonderful and important spiritual thoughts as we prepared for Lent. This week, we turn back to an educational consideration. I recently read an article that exhibited, so well, the great and simple beauty of literature. In an age of ever-increasing standards and evaluative data requirements, it was a breath of fresh air. While it is still worthy to study literatures style, elements, and structure in order to become a better practitioner of rhetoric, it is essential to keep that in check. It is very important to keep as part of the weekly (or daily) schedules a time for reading just reading. While our children were growing up we ended up reading to them most nights for a little while. Some nights it was hard because other duties seemed to be pressuring us to not fit in reading. Some nights we were just so tired. And yet, even on most of those nights we made sure to read at least one chapter of the story we were enjoying. On the far side of this exercise, we have seen the powerful and lovely benefits of this practice. Our lives, and the lives of our children are much richer for the friends we met (Tom Sawyer, Bilbo Baggins and Alice and the Cheshire Cat), the places we visited (Dickens London, Dantes Inferno, and the raccoons den where we wait till the moon is full), and the things we saw (trolls, cows jumping over the moon and Pa swinging his ax.) Goodnight Moon! I shared before the great benefits of reading aloud to the children it should be a high priority for young children, and a priority which may re-arrange but not disappear even for older children. One suggestion I read for Lent was to decrease electricity time. Spend LESS time with TV, radio or the computerespecially the internet where much time is truly wasted in social surfing and Enquirer-like news sites. [The top two trending news stories on yahoo.com right nowTexans Cheerleader and Chipoltle Guacamole.] NOW, take that time and spend it on more human endeavors like playing a game, hand-writing a letter to a friend or relative, or reading a book! Consider this letter from Teddy Roosevelt to Mr. Grahame, author of The Wind in the Willows. As Professor Anthony Esolen reflects, [W]e do not read The Wind in the Willows in order to build knowledge about talking rats, or to broaden worldviews, whatever that term from political sloganeering is supposed to mean. We read The Wind in the Willows to enter the world of The Wind in the Willows, and maybe learn something about ourselves in the process. But the aim of reading the work is simply the joy and the wonder of it; it is a good book, because it tells us good and true things in an artful way. My mind moves in ruts, as I suppose most minds do, and at first I could not reconcile myself to the change from the ever-delightful Harold and his associates, and so for some time I could not accept the toad, the mole, the water-rat, and the badger as substitutes. But after a while [my wife] and two of the boys, Kermit and Ted, all quite independently, got hold of The Wind Among the Willows [sic] and took such delight in it that I began to feel that I might have to revise my judgment. Then [she] read it aloud to the younger children, and I listened now and then. Now I have read it and reread it, and have come to accept the characters as old friends; and I am almost more fond of it than your previous books. Indeed, I feel about going to Africa very much as the sea-faring rat did when he almost made the water-rat wish to forsake everything and start wandering! I felt I must give myself the pleasure of telling you how much we had all enjoyed your book.

Headmaster Michael J. Van Hecke, M.Ed. Vice President of Development J. Peter Slaga Board of Advisors Hon. Jeremiah Denton Former U.S. Senator Mr. Nicholas J. Healy, Jr. Professor of Phil. And Culture John Paul II Institute Dr. Ronald P. McArthur Co-founder Thomas Aquinas College Mr. Roy S. Rohter, S.F.O. Co-founder St. Augustine Academy Fr. Michael Scanlan, T.O.R. Chancellor Franciscan University Mr. James Stenson Educator and Author

Life Centers Dinner/Dance & Auction on March 29th at the Las Posas Country Club. For questions or information visit the website at http://www.vclifecenters.com/events.html

Basketball
Middle School Games at SAA or at the school listed all games at 3:30 PM. M.S. Boys MON., Mar 10th @ St. Mary Magdalen M.S. Girls Tues., Mar 11th v. St. Mary Magdalen @ HOME M.S. Girls Thur., Mar 13th v. Sacred Heart @ HOME

This years basketball tournament will be on March 24th. (Monday) and March 25th. (Tuesday) At St. Bonaventura High School gym. Boys and Girls will play on both days. We will start at 3:30 each day and the Championship games will be Tuesday Starting around 6:00. I will be sending out the seeding (brackets) after the season ends
HEARING AID FOUND! Please let us know if you lost a hearing aid. It looks as if it may be a childs hearing aid. Contact the office at 672-0411.

Mock Trial A couple of other quick notes: First, here is a link to an article about the Mock Trial competition, which featured St. Augustines team in a photo spread.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2014/feb/22/record-number-of-high-schools-will-participate/ Also, our team garnered 15 votes for Best Of Mock Trial AwardsJunior, Megan Schuberg, took home the Bronze for her role as the court Clerk. Juniors, Bobby Lueck and Riley Hill, also garnered multiple votes for their roles as Defense Attorney and Medical Witness, respectively. It is important to note that Ventura County is among the most competitive counties in the nation! We often have teams in the top finishers in the state, and in the national competition, so we are learning with the best of the best. Intramural Soccer The league has begun! Games are scheduled daily after school throughout the month of March. Thank you Mr. Rossi, and student organizers. CALENDAR EVENTS Mar 7th First Friday Early Dismissal Monastic Day Student Council Bowling Rec Day End of 3rd Quarter th Mar 9 Daylight Savings Spring forward! Mar 13th National Latin Exam grades 8-12 Mar 14th Pi Day and Report Cards th th Mar 16 -18 Mr. Van Hecke on WASC/WCEA Accreditation Visit Pasadena. Mar 19th -20th Parent-Teacher Conferences. Mar 22nd A Man for All Seasons, the school play, will be performed at 7:15 PM. PRAYERS We continue to keep all our friends and family in our prayers. For the repose of the soul of the Collins grandmother, and the soul of Charlie Van Hecke, and for consolation for the families. Please continue to pray for Mr. Vargas, for Mrs. Warnerts father, Mrs. Collins father, Mrs. OKanes sister, Joan, and for Mrs. Lyons daughter, Diana. We pray for the souls of all those friends and family who have passed away. For three special intentions. We pray for all our school families, their needs and those of their friends and relatives. We pray for our Pope, our Archbishop, all of our priests and religious, and, for each other.

Is there no hope at all? Not really would seem to be the answer, except perhaps for the grace of the Incarnation.
- St. Augustine of Hippo

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