Dear Mater Christi Families,
We are heading into the third week of school and are off to a wonderful start! In our opening
day assembly back on August 30th, I emphasized the reality of newness, which all of us would be
experiencing in some way or another. I encouraged students not only to embrace the newness,
but also to reach out to those around them who might be anxious about it. This would be the
start to building a family away from home. I am happy to report that your children have heartily
embraced new teachers, new classmates, new academic challenges and, for some, a new
building. I love to greet children at the crosswalk in the morning, and those meetings to this
point in the year have been filled with smiles, happiness and glowing reports. There is no better
foundation on which to build a great year for a school than the joy of its students!
Backing up to two days before school, we were delighted with a robust attendance at our Meet
Your Teacher Night. New and returning students and families got to walk around their
soon-to-be classrooms, unload some school supplies, eat ice cream, and catch up with friends. A
real success!
Another great success has been the work of Chef Dan in the kitchen. Elementary, intermediate
and middle school students alike have given rave reviews of his cooking as they enjoy lunch
together in the dining room.
On September 7th we welcomed Fr. David Theroux, a member of our Board of Trustees and
adjunct faculty member at St. Michael’s College, who celebrated for us our opening Mass.
Students responded well to our invitation to couple reverence with hearty participation in Mass.
And on the very next day, our PTO pulled off what seemed like an impossible feat: a wildly
successful Back-to-School Carnival… indoors! With rain pouring down outside, families, staff,
and a healthy brigade of volunteers, led by a group of MCS alums/new Rice 9th graders, joined
in an entertaining evening filled with burgers & dogs, contests, games, and festivities. Thank
you for all your work, PTO!
This week began with a middle school trip to Camp Abnaki, where students and teachers bonded
as a team and as a family. Despite the strength of our middle school in so many ways, we have
highlighted this year the need to connect students across grade levels. This trip was designed to
strengthen these connections. It was also lots of fun!
In addition to the Abnaki trip, we have also introduced to the middle school our brand new
advisory program, called Discovery. Our motto, “discovering personal greatness,” is the
inspiration behind this program, which is designed to proactively address issues identified by,
and unique to, students of this age group. We want to see students come to know and embrace
the person God has created each of them to be, and to exercise their unique gifts in the often
challenging context of middle school life. I will be describing more about this program at
Curriculum Night on Thursday.
Which brings me to what is still to come this month. We are welcoming today, the 13th, Chris
Waddell, 13X Paralympic medalist and the first paraplegic to summit Mt. Kilimanjaro nearly
unassisted. Chris will be speaking to students of grades 2-8. If you haven’t seen the message
that we sent out last week, be sure to look it up and check out his resume and children’s book.

This proves to be a unique and highly engaging event. Also, don’t miss our Curriculum Nights (9/14 for grades 4-8
and 9/21 for grades PS-3), both beginning at 6pm, or Grandparent’s and Special Friends’ Day,
which will take place September 29 from 8-11:30.
Let me close by relaying what all of us who serve here at Mater Christi feel with the utmost
sincerity, namely that we are privileged and overjoyed to be involved in the education and
formation of your children, our students. We are certainly off to a great start!
Have a Blessed Fall,

Tim Loescher

President/Head of School