March 5, 2010

Dear Parents/Guardians & Friends:

Tuition Assistance Forms Are Now Online
I encourage all families to go online at www.factstuitionaid.com to apply for both Diocesan tuition assistance and Fisher Catholic assistance. The deadline for submission is March 15. Please note that you must have filed your 2009 taxes before you apply.

Choir and Band Concert Set for March 10
Our new choir teacher, Miss Kate Sunderland and our Band Teacher, Mrs.Judy Rehrer, will be showing off their choir and band in the gym on Wednesday, March 10 at 7:30 to hear them perform a free concert for you! We would also like to congratulate Mrs. Rehrer who was recently named Music Educator of the Year from the Columbus Symphony! She will be honored at the Symphony on stage on April 11 on stage at the Ohio Theater!

Nominations Sought for Fisher Catholic Hall of Fame
Please take a moment to nominate a worthy St. Mary/Bishop Fenwick/Fisher Catholic alumnus to be named to our Hall of Fame in the fall of 2010. Names, and an essay explaining why you think this person is worthy, can be sent to jsilcott@cdeducation.org or by mail to the school. Nominations will be accepted until April 30.

Winter Sports Banquet is Thursday, March 11
All winter athletes and their families should plan on attending the Winter Sports Banquet on Thursday, March 11 at 6:30pm

Family Notes
Please keep Lydia Karoscik’s Aunt in your prayers. She is recovering from both an illness and injury.

Please keep Courtney Slay in your prayers as she battles an illness.

Principal Observations
Have you heard the news??? Fisher Catholic’s music and theater departments are doing wonderful things here at our school. I would like to take a moment here to applaud their efforts.

Fisher Catholic has had a rich tradition of music over the years and has produced some good musicals. In the past few years, Brian McCauley was instrumental (pun intended) in getting a Marching Band going again and three years ago they actually started marching on the field again at games. Mrs. Riggle produced some one act plays and shorter musicals. Both Mrs. Reade and Mrs. Stevenson took turns working to have some sort of vocal choir in place.

I know that the individuals mentioned above would be the first to tell you, however, that in the last few years these departments needed shoring up. A good school must have music and fine and performing arts if it is going to meet the needs of all of their students.

This past year we have been blessed to welcome two new teachers, Mrs. Judy Rehrer and Miss Kate Sunderland, to Fisher Catholic. Along with our Guidance Counselor, Mrs. Jamie Kirby, who led the Marching Band this past season, these ladies have put us back on solid ground with high expectations of great things to come down the road.

The “marriage” of Mrs. Rehrer, who wanted to teach band but not lead the Marching Band, and Mrs. Kirby who was in the Marching Band at Notre Dame and wanted to lead the band but not teach them, was truly heaven sent. Although our band is small they are privileged to be working with these two outstanding women. As you may have read up above, Fisher Catholic is so proud that Mr. Rehrer, who has long been a music icon in our community, was recently named Music Educator of the Year by the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.

Miss Sunderland has transformed our vocal music from almost non-existent to wildy successful in less than a year. Not only is she a great teacher, but she is a great recruiter, so much so that we will be tripling our vocal music class selections for next school year. In addition, this past fall she directed the first full length play at Fisher that anyone can remember, taught and directed a play with her newly established drama class, and is weeks away from the full length musical, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. The choir has also been singing at our Masses.

This coming Wednesday evening, at 7:30pm in the gym you have an opportunity to see both the band and choir in action in a free concert. The fun continues on March 26 and 27 for Charlie Brown.

I hope that you appreciate what these teachers have done to improve Fisher Catholic and that you will support them and their students at the concert and the musical. I would love to see a large turn-out for both events.

Thanks for all that you do for our children and our school.

Jim Silcott
President/Principal