Dear Parents,

It is hard to believe that the last day of school is near at hand! Where has the school year
gone? It has certainly been filled with spiritual and academic growth for all of us,
faculty, staff and students alike.
With a great sense of pride we congratulate the Class of 2014 on their graduation from
the eighth grade. We commend them for their hard work, school spirit and dedication.
We pray that God will bless them as they prepare to enter high school with the wisdom of
exemplary Christian morals and values. In addition, we applaud our little Kindergarten
children have been promoted to first grade.
On an academic note, the Iowa Testing results for our school were quite good. Our
school building scores placed our students above the national and diocesan norms. This
in itself is something that we can be proud of! We congratulate our students and thank
the faculty, staff and parents for helping to prepare the children to do their best.
The year would not be complete without a special note of thanks to everyone who
worked so hard during the school year for the benefit of our school children. Thank you
to our Pastor, Fr. Pete and the faculty, staff, School Board, PTA, organizations,
volunteers, etc Our school family is comprised of countless people who give of
themselves on a daily basis so that our school can run smoothly and efficiently. Without
your help, we would not be able to accomplish all that we do and for this, THANK YOU!
THANK YOU!
We bid a fond farewell to Mrs. Nocito and Mrs. Jenkins. Mrs. Nocito, who has been with
us for 31 years, will not be returning next year as the physical education teacher. Mrs.
Nocito will be greatly missed. She has been a dedicated teacher over all these years and
our school will certainly feel her absence. Please continue to keep Mrs. Nocito in your
prayers as she regains her health. Mrs. Jenkins has been an exceptional Spanish teacher
these past four years. She truly loved the children and they have learned so much from
her. We wish both of these teachers many blessings as they begin their new journey.
As always, my heart is overflowing with gratitude for the gift of your children. They fill
our lives with activity and give us reasons to smile. In their eyes we see our God. I thank
you for your willingness to share your most precious gift with us.
Our prayers will be with you as you begin your summer months. I pray that you will take
time to enjoy life together. Remember that we are called to praise our God no matter
where we are ~morning and evening prayer~ grace before and after meals~ Saturday and
Sunday liturgies ~ praying the rosary while traveling in the car ~ just a few of our
Catholic traditions that you can take anywhere.
Gods blessings to all those who will be moving on and will continue in another school in
September. Remember you have touched our hearts and St. Mary School will always
welcome you for a visit.
I will keep you and your family in my prayers this summer. I look forward to seeing
everyone in September when we prepare to begin a fresh, new school year!
Love and Prayers,
Mr. Steven P. Hogan
Principal