“She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” — Matthew 1:21

As we make our way through Advent and prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ, the STAR Catholic Board of Trustees also reflects on the past year. Though 2019 came with its share of challenges, it was very rewarding, and we have much to be thankful for as we look forward to the year to come.

We formed a Grateful Advocates for Catholic Education (GrACE) group, and were honoured to host the first provincial GrACE Summit at Father Leduc Catholic School. We celebrated our faith-filled schools during Catholic Education Week and Catholic Education Sunday, and we continued to nurture the special relationships between schools and parishes. We look forward to finding other ways to build on those partnerships in the months ahead.

After some setbacks, we entered the design phase for the Father Lacombe School Modernization. We eagerly anticipate the project’s completion, which is scheduled for the fall of 2023. In the meantime, we will continue to advocate for other modernizations and new facilities detailed in our Capital Plan, which will allow us to better meet the needs of the communities we serve.

This year, we cast ballots in both federal and provincial elections. We were met with troubling funding news, and conducted internal review in order to overcome a projected financial shortfall for the current year. There will be many difficult decisions to be made in the year ahead, and we are committed to working with elected officials for the best interests of our division.

We heard and shared the good news stories of our schools, and the incredible achievements of our students. We welcomed new staff and students, bid graduates and retirees farewell, engaged and discussed with families, hosted wonderful division events, laughed together, worked together, and prayed together.

We have been truly blessed. During this busy season, we take the time to humbly thank God for these gifts and more. From the STAR Catholic family to yours, may the joy of Christmas fill your hearts with peace, gratitude, and love.

This column was submitted by STAR Catholic Schools. Donna Tugwood (donna.tugwood@starcatholic.ab.ca) is the local Trustee on the STAR Catholic Schools Division Board. STAR Catholic Schools has more than 4,400 students in 12 schools located in Beaumont, Drayton Valley, Leduc, Lacombe, Ponoka and Wetaskiwin.