Student Council Elections

Last week 36 middle school students went through interviews to be selected to our Student Council. The Student Council at FLS is a highly respected group on our campus. They are involved in many projects throughout the year. They maintain our gardens on campus, have raffles and special sales around the holidays, sell hot chocolate during the winter, sell ice cream during lunch time and more. With the money they raised last year they were able to purchase a new drinking fountain for the middle school. It was extremely difficult to select this year's Council; there were so many great students who applied. After much discussion we were able to announce our 10 Student Council members. They are Taylor C., Dean M., Lexi S., Zach M., Zach H., Samantha R., Chris R., Erin M., Brie Z., and Taylor A. Congratulations, students we are very proud of you!

We've got spirit, yes we do!

That's the theme for this year's athletics. Mrs. Hallsted, our athletic director has gotten everyone excited about athletics at FLS. All you have to do is check out our Spirit Store in the CLC. It is filled with all kinds of fun things you can buy to cheer our teams on. There are beads, pins, seat cushions, pom poms and much more. On Saturday we hosted a girls jv volleyball tournament, and it was great to see so many parents and students who came out to show their school spirit. This year we also have some parent volunteers who are having cheerleading practice every Friday afternoon after school. Our first home volleyball game is on Wednesday Sept. 6 and Thursday Sept. 7 our boys have a baseball game at St Pauls. Go Flames!


FLS Teacher in the News!

Were you watching ABC news on Tuesday evening? If you did you saw them do a story on Mindy Stackhouse (our pre k 3 teacher) and her family. Mindy and her family were one the the many families forced to leave after Hurricane Katrina. The story focused on the hardships this family has had to endure as a result of that hurricane. It was extremely touching to hear them share the story of their struggles even one year later. We all take so many of God's daily blessings for granted, we sometimes need to be reminded about what the person next to us may be going through. All of us at FLS are so grateful to have Mindy here as part of our team. We're so glad she and her family are here!

Keeping in Touch

Bad Poetry Day Strikes FLS

Read any really bad poetry lately? We have! Last week in celebration of Bad Poetry Day on August 18 (yes, that is a real day), each class took turns reading the bad poem of their choice over the intercom. There really is quite a lot of bad poetry out there. We hope to celebrate some other lesser known holidays throughout the school year.

We Love Mr. Bill and the Worker Bees

There is no way FLS could have gotten ready for the school year without Mr. Bill and the Worker Bees. They spent a lot of time making repairs and cleaning so we looked great for the beginning of school. So last Tuesday while they were meeting in the Fellowship Hall, the entire student body crept quietly into the CLC. Mr. Bill and the Worker Bees were summoned into CLC and they we were all waiting for them holding a banner. We told them how thankful we were for all their hard work. It was great to see our students acknowledging the efforts of another who often do their work behind the scenes.


If you're looking for ways to get involved with FLS, here are a couple of suggestions. One is to sign up to be a Secret Prayer Pal. Prayer Pals pray for their student every day and send them small gifts or cards on special occasions. We have an unveiling party in the Spring. If you have any doubt about what a positive impact this makes on our FLS families, you just need to attend this end of the year party. It is really special to see FLS families and congregation members meet and interact. Students look forward to it all year. Another way you can get involved now is to sign up for our Annual Golf Tournament for Technology. The tournament is Oct. 7. You can sign up to golf, be a hole sponsor, sponsor a golf cart, or get donations. Call the school office to get in touch with the tournament director.

Our phone system is finally up and running. We also now have voice mail working so you will be able to get in touch with teachers or leave a message if you need to and we can get back in touch with you.
Thinkwave for grades 3-8 is also up and running so you will be able to check on your students grades. Thanks Terri Dobson for getting all the information entered and loaded.

Finally the staff is all keeping Pastor Z and his family in our prayers following the death of his father. While we who remain on earth mourn, we can also rejoice with heaven that one of God's children has returned home where there is no more death or mourning or crying or pain.

First Full Week

Its the first full week of school and so much is going on already! Teachers spent last week getting students used to their schedules, going over expectations, and just getting settled in. So now this week we can settle in and have more of a normal school day routine. Everyone seems really excited to be back. We also have several new families that we are very happy about.

Yesterday was teacher installation during the 10:30 service. Mindy Stackhouse was installed as our pre k 3 teacher. The rest of our staff was returning teachers, so they were rededicated. If you weren't at that service you missed something new. Each teacher was introduced individually so that people could put names and faces together and learn something interesting about our teaching staff. I am so proud of our excellent teaching staff.

Sports practices begin this week. Our first season of the year is boys baseball and girls volleyball. This year we are also having cheerleaders thanks to some wonderful school parents who volunteered to head up this project. Coaches and athletes are anxious to get started. If you can, come on out and cheer on your FLS Flames. Sports schedules and news are posted outside of Building A.

Have you seen the new fence around the preschool? Its awesome! Thanks to the PTL who raised money through the auction for this project. We even were able to extend the fenced are to the east so the pre schoolers have a bigger play area. Come check it out.

Please continue to keep the FLS staff and school families in your prayers.

Tomorrow"s the Day

We are really down to the wire! Tomorrow is the first day of school, so teachers really have a busy day ahead of them. Today in the morning we are having Open Classroom. This is an opportunity for students to come in, drop off their school supplies, find their desks and lockers, and get the first day jitters over early. This is our first year having this, and it seems to be very successful.

Tomorrow for our first day of school we will be serving coffee and donuts to our school parents as they drop thier children off as a way to welcome them to our First Lutheran family. Then our school day begins with our opening chapel service. Our first day is a half day as teachers go through their procedures and expectations and first day activities. Then on Thursday its a full day normal schedule.

Sunday morning at the 10:30 a.m. service our teachers will be installed. This year we are going to call each teacher up individually so the congregation can put faces and names together. We have an awesome teaching staff and we want you to get to know us.

The first day of school is always such an exciting time for students, parents and teachers. We are anxious to get going with learning new things, fun activities, and worshiping our Lord. Its going to be a great year!

Elaine Popp

Principal's First Blog

Good morning! I'm embarking on a bold new adventure - a blog spot. Thank you to Pastor Z for his help and guidance as I learn this new computer skill. It's really exciting for me to begin this. What a great way for me to communicate with everyone about all the happenings around First Lutheran School. What a great ministry opportunity we have every day to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to our students and their families.

Busy Busy Busy

The school year is only 6 days away so the faculty is hard at work getting everything ready to begin. Yesterday was the last day of Summer Camp. We had a great camp this year. Many thanks to Michelle Pasierb and her staff for all their hard work. The children enjoyed so many fun activities and field trips.

Keep Mrs. Hallsted in your prayers. Last week she fell and fractured her jaw and had to have it wired shut. Not a great way to begin the school year ( and not a recommended diet plan either). The faculty has pulled together to help her get ready. With the Lord's help everything will be just fine and her students will get great practice with their listening skills. Every challenge is a great opportunity.

Our theme this year is "Walking in Faith" based on the words from 3 John v. 4 " I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. " Throughout the school year we will focus on this theme during our chapels, classroom devotions and other activities.

Time for lesson plans, bulletin boards, seating arrangements, and many other last minute "to do's".

God's blessings on your day as you also practice "Walking in Faith".

Elaine Popp

Get All The News While It's Still News

They say one good thing leads to another. The feedback on Pastor's blog was so favorable, I decided to start one for the school. Why? You know how kids can be... I forgot the note in my desk at school, backpack, etc.

Hah! Never again. Now you can get all the news while it's still news.