Kenora Catholic District School Board

Thanksgiving is a very special time within a Catholic school. It's a time to give thanks for all the amazing blessings and there is so much to be thankful for. Each of our Catholic schools celebrated Thanksgiving with a school mass or prayer service as well as a school celebration. During Thanksgiving many of our schools increase their efforts to help those in need through charitable work or food drives.

Here is a highlight of a few of the different activities that happened during Thanksgiving:

St. Thomas Aquinas High School did a house challenge as part of their thanksgiving celebration where students and staff were encouraged to bring in non-perishable food items as a show of gratitude. All the items were then donated to the food bank at the Fellowship Center. Each day had a theme i.e. macaroni Monday, tuna Tuesday, etc. The fridge boxes were given to the school by Dufresne Furniture and then painted and decorated. The school collected about 885 items that will feed the hungry.	St. John School also participated in a charitable activity during Thanksgiving. The Grade 1 - 2 class was responsible for the school's Thanksgiving mass. They asked everyone at the school to bring in a canned food item to share in their "offertory" collection during the mass. The collection of canned goods was donated to the Red Lake Family Food Bank.
All the students at Pope John Paul II School were treated to a homemade Turkey Soup. All of the school staff donated items for the soup and made it for the students. The students were able to enjoy their meal together in the gym.	The students at Pope John Paul II school also participated in an activity that caught our eye. Students were invited to decorate a Turkey feather and share what they were thankful for.
Mme Kat Kerns and Mme Maffey planned the Thanksgiving Prayer Service at École Ste-Marguerite Bourgeoys as well as many student helpers. Pumpkin pie was served by the School Council and parent volunteers.	Parent volunteers from École Ste-Marguerite Bourgeoy's school council provided slices of pumpkin pie for the whole school. Many parent volunteers were at the school to serve the pies.
St. Louis School began their Thanksgiving celebration with a mass followed by a very elegant luncheon for the entire school community.	The Grade 5 students harvested carrots from the St. Louis School community garden that were used in the Turkey Soup.