Japanese 4 and 5, from left: Kimberly Howell, Yoko Miwa (teacher), Catherine Lo, Zack White, Leah Klaas, Shawna Vrvilo, and Elizabeth Woodruff

Submitted by VCMS and HS Japanese Teacher Yoko Miwa

At a high school assembly on Monday, Feb. 6, it was announced that for the first time in 12 years, a VCS student has won first place in a national contest sponsored by the National Council of Japanese Language Teachers.

That student is senior Leah Klaas, pictured above holding her certificate with her prize-winning card. She is surrounded by her teacher, Yoko Miwa, and her fellow students from Japanese 4 and 5.  Incidentally, Leah spent six weeks in Shizuoka, Japan this past summer home-staying and attending a local high school.

For an interesting article about the significance of New Year’s cards in Japan, click here.

As they say in Japan, omedetou gozaimasu (congratulations)!

Submitted by Communications Specialist Danielle Tomich from information provided by Steve Hoffman

Congratulations to Molly Hoffman, VCHS senior, in signing a letter of intent to play softball at Everett Community College (EVCC) in Washington. Molly, who has been playing softball since age 7 in the Amateur Softball Association (ASA), received the honor of making All-League in softball as a pitcher last season as a junior. She chose Everett over other schools partly due to encouragement from a VCHS alumna currently attending EVCC (Jill Suratt).

With three VCHS state championships under her belt—softball in 2009 and dance team in 2010 and 2011—Molly has a real possibility of making that four or five championships, again in dance team and softball. She is also a captain on the Charisma Dance Team.

She plans on getting an associate of arts in fire science, and hopes to become a firefighter/paramedic.

Submitted by Communications Specialist Danielle Tomich, compiled from information from VCHS History and Social Studies Dept. Chair and Teacher Tommy Manning

Three VCHS students have been chosen to accompany Social Studies Teacher Tommy Manning to Kyoto, Japan to represent the United States in an international student forum to discuss the “Future of Sustainable Urban growth in the 21st Century.”

Phi Lam (sophomore), Maddie Bernard (senior), and Tori Johnson (junior) were chosen from among a pool of 30 applicants by a panel of high school faculty members. To narrow down the candidates, interested students were required to complete an application of short essay questions. One of the questions was, “What role do you think you and our country have in advancing the objective of sustainable urban growth in the 21st century?”

“I’m glad I didn’t have to make the choice,” Mr. Manning said, adding that it was very difficult to choose just three students from so many excellent candidates. Last year, the school was allowed to take five students, but this year the organizers of the forum invited more schools to participate while reducing the number of students each school could send.

The majority of schools participating are in Asia and the Pacific Rim, and one from the United Kingdom. Fortunately for our students, the entire forum will be held in English. Schools were given sub-themes to study and present to other students at the forum with the same sub-theme. They will then work together to mesh their ideas and propose their solutions to the entire forum. For the past two months, Mr. Manning has been working with the trio to prepare a presentation on the future of sustainable urban growth in 21st century U.S. cities. The group will take advantage of the sustainability efforts of the SSMO campus, including the many green features of the new Elementary and Middle School building, to document ways to reduce the carbon footprint in urban areas.

The group will depart on Tuesday, Feb. 14 and return on Thursday, Feb. 23. On each end of the trip, they will travel to see some area sights. One day trip will be to Kobe, the site of a major earthquake about 15 years ago. The other day trip will be to Nara, where the students will see the largest wooden Buddhist statue in the world. While at the retreat-style conference, students will be housed in dorms at a nearby university. Students will be assigned roommates from other countries to encourage international friendships. Last year, Manning says, “The kids made friends from all over the world, and they have continued their friendships through Facebook.”

Check out the radio interview on NPR with our very own gold-medaling alumna, Mariel Zagunis ’03.

Submitted by Lori Anne Anderson for the Charisma

STAYTON - It seems to have become almost a habit. The Valley Catholic Charisma Dance Team brings home a first place trophy just about every time they step onto a dance floor, and Saturday was no exception. The Charisma easily dominated their 1A/2A/3A division at Stayton with a score of 73.22. The Santiam Wolverettes of Mill City were second. In the overall standings, the Charisma ranked 5th behind Crook County (Prineville); Marshfield (Coos Bay); Milwaukie and South Albany.

Freshman Danielle Lomartire used focus and concentration to outlast the pressure of the individual drill down competition to finish in the top five in the novice division. More than 125 dancers were called to attention at the start of what is a “Simon Says” of marching commands that get progressively harder as the competition continues. If a dancer makes a mistake while executing a called command they are eliminated.

Although team scores dipped a bit from the season high at Thurston, the coaches suggested it could be attributed to competition dynamics, a larger number of competing teams at Stayton, and the festival judging format which utilizes two separate three-person judging panels which can cause scores to vary significantly between rounds. “We scored higher during the morning session than we did in the second round. Our overall scores remain fairly consistent with what we earned last season, but as a team we strive to improve our scores each time we compete,” said Coach Jessica Anderson. “Ghost of a Girl has so much potential and our dancers are committed to putting forth their best efforts to achieve their goals. While there were many positives about yesterday’s performances, the judges’ scores and comments identified areas we need to work on to be at our peak for state,” added Anderson.

Savvy dance fans have learned to listen closely to the announcer when the Charisma is introduced. The words offer a clue about the routine: the introduction, “Dance your reality in a world beyond the obvious. Can you see me? Am I invisible because you ignore me?” sets the stage for the elegantly eerie contemporary dance piece. What is real and what is an illusion? Are the dancers girls or are they ghosts? Or do they represent feelings of loneliness, confusion and self-doubt? The costuming is subtle: no tangled hair, gothic white faces, black eyes or lips here. The mood is conveyed with powerful and effective dance movement, the interaction of music, lyrics and voice-overs along with the emotional connection the dancers make with the spectators.

“During the next two weeks the dancers will be learning the choreography for the end of the routine. We will be dancing the entire Ghost of a Girl routine at Parkrose High School in Portland on Feb. 18 where we will compete in a division that includes Stayton and several other 4A teams,” said Anderson. “The season is racing towards its conclusion. It’s scary how quickly the time has passed. I know I say that every year, but it’s especially true this season.”

Because the Charisma is scheduled to compete on Wednesday, March 14 and Thursday, March 15, the first two nights of the State Championship Competition, they will be sacrificing nearly a week of practice time. “We have to be state-ready a few days earlier than last year due to the schedule change. We are thankful that we were able to get a strong early start with this routine and that our dancers are so hard-working,” said Anderson.

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Danielle Lomartire with Drill-Down Medal

First place at Stayton!

The Valley Catholic community is invited to attend the 10th annual in-house Middle School Science Fair this coming Friday. The festivities begin in the elementary school cafeteria and finish with an award ceremony in the Valiants’ Gym. Please see the schedule below:

Science Fair Schedule:

Submitted by Communications Specialist Danielle Tomich.  Photos by Marketing Production Coordinator Tom Kohler

On Wednesday, Feb. 1, a special Mass was attended by all Valley Catholic students— from preK to seniors in high school—to celebrate Catholic Schools Week.  Father John Kerns of St. Juan Diego presided.  After Mass, the Distinguished Alumni Award was given to Pat Roshak Joyaux ’54.  For the full story regarding the award, please click here.

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Submitted by VCHS Math Teacher and Department Chair Kipp Johnson

VCHS teachers and students have been enjoying the challenges of solving the problems posted monthly on the IBM Ponder This website. Advanced Placement Computer Teacher Nick Vigo collaborated on solving several of the puzzles last year, and Math Teachers John Brunecz and Kipp Johnson solved the December puzzle.

Now Mr. Johnson has gone one step further: he has written a puzzle for others to solve. His is the February 2012 puzzle, and it can be seen here.  Challenge your math skills and see if you can solve it!

We would like to let you know about a beloved member of our campus family who lost her battle with cancer—a battle, her husband says, that she never intended to lose. You may recall in September, we told you about Shelley Espey ’86 who was seeking support for her recent cancer diagnosis. Shelley died January 31, surrounded by her family.

She was an ’86 graduate, a current Valley Catholic parent (Katrina ’12), and a parent of two alumnae (Adala in ’98 and Nichole in ’09). Shelley had also worked at the SSMO Convent for several years prior to joining SSMO Ministries Corp. in the Finance Dept., where she has worked since 2004. Her most recent position had her stationed in the accounting department at Maryville Nursing Home.

On the same day she died, Shelley’s husband, Dave, wrote a note to her many friends. Below are some excerpts from his letter to them.

Today at 3:05  a.m. we lost one of the kindest people I have ever had the privilege to know. She is my best friend, best mother I have ever seen and loyal friend of all who allowed her to be. She took in all who wanted a mother and loved them like her own. I want to thank all of you who have been praying in earnest for her to be healed. The outcome was not what I wanted but I give God all the praise and glory knowing with total confidence she is now healed and made new in her new home with the Lord.

Plans for memorial services are still pending. When arrangements are made, they will be posted in the News & Events area of www.valleycatholic.org, www.maryvillenh.org, www.ssmo.org and www.ssmofoundation.org. Letters of condolence are being collected at the reception desk at Maryville Nursing Home. Please keep the Espey family in your thoughts and prayers.

Pat Roshak Joyaux with VCS President Bob Weber and SSMO Ministries President Sr. Adele Marie Altenhofen

Submitted by Alumni and Donor Relations Coordinator Grace LeChevallier

This Wednesday during the Catholic Schools Week Mass, VCS President Bob Weber and VCHS Principal Ross Thomas presented the Distinguished Alumni Award to Pat Roshak Joyaux ’54. The gym erupted in applause as students, faculty and guests honored Pat with an extended standing ovation. Pat Joyaux has been at the heart and soul of Valley Catholic Middle and High School for the past 33 years. Her helpful, compassionate spirit has embodied the mission of the Sisters.

A 1954 graduate of St. Mary of the Valley (now Valley Catholic High School), Pat was an active student on campus. Pat was named junior prom princess, and in her senior year was prefect of the Sodality Club (a devotional society for spirituality).

In 1978, Pat became involved in the school’s Alumni Association and learned of the opening for a school secretary. That year Pat was hired and the rest is history. Besides being an alumna herself, Pat’s five daughters all attended Valley Catholic, as well as 15 grandchildren and several nieces and nephews.

In his remarks about Pat, President Bob Weber said, “She has worked with 10 principals in her time at Valley Catholic, hundreds of teachers and staff members (including me as a 22-year-old first-year teacher in the early 1990′s), and helped thousands of students and parents on a daily basis with everything from report cards to bus fare to simply being a positive, helpful person who knows the answers to all the possible questions that come through her office.”

Pat spoke a few words of appreciation in receiving this award. She spoke highly of the value of Catholic education, and referred to it as a gift. She asked the students to be thankful to all those who make it possible for them to receive the gift of an education at Valley Catholic. Speaking from experience, she told the students that their time at Valley will have a significant impact on their lives.

The Distinguished Alumni Award is given to individuals who excel and exceed in their life’s work or personal endeavor. In their area of achievement, recipients demonstrate a high standard of personal integrity and strive for excellence to live a valiant life. In the fall of 2008, Mariel Zagunis ’03 was honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award. Mariel is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a world-renown fencing champion. The Distinguished Alumni Award has not been given since 2008, but going forward the award will be presented annually during Catholic Schools Week.

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