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Sunday - December 11, 2016


Principal's Letter


MESSAGE FROM MAMADOU


Announcements


EARLY DEADLINE FOR NEXT NEWSLETTER
SFS AT THE WIZARDS: GET YOUR TICKETS BEFORE BREAK!
ROSEMOUNT GIFT DRIVE: ENDS DEC. 15!


Events


FAMILY SERVICE OPPORTUNITY: SHOE BOX PROJECT: DEC. 10 AND 11
GAMETIME! WRESTLING: DEC. 14
CANDLELIGHT MEETING FOR WORSHIP: DEC. 20
RECRUITMENT OF STUDENT ATHLETES: JAN. 4
MLK DAY SERVICE EVENT: JAN. 16
NEW! UPPER SCHOOL GRANDPARENTS AND FRIENDS DAY: MAY 12


Other


COMMUNITY COMMUNICATIONS AND PHOTOS
ONGOING TOILETRIES COLLECTION
QUAKER QUOTES AND QUESTIONS


News Around the School


Principal's Letter


MESSAGE FROM MAMADOU
Dear Friends,
Last week, I joined a delegation of Sidwell Friends faculty and staff and six Upper School students to attend the National Association of Independent Schools’ annual People of Color Conference and Student Diversity Leadership Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Faculty and staff had the opportunity for professional development on a range of topics relating to social justice, equity, and inclusive classroom practices. Student attendees had the chance to learn about equity and diversity through collaboration with thousands of other students from independent schools around the country. The theme of this year’s conference was “Advancing Human and Civil Rights,” and the keynote speaker was acclaimed lawyer Bryan Stevenson, founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative and author of Just Mercy, his highly lauded memoir.
The winter holiday is nearly upon us. The two-week winter break is intended to be a respite from school. We want our students to rest, spend time with friends and family, and get recharged for second semester. During the last two to three days of the break, students should consider getting organized for their return to school by going through their backpacks, organizing their notebooks, and getting mentally prepared to resume their studies. While students who have make-up work to do may need to use some time over the break to get caught up, serious studying can wait until school is back in session.
I wish you all a wonderful holiday season!
Warmly,
Mamadou
Mamadou Guèye
Upper School Principal


Announcements


EARLY DEADLINE FOR NEXT NEWSLETTER
Please note that there will be no newsletter on Sunday, December 18 or December 25. The deadline for the January 1 newsletter is this Wednesday, December 14, at noon. Thank you!

SFS AT THE WIZARDS: GET YOUR TICKETS BEFORE BREAK!
It's Wizards time again! ?
SFS Community Night at the Washington Wizards is Friday, January 6. The 7:00 p.m. game is against the Minnesota Timberwolves; tickets are $25. It's an evening you won't want to miss. Our chamber chorus will sing the national anthem, and there are many other terrific opportunities for SFS families.? If you haven’t been before, note that there is an early entrance option that provides a fun opportunity to see these amazing athletes up close. Those who can come by 5:00 p.m. may take part in these activities:
* The Fan Tunnel, where you can “high five” the players coming out at the beginning of the game. (They are even taller in real life!)
* Bench Warmers, where children sit on the chairs the players use during their warm-up time. (No one is closer!)
* Anthem Kids, where children stand on the court with the Wizards during the singing of the national anthem.
* Pregame Warm-up Observation (5:00 to 6:00 p.m.), from the seats closest to the court.
If you purchase your tickets by December 18, you will get a free Wizards T-shirt with the SFS logo on the sleeve. ?
Children participating in these opportunities must arrive by 5:00 p.m. and will be managed by Wizards event staff until their opportunity to shine is finished. They will be brought back to our sections at the beginning of the game. This may not be fun for all children, so please think about what your child will most enjoy before you sign them up for a particular slot. Sign-ups for special-access, pregame student opportunities (Fan Tunnel, Bench Warmer, Anthem Kids) will be available online the week of the game. Children and adults are welcome to just relax and watch warm-ups from the expensive seats, but you should arrive by 5:00 p.m. to do so. The area is cleared at 6:00 p.m., when adults can begin to make their way upstairs to our seats.
Tickets are on sale through December 26 and? may be purchased at this link or by cutting and pasting this URL: https://groupmatics.events/#/event/SFS. Ticket purchasers will receive an e-mail from Sidwell Friends by January 1 with special access sign-up information, and an e-mail from Ticketmaster about accessing your tickets will come about three days before the game.
Questions? Contact Kathi Webb (webbk@sidwell.edu).

ROSEMOUNT GIFT DRIVE: ENDS DEC. 15!
Just in time for the holidays, Sidwell Friends families have the opportunity to give a gift to the littlest ones in our wider community. Long-term SFS partner the Rosemount Center, a bilingual preschool in Mt. Pleasant, has a need for gifts and toys for infants up to 12 months old or toddlers ages 1 to 3. Items can be dropped off in Mr. Woods' office or in the Zartman House lobby until Thursday, December 15. Questions? Please contact Shoshanna Sumka at sumkas@sidwell.edu.


Events


FAMILY SERVICE OPPORTUNITY: SHOE BOX PROJECT: DEC. 10 AND 11
Families (children ages 4 and up) are invited to help organize, assemble, and wrap shoe boxes filled with an assortment of care items for people experiencing homelessness in our community. The drop-in event is from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 10, and Sunday, December 11, at Friends Meeting of Washington (2111 Florida Avenue NW in DC). Come see where the inspiration for the Sidwell Friends Giving Tree Project began! For details, e-mail Anita Drever at anita.drever@gmail.com.

GAMETIME! WRESTLING: DEC. 14
We start the winter season with a WRESTLING meet against Bullis on Wednesday, December 14, at 5:00 p.m. Come cheer our defending MAC champions: They own 14 MAC titles (see the banners in the wrestling room in the Athletic Center). Refreshments will be provided. If you are bringing a group of students to this meet, please let us know (pa.athletics@sidwell.edu): We’d like to recognize you to the team and coaches if time permits. GO QUAKERS!

CANDLELIGHT MEETING FOR WORSHIP: DEC. 20
The SFS community is invited to join Bethesda Friends Meeting at its annual Candlelight Meeting for Worship at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 20. For more than 25 years, Friends have come to appreciate, in the midst of nonstop holiday activity and anxiety, this peaceful hour together. From infants to teens, youngsters and elders, all are most welcome. For more informaton, contact Ralph Bryant (240-444-6708) or Susan Crowley (202-841-4163 or susan.crowley62@gmail.com).
Bethesda Friends Meeting is on the Lower School campus at the intersecton of Edgemoor Lane and Beverly Road in Bethesda. More informaton is at bethesdafriends.org.

RECRUITMENT OF STUDENT ATHLETES: JAN. 4
Mark your calendars for an informal information session on Wednesday, January 4, from 8:00 to 9:00 a.m. in the Robert L. Smith Meeting Room. Patrick Gallagher, director of college counseling, and Anne Renninger, athletic director, will lay out what the process looks like for SFS athletes interested in playing NCAA sports in college. This is a chance for invaluable guidance from two veterans.

MLK DAY SERVICE EVENT: JAN. 16
The Parents of Black Students (PBS), in collaboration with the Quaker Life, Community Service, and Equity, Justice, and Community (EJC) committees, invite all members of the SFS community to celebrate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We will gather from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Monday, January 16. Following a brief, query-centered discussion (and storytelling for younger members of the community), SFS volunteers will choose to participate in one of the available service events:
1. Bake casseroles for Bethesda Cares.
2. Make cards and sort donated items for Veterans Affairs DC Medical Center.
3. Create healthy snack bags for N Street Village Day Center.
4. Create winter care bags for Georgetown Ministry Center. The Quaker Life Committee will also host coffee and conversation with speakers from the National Coalition for the Homeless. Afterward, we will regroup for a short time of reflection before closing with a moment of silence.
Please sign up to donate items and/or volunteer for one of the service engagements to help the underserved in our community.

NEW! UPPER SCHOOL GRANDPARENTS AND FRIENDS DAY: MAY 12
SFS will host the first Grandparents and Friends Day at the Upper School this spring. Please mark the morning of Friday, May 12, on your calendars. (Grandparents and Friends Day at the Middle School will take place in the afternoon that same day.)
Please provide contact information for your Upper School student's grandparents or special friends using this online form by January 13. The School will send invitations in the coming months.
If you have any questions, please contact Jessie Jacobson, director of special events, at jacobsonj@sidwell.edu or 202-537-8442.


Other


COMMUNITY COMMUNICATIONS AND PHOTOS
If you are looking for photos or stories about events on campus, don’t forget to check the links at the bottom of our website home page. Click on the SmugMug icon (the green happy face) for team and event photos that you can view and download for free, and click on the Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram icons for news and reminders via social media. There’s a lot of great material on these sites! And please send any photos or stories you’d like to share to communications@sidwell.edu. (Please send .JPEGs at the largest file size available.)

ONGOING TOILETRIES COLLECTION
Many of us are fortunate to have an opportunity to travel during winter break. If you stay at establishments that provide toiletries that you do not use, such as shampoos or lotions, please bring them to SFS. We have wonderful service projects throughout the year in each division that support local organizations that provide such items to populations in need. We will be collecting for several months. There are boxes at Lower School, Middle School, Upper School, and Zartman House to receive your donations.

QUAKER QUOTES AND QUESTIONS
In the old days, before Quakers began celebrating secular Christmas, what did they do over the holidays?

Traditional Quaker attitudes toward holy days follow Quaker egalitarian attitudes toward other distinctions related to holiness. Just as they had no churches in the sense of consecrated buildings, and because they believed every place and every building to be equally holy and equally imbued with God’s presence, so they believed every day is holy, and that we should be equally reverential and equally mindful of God’s presence no matter the day. Thus, among Friends, December 25 was treated like any other day.

This is in line with the Quaker practice of not swearing oaths (the thinking being that if we do swear oaths, we might be untrustworthy when we don’t) or with egalitarianism in general (meaning that you are equal in all respects to any other human being and have equal access to God, and that everyone else is likewise absolutely equal to you).

In the early 20th century, many families of Friends began celebrating a largely secular, fairly subdued version of Christmas that included decorating a tree, hanging stockings, and sharing gifts. This happened primarily because their families were mingling increasingly with other families who did celebrate Christmas—and as members of non-Christian faiths know well, that can be hard on kids.

Fairly often today, Friends who grew up in other Christian faiths before they became Quakers will rise in meeting and speak to aspects of Christmas religious tradition. Some meetings hold a special Meeting for Worship on December 24 or 25, though such meetings tend not to be particularly different from any other Meeting for Worship.

Quaker quotes alternate with questions about Quakerism in this newsletter feature. To ask a question about Quaker history or practice, e-mail our Sidwell Friends Quaker Life Committees’ authors at quakerquestions@sidwell.edu!


Upper School Weekly E-Newsletter Submissions

How to Submit an Article to the E-Newsletter. Fill out the form at www.sidwell.edu/submit by 12:00 p.m. Thursday.

Note Concerning the School Calendar: The calendar entries that appear in the right column of each Newsletter are automatically generated by the official school calendar and are not subject to editing by the Newsletter Editors. All changes or additions to the school calendar must be made through the school scheduling office, reachable at: scheduling@sidwell.edu.

The Upper School Weekly E-Newsletter is a forum for communication among parents and is designed to provide announcements concerning school events or information. E-newsletter submissions should be filled out at www.sidwell.edu/submit.


Calendar


Sun, Dec 11th

DC/MD FIRST FTC Robotics Qualifier

Athletic Center
6:00am - 7:00pm


US Winter Choral Concert

Robert L. Smith Meeting Room
2:30pm - 4:30pm


Mon, Dec 12th

Auditions - RENT

Caplin Theater
3:30pm - 7:30pm


Auditions- RENT

Caplin Theater
3:30pm - 7:30pm


Tue, Dec 13th

Auditions -RENT

Caplin Theater
2:40pm - 6:10pm


Wed, Dec 14th

AC/PG meeting

US Library Board Room
12:00pm - 2:30pm


Auditions - RENT

Caplin Theater
3:30pm - 7:30pm


GAMETIME! Wrestling

Athletic Center
5:00pm - 6:00pm


Thu, Dec 15th

US MFW

RLS Meeting Room
9:35am - 10:20am


John Touchton Meeting

RLS Meeting Room
11:25am - 12:10pm


Auditions - RENT

Caplin Theater
3:30pm - 5:30pm


Alumni Holiday Party

Off Campus - Lia's Friendship Heights
6:30pm - 9:00pm


Fri, Dec 16th

Chamber Chorus to LS

Lower School
9:00am - 10:00am


US Winter Assembly

RLS foyer and Meeting room
1:00pm - 2:15pm


US Arts Guild

RLS Meeting Room
7:00pm - 9:00pm


Sat, Dec 17th

Winter Break Begins


SFS Annual Wrestling Tournament

Rusch Team Room
8:00am - 4:00pm


Mon, Dec 19th

Chamber Chorus at Clyde's

Chevy Chase Clyde's
6:00pm - 8:00pm


Tue, Dec 20th

Chamber Chorus at Clyde's

Chevy Chase Clyde's
6:00pm - 8:00pm


Wed, Dec 21st

Chamber Chorus at Clyde's

Clyde's of Georgetown
6:00pm - 8:00pm


Thu, Dec 22nd

Chamber Chorus at Clyde's

Clyde's of Georgetown
6:00pm - 8:00pm


Fri, Dec 23rd

Chamber Chorus at Clyde's

Georgetown & Tower Oaks Restaurants
6:00pm - 8:00pm


Sat, Dec 24th

Chamber Chorus at Clyde's

Georgetown & Tower Oaks Restaurants
6:00pm - 8:00pm


More


Athletics


Sun, Dec 11th

Basketball - Boys Varsity - Gonzaga Classic


Mon, Dec 12th

Basketball - Girls 7/8 B at Holton-Arms


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 C at Holton-Arms


2:45pm


Swimming - Boys 7/8 vs. Holton-Arms Meet


2:45pm


Swimming - Girls 7/8 vs. Holton-Arms Meet


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 A vs. Holton-Arms


3:00pm


Tue, Dec 13th

Basketball - Girls Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


4:00pm


Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


4:00pm


Basketball - Boys Freshman at Takoma Academy


4:00pm


Indoor Track - P.E. Class (Coed) - Georgetown Prep Practice Meet #1


4:00pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


4:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


4:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. St. Andrew's School


4:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. St. Andrew's School


4:30pm


Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


5:30pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


5:30pm


Wed, Dec 14th

Basketball - Girls 7/8 A vs. National Cathedral School


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 B at National Cathedral School


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 A at Bullis


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 C vs. Bullis


2:45pm


Squash - P.E. Class (Co-Ed) at National Cathedral School


4:15pm


Wrestling - Varsity vs. Bullis


5:00pm


Thu, Dec 15th

Wrestling - 7/8 at Mater Dei


2:30pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. Georgetown Day


2:30pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 B vs. Georgetown Day


2:30pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 A at Bullis


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 B vs. Bullis


2:45pm


Swimming - Boys 7/8 vs. Landon


2:45pm


Swimming - Girls 7/8 at Stone Ridge School


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Maret School


4:15pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. Maret School


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. Maret School


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. St. Mary's Ryken


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. St. Mary's Ryken


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. Holy Child


7:30pm


Fri, Dec 16th

Basketball - Boys Freshman at St. Albans


4:00pm


Basketball - Girls Varsity vs. Coral Glades HS - Kreul Classic


4:15pm


Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity at St. Albans


5:30pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity - Bullis Holiday Classic vs. Archbishop Spaulding


6:30pm


Sat, Dec 17th

Basketball - Boys Varsity - Bullis Holiday Classic


Wrestling - Varsity - SFS Invitational


9:00am


Basketball - Girls Varsity vs. Fort Lauderdale HS - Kreul Classic


7:30pm


Sun, Dec 18th

Basketball - Boys Varsity - Bullis Holiday Classic


Mon, Dec 19th

Basketball - Girls Varsity vs. Cardinal Gibbons CHS - Kreul Classic


4:30pm


Tue, Dec 27th

Wrestling - Varsity - Damascus Tournament


12/28/2016


Wed, Dec 28th

Wrestling - Varsity - Damascus Tournament


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Governor's Challenge


5:30pm


Thu, Dec 29th

Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Governor's Challenge


1:30pm


Fri, Dec 30th

Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Governor's Challenge


8:30pm


More


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