International China Concern

Can you imagine the surprise and delight when we found out a few days after ending our campaign to raise money for ICC, that our new total changed from $43,958. to $47,200? We are just so excited that our little campus of 240 students was able to so visibly show their love for those children in China with disabilities who deserve to experience love, hope and opportunities that we take for granted. I am so proud of our students who worked so hard to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Thank you, also, to all the parents, grandparents and friends who supported this ministry by giving so generously!

Ms. E. Walker
Principal

Missions Theme Days

Jan. 28th and 29th
Missions: Being and Doing

In 2 short weeks the Middle Campus will be embarking upon our annual Theme Day event. This is the year that we team up with Missionsfest and explore what it means to be mission minded. The entire school will be heading to the Missionsfest School day on Friday, January 29 at Canada Place in Vancouver. We will worship together with hundreds of other Christian schools in the lower mainland as well as participating in workshops led by a variety of missions organizations.

Before we head to the Missionsfest event, however, we will be spending Thursday, Jan.28th at school examining the theme, Missions: Being or Doing. Students will begin the day hearing the story of Brian McConaghy, a parent and founder of Ratnak, an organization whose mission is to rescue abused children in Cambodia. Students will then rotate through 3 sessions in the morning focused on “Being,” (drawing strength from the Holy Spirit to be God’s representations in the world), “Doing,” (looking at how people today are actually doing missions and spreading the Gospel) and “Serving,” (doing simple short service projects).

We will end the day with an opportunity for students to reflect on their learning and then celebrating with a worship chapel.

Mrs. Burton

PE/Athletics

Welcome back to activity! Hopefully your students were active over the break, but if not, we have started the basketball unit in PE and they will be moving! We had some exciting dance moves for our Grade 8’s before the holidays and everyone in our gym classes had 2 weeks of tennis lessons. This year we focused more on game playing than ever before and I believe the students enjoyed the tennis unit.

Our Grade 8 basketball teams have been up and running since November and have each played games within the Richmond leagues. Each team has a tournament this coming weekend, playing several several Christian schools from the lower mainland and valley. Updates on results to come in the next Buzz. The girls are at Langley and the boys will play at Abbotsford.

We have Erika D., Grad of RCS 2014, and her sister, Hannah, a Grade 11 student, coaching the Grade 8 girls. The girls are showing improvement in their defense and working on shooting more! Mr. Penner and Mr. Friesen are back at it again with the Grade 8 boys, and although the scores don’t reflect it, our boys are working hard, playing with intensity and representing our school’s mission statement through their character on and off the court.

Our Grade 6 and 7 students have all started practicing as basketball teams. We had so many Grade 6 boys we needed to create 2 teams, a competitive one and developmental one. Mr. Friesen will oversee both teams, but Mr. Penner and Brandon J., a Grade 11 RCS student, will also be coaching. More information to come in the next Buzz as all the Grade 6 and 7 teams will have tournaments in early February with Christian schools and local tournaments with the Catholic schools (grade 6 only). The Grade 7’s will play in a public school tournament in early March at Steveston-London, an extra tournament for them as well.

Mrs. Kay Harbridge
Athletic Director

Christmas Formal Day

Every year the students and staff at the Middle Campus look forward to our Christmas Formal Day Lunch, held during the last week before Christmas break. It is amazing to see 11-13 year olds transformed into young adults as they put on their fanciest clothes (or, in the case of some of the boys, at least tuck in their shirts).

Many wonderful parent volunteers gave of their time to help transform the atrium into a beautiful dining space. We enjoyed a delicious meal courtesy of Paul Coleman of Bread Garden Catering. After lunch, our homeroom classes engaged in a fun competition to see which class could build the most interesting prototype of the “Most Popular Christmas Toy of 2015,” using only recycling supplies such as toilet paper rolls, milk jugs, and cardboard. Needless to say, this activity once again demonstrated the amazing creativity and wacky sense of humour of middle schoolers!

The day ended with a spirited basketball game between our Grade 8 boys team and the staff and Grade 8 girls. The boys held onto victory despite a late comeback by the staff and girls. All in all it was an awesome time to celebrate the community that God has built at our middle campus.

Click on the image for a photo gallery.

Grade 7 Ski Days

The Grade 7 students set out on their annual adventure to Mt Seymour for some skiing and boarding. The students did not let the poor weather dampen their spirits or enthusiasm, as they braved heavy rains and high winds, but still kept positive attitudes and had a fun day on the slopes!

Click on the image for a photo gallery.

Winter Exploratories

Winter Exploratories are always a highlight in our year! This month, the Grade 6 students got their winter gear on and headed up to Cypress Mountain to snow tube. We were blessed with the most brilliant weather. With clear skies and crisp morning air in our lungs, students plummeted downhill in groups with their friends. Many parents came out to enjoy the outdoors too. Parent and child alike were sporting big smiles and having a great time together.

One of the most memorable moments was when 28 students and staff formed one giant raft with the tubes and slid down the hill together. Another highlight was seeing many students running up the hill instead of waiting for the rope tow.  Sitting on the snow in the sun while eating lunch was such a refreshing change!

Click on the image for a photo gallery.