2023 St. Philip Christmas Social

Save the Date for St. Philip’s annual Christmas Social, coming up on Thursday, December 7th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. The entire event is FREE! It’s a time to gather and celebrate with the school community. Thank you to our council members and parent volunteers who have stepped forward to plan this event.

 

Please see below for all the details, and how you can help with the event!

 

How you can help - volunteering and donations:

1.  Sign-up to volunteer in half-hour time slots at volunteersignup.org/QJ943. **This is also a great opportunity for high school students to earn some volunteer hours!

2.  Sign-up to donate baked goods for the Christmas baking raffle at volunteersignup.org/Y4H3E.

3.  Bring donations of non-perishable food or personal care items for the Richmond Food Bank, or donations of new toys for children aged 0-12 for Toy Mountain. You will receive extra raffle tickets if you bring in donations!

 

What should you expect at the 2023 St. Philip Christmas Social?

CHRISTMAS BAKING RAFFLE:

Santa’s Sweet Shoppe is looking for donations of baked goods, which will be given out to the school community through a raffle. 

 

What can I donate and how do I sign up?

You can sign-up to donate by Monday, December 4th at volunteersignup.org/Y4H3E.

We are looking for donations of homemade or store-bought cookies, squares, fudge, Christmas bark, or any other creative ideas. All items must be nut-free. Please try to keep the baked goods to a size that can be shared by a family (a dozen cookies, 8x8 pan of squares, etc). We are hoping to have at least 30 items available for the raffle. 

 

We will have a separate table for "allergy-friendly" options. Please indicate whether it is coming from an allergen-free household, or simply does not include particular allergens. 

 

Please provide an ingredient list for all donations. Items can be dropped off at the school on Thursday, December 7th between 9:05-9:30am or 3:40-4:00pm. If you need to make alternate arrangements, please reach out to the School Council at st.philip.school.council@gmail.com. 

 

How do I get raffle tickets?

Each student who attends the Christmas Social will receive one raffle ticket. You can receive additional raffle tickets for bringing in donations for the Richmond Food Bank or Toy Mountain.

 

DONATIONS TO SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY:

We will be collecting donations on behalf of the Richmond Food Bank and Toy Mountain. Bringing a donation will earn you extra raffle tickets!

 

Donations to the Richmond Food Bank:

Donations of non-perishable food and personal care items are greatly appreciated. Here are examples of much needed items:

• Personal care items:
• Diapers, baby food and formula
• Laundry detergent and dish soap
• Toilet paper, facial tissue and paper towels
• Shampoo, conditioner and body wash
• Shaving cream and disposable razors
• Non-perishable food items:
• Pasta and sauce
• School-safe snacks for kids
• Canned fruit and apple sauce
• Cookies and crackers
• Soup
• Visit the Richmond Food Bank website for other ideas for most needed items. 

Donations to Toy Mountain:

Donations of new, unwrapped toys suitable for children aged 0-12 are greatly appreciated. Great ideas include craft kits, Lego, Little People, dolls, trucks, books, etc. For more information about Toy Mountain or how to access their services, see the Toy Mountain website.

 

SPECIAL GUEST VISITS:

The Grinch:

The Grinch will be making a special appearance. You will find him in the gym, or visiting other activity areas at the Christmas Social. Have a dance party with the Grinch, take a selfie, or challenge him to the indoor obstacle course!

Ottawa Fire Service:

Our local volunteer firefighters will be here for a visit with a fire truck, and have agreed to a friendly tug-of-war challenge. How many of your friends will it take to win this challenge against the firefighters? The fire truck will be located in the parking lot near the kinder yard. 

*Note that the firefighters are on call, and may not be able to stay for the entire event if they receive an emergency call. 

Music by Move 100.3:

Move 100.3 will be on site, helping everyone to get into the Christmas spirit with some holiday music. Be sure to visit them in the gym, and stay to dance or sing along, and enjoy all the other activities taking place in the gym. 

 

ACTIVITIES:

Letters to Santa:

Haven't had a chance to write your letter to Santa yet? We'll have a letter writing station set up in the gym, and we will deliver the letters to the post office to ensure that Santa receives them before Christmas!

Christmas crafts:

Stop into the Elves' workshop and make some Christmas crafts in room #127. Make miniature yarn hats, and other seasonal crafts. reindeer crafts.

Family photos:

A special thanks to Jade Boudreau of Jade Rose Photography for the amazing photo set-up! Come to the gym to have your photo taken!

Indoor games:

Various indoor games will be available in the gym, including colouring gingerbread playhouses and a table-top obstacle course. Don't miss our "Can you guess how many?" game, where you can win the item if your guess is the closest! 

We will also have a human Christmas tree decorating contest at 6:30pm, 7:00pm and 7:30pm. Gather a group of friends and see which team creates the best decorated tree!

Outdoor games:

Various outdoor games will be available in the kinder yard. Classic carnival games such as the bean bag toss and ring toss will be available, giant games, and of course, the Tug of War against our local firefighters!

Sensory room for quiet activities:

We understand that large events can be overwhelming for some children. We will have a few quiet activities set up in the Learning Commons for any children that would like to participate in a more sensory-friendly environment. Colouring, crafts, books, and some play sets will be available. 

Lost and found:

Visit the Land of Lost Clothes to find all those items that your children brought to school and never brought back home. 

 

FOOD:

Cookie decorating:

We can't have a Christmas Social without the traditional cookie decorating! Come and visit Mrs. Claus’ Kitchen in room #146, and get decorating with cookies, icing and sprinkles! Allergy-friendly (gluten-free, dairy-free) cookies also available. Don’t forget to make your own reindeer food to take home. 

 

Thank you to Sarah MacNeill for baking hundreds of cookies!! Also, a special thank you to Shana Aubrey for the allergy-friendly cookies!

Hot dogs:

The Knights of Columbus will be joining us, and are preparing hundreds of hot dogs to help keep your energy up as you participate in the many Christmas Social events. Come to see them in the gym to get a bite to eat! And don't forget to mark your calendars for the Knights' upcoming Lunch with Santa, on Sunday, December 17th. 

Hot chocolate station:

To keep you warm while you're outside, we'll have a hot chocolate station set up in the Kinder yard. There is nothing better than a nice hot chocolate on a cool, winter's night!

 

Not sure where to start or how you'll keep all these activities straight? Maps will be available to help you make the most of your evening. We hope you and your family enjoy this time together with friends, new and old. 

 

If you have any questions about the 2023 St. Philip Christmas Social, please reach out to us at st.philip.school.council@gmail.com. 

 

Sincerely, 

 

The St. Philip Christmas Social Organizing Committee

(Michelle McIver, Kelly Cochrane, Julie Greene, Lindsay Daggitt, Sarah MacNeill, Stephanie Hanna, Tanya Mewhinney, Avaleigh Schouten, Joanne Cronk)