Upcoming Events

Students in kindergarten to grade 3 (primary) will have an opportunity to perform for their classmates during music classes June 6-10. Many students are practicing at home for a recital this time of year and we would love to hear what they are learning! Students are welcome to share something they practice at home or during lessons: singing, dance, poetry, piano, violin, etc. Perhaps your child knows a song from Sunday School that they could sing for us.
This is casual and we look forward to a huge variety of music talents and all levels. Share Your Music Day is a safe and encouraging environment to share something for others even if it’s for the very first time! The goal is to have students perform live but there may be exceptions if parents would like to send a video of their child’s part in a dance recital, for example, or if their musical instrument is too large to bring to school. This is totally optional and there is no pressure for students to perform.
Please email Mrs. Visser if you have any questions and be sure to include your child’s name and class: rvisser@johnknoxbc.org

With COVID restrictions easing, it is with great pleasure that we are able to host a Science Fair organized by our grade 8 students and their teachers. We invite you to come and explore the projects created by our students on Wednesday, June 15th. Our Science Fair will be held in the gym and possibly spilling out into the courtyard (weather permitting) from 1:00 pm to 5:30 pm. Along with learning about a topic of choice, this science fair allows students the chance to build skills related to cooperation, communication, and presentation. We appreciate your support and encouragement for our grade 8 students. We look forward to seeing you there!

A group of secondary parents would like to start up weekly prayer meetings beginning Thursday, May 12 at 2:00pm at the secondary campus. To join them, or to find out more information, please email parent Meina Y. at miena.yue@gmail.com. Thank you for praying for our school!

The secondary Foods Lab keeps growing and growing! This space is used for food classes but also as a production space for many of our outreach programs. Outreach work often involves large quantities of food coming in and out. Think 300 buns for sandwiches for the downtown eastside community or multiple batches of pierogis for our fundraiser to support Ukraine.
There is a need for additional freezer space. Do you have a chest or stand-up freezer that you would like to donate to the school? We’d love to hear from you! Connect with Arusha Vegt (avegt@johnknoxbc.org) or Foods Teacher Mavis Anthony (Manthony@johnknoxbc.org). Thank you!

We’re halfway through our two week pierogi making marathon! We’re running low on eggs and bacon. Donations to the secondary campus office Monday would be greatly appreciated! All pierogi made will be sold with full proceeds going to World Renew’s Ukrainian humanitarian efforts.

A group of parents have created a new scholarship to remember our dear elementary teacher, Sonya Park. Instead of having Grade 12 students fill out an application or submit an essay to apply for the scholarship, we are asking for members of our JKCS community to nominate a Grade 12 student! Please read the criteria below, and if you know of a grade 12 student who you would like to nominate fill in the nomination form below by May 6. Thank you!

Sonya Park Beacon of Light Scholarship: Sonya Park is remembered by her friends and students as being a beacon of kindness and unending service to the marginalized. Therefore, this scholarship will not be based on academic excellence, but awarded to those who have also taken up the mantle of unconditional kindness and service to others. An essay is not required to apply for this award. Students will be nominated by peers, teachers and JKCS community members. Award: Two awards of $1,000 each.

To nominate a Grade 12 student, please fill in the nomination form found here: https://forms.gle/7b9pTx8Mtgukz6Zt6
Once all of the nominations have been received, the Scholarship Committee will read through the nominations and together choose the two students who will receive the awards. All JKCS scholarships will be awarded at the convocation ceremony in June.
If you have any questions about scholarships at John Knox please connect with Arusha in the Development Office at avegt@johnknoxbc.org. Thank you!

Dear parents,
Secondary students have initiated a fundraiser for Ukraine and we need your help! Christian Studies classes are learning how to make pierogies and will package them for sale. We need parents to come in to make a large number of additional pierogies.
Here are the tasks:
Pierogi making: Join us in the Secondary Foods Lab for a pierogi-making session! You’ll learn how to make pierogies and then get to work making as many as you can. We will also spend some time together in prayer for Ukraine. We’re cooking Friday April 29 in two sessions, 9am-noon, and noon-3pm.
To sign up for this task, please follow this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0849a5a729a5f49-pierogis
Questions? Connect with staff members Mavis Anthony, Jeyne Lund or Arusha Vegt, or student Yubin K. Thank you!

JKCS Athletics is looking for a coach in our community to lead and build a group of 15-17 year old girls who are keen and eager to continue to learn the game of volleyball in a competitive setting. The ideal coach is someone who will help develop their volleyball skills, game sense, and build character so our girls become great young women in our society. The season runs from September to November with 2 to 3 practices per week and games and tournaments sprinkled in between. There is a small honorarium that is given at the completion of the season. If you are interested or know of someone who may be interested, please email Mr. Loro at cloro@johnknoxbc.org.

Grade 12 students have been given the opportunity to apply for a number of JKCS scholarships celebrating leadership, Christian service, and excellence in a variety of fields. There are thousands of dollars in scholarships available, so encourage Grade 12 students to apply! The deadline for all applications is May 6. Thank you to all of our generous scholarship donors.
Arusha Vegt, Development Director

A group of parents have created a new scholarship to remember our dear elementary teacher, Sonya Park. Instead of having Grade 12 students fill out an application or submit an essay to apply for the scholarship, we are asking for members of our JKCS community to nominate a Grade 12 student! Please read the criteria below, and if you know of a grade 12 student who you would like to nominate fill in the nomination form below by May 6. Thank you!

Sonya Park Beacon of Light Scholarship: Sonya Park is remembered by her friends and students as being a beacon of kindness and unending service to the marginalized. Therefore, this scholarship will not be based on academic excellence, but awarded to those who have also taken up the mantle of unconditional kindness and service to others. An essay is not required to apply for this award. Students will be nominated by peers, teachers and JKCS community members. Award: Two awards of $1,000 each.

To nominate a Grade 12 student, please fill in the nomination form found here: https://forms.gle/7b9pTx8Mtgukz6Zt6
Once all of the nominations have been received, the Scholarship Committee will read through the nominations and together choose the two students who will receive the awards. All JKCS scholarships will be awarded at the convocation ceremony in June.
If you have any questions about scholarships at John Knox please connect with Arusha in the Development Office at avegt@johnknoxbc.org. Thank you!

Please sign up for in person STP conferences on Thursday, April 28 and Friday, April 29 at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A094BAEAC2BA1F49-april1

The end of April is a time for the JKCS elementary campus to celebrate some very important people in our students’ lives: their grandparents and grand-friends. In the past, this has meant that students invited their grandparents and grand-friends to our school for a special time of musical presentations from each grade, prayer, treats and coffee served by parents and Grade 6 students, and a chance to tour classrooms. It is one of the most fun days of the whole school year!
Over the past two years we have paused welcoming grandparents into our school building due to the pandemic. Although things are looking more positive this spring we still want to be cautious with our precious senior family members and friends.
This year, we will send a video greeting to grandparents from each class. Filming will take place next week and will include a classroom tour, teacher and class greeting, and a short presentation.
Once the videos are complete near the end of April we will send a link home to parents asking you to forward it to seniors close to your children, whether it be grandparents or a senior friend from church.
We miss seeing our school grandparents at school! We hope these short video greetings will give them a fun glimpse into their grandchildren’s classroom.
Arusha Vegt, Director of Development

For the first time since Spring 2019, Spring Sports is back at the high school. This spring we’re fortunate to offer badminton and ultimate and all our teams are eager and training hard for the upcoming season. With restrictions being lifted, spectators are allowed back in the gym and cheer on our teams. All our badminton teams have their home matches in the gym and our ultimate teams have their matches at various locations in Burnaby and the Tri-Cities. Come out and cheer on our Hawks! You can find the schedule on our athletics website at athletics.johnknoxbc.org. If you have any questions, please email Mr. Loro at cloro@johnknoxbc.org

Next week Tuesday, Grade 6 students will visit the secondary campus for a chance to experience what a day in Grade 7 is like! They will rotate through three classes (English, Math/ADST, and Science), receive a campus tour by Grade 9 students, and play games in the gym. We pray that they have an enjoyable day as they look ahead to next year.

Operation: New Genesis, a JKCS student-led initiative working to raise awareness and give support to individuals experiencing homelessness, is organizing an occasion called the Open Tent Event. Essentially, this event is to reach out to the homeless population throughout New Westminster and provide them with food, drinks, and information about local support services. We ultimately want to create a sense of community between us all and give back to those in need.
We will also be assembling and distributing necessity bags that will consist of hygiene products and other essential items such as hand warmers, water, and snacks. We’ll be holding our annual 5 Days of Giving Event from February 28 – March 4 at both elementary and secondary campuses to collect these resources for the necessity bags. The donation theme for each day is as follows:
Monetary Monday – Feb 28: Money donations for Raising the Roof Fundraiser [Check below for more information]Toiletry Tuesday – March 1: Feminine hygiene products, tissues, toothbrush/paste, deodorant, wet wipes, floss, chapstick (travel size)
Warm Wednesday – March 2: Masks, bandaids, hand warmers, socks
Thirsty Thursday – March 3: Water, juice boxes, paper cups
Foodie Friday – March 4: Napkins, apple sauce, granola bars, fruit cups, fruit snacks, goldfish/packaged snacks, jam, peanut butter
There will be bins in each homeroom classroom where donations can be collected throughout the week.
If you are a secondary student and would like to volunteer to assemble necessity bags on Thursday, March 10, please email chri.chen.2022@myjkcs.ca.

The Vancouver Sun Run is on again this year with in-person, virtual, and hybrid options. These options apply to the 10-km Sun Run and the 2.5-km Mini Sun Run. The event takes place on Sunday, April 24 and “early bird” rates are in effect until February 18. Students are invited to participate with family members, as the school does not provide supervision at this event. Also, please note that current health regulations require a vaccine passport for the in-person event. Please contact Mr. Morrison if you are interested. imorrison@johnknoxbc.org

John Knox Christian School has an opening for a part-time Payroll Assistant. Interested applicants, please click on the link for more information. http://scsbc.ca/job/payroll-assistant-part-time/

The grade 12s are raising funds for their grad by providing Subway on Thursday, Feb. 17. Order forms were sent home yesterday and are due on Tuesday, Feb. 8. Each sandwich will consist of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, and mayonnaise on a 6″ white sub. Thank you for supporting our grads of 2022.

Are you tired of packing leftovers in that thermos? Or running out of ideas for sandwiches? You deserve a break!
FOODIE FRIDAYS are the answer!

You are invited to support the Foods 10-12 class as students learn culinary skills! They will prepare delicious, fresh and healthy appetizers, snacks, beverages, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Students and instructors preparing the food will have taken Food Safe level 1, which is the industry standard for BC catering and restaurant services. We are teaching students practical cooking-hospitality skills. We also have a desire to serve JKCS families.

The Nitty Gritty Details:
Individual portions will be lunch sized, and delivered to students’ homerooms. Pre-order by writing a cheque to John Knox Secondary and indicate your child’s name, homeroom, Set #1, Set #2, or both in the memo line. Questions or Allergies, Dietary Restrictions? Please contact Mrs. Anthony or Mrs. Lund by email. Pre-orders are due February 6th, to the office.

Order form link:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSePMrWqD52HgTeVErR4CVeAVIhoWT19J3hlyWCFSPiBkCkhRw/viewform?usp=pp_url

Due January 31, 2022
Please complete online at https://johnknoxbc.org/next-year
Re-Registration forms help us to determine how many students are likely returning to John Knox in September 2022. Thank you to the families who have already submitted the forms. For those who have not yet done so, please submit the online form as soon as possible.