September 13th, Headmaster Email

Dear parents, I hope this email finds you well and that you are enjoying the fall season. I am writing to you with some important updates and reminders for our school community. First, I want to thank you for your support and participation in FBCA. We are very grateful for your involvement and dedication. There were some concerns raised about the language of “volunteer hours” when there is a fee that applies if the hours are not filled. I completely understand and agree with this point. The “volunteer hours” should probably be called “parent” or “required hours” for the sake of accuracy. The purpose of these hours is to enable the school to keep tuition low as well as provide an opportunity for parental involvement in the day-to-day school activities. These hours allow us to lighten the load on teachers and leadership without needing to hire additional staff. I am so grateful to all our parent helpers and volunteers! Many parents complete far beyond the required hours. This is a great blessing to our school. Thank you for your help with Lunch supervision, fundraising, those who have applied to be substitute teachers, and every other way you serve! We are serving in the discipleship of our children. Second, I want to remind you that you need to notify Elysha in the office, via email or phone call, before 8:30AM, when your child is going to be absent from school. This is very important for our attendance records and for ensuring the safety and well-being of our students. Third, please do not allow your child to bring toys to school, unless it is a special occasion or a show-and-tell day. Toys can be distracting, disruptive, or even dangerous in the classroom or on the playground. We have had some incidents where toys were lost, damaged, or caused conflicts among students. Fourth, I want to notify you about an upcoming event that may be of interest to you and your family. On September 20th starting at 9:00 AM, there will be a 1 Million March 4 Children at the courthouse across from First Baptist Church. This is a peaceful demonstration “advocating for the elimination of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) curriculum, pronouns, gender ideology and mixed bathrooms in schools” across Canada. Currently, all government funded schools in BC and across Canada are required to include these destructive ideas. We do not accept funding from the government because of these types of requirements. I wish to bring this event to your attention, and if you plan to attend this event with your child, your child will be granted an excused absence for the day. Fifth, I want to let you know that I will be absent from school tomorrow as well as Monday. Pastor Ryan and Joshua will fill in for me during this time. Finally, this Friday is a Pro-D prep day for our teachers. There is no school Friday, September 15th. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. I will try to respond as soon as possible. Have a wonderful day! In Christ, James Casson