News and Updates

Dear Calvary Family, 

Over the next 2 days,  we will experience wind and rain associated with Hurricane Ian. From the weather reports I have been watching, we could see several inches of rain and winds gusting to 65 miles per hour.  For us, this will be a challenge,  but minor compared to what the poor people of Florida have experienced.  The hurricane’s wall of water devastated their houses, roads, and more.  We can only pray that no more life will be lost, and for the safety of those brave rescuers who are there,  Coast Guard, National Guard,  Police, Firefighters, Electrical repairmen, and volunteers who have a huge job on their hands.  We also need to pray for those who have lost both people and property in this terrible storm. 

As the storm approaches our area, here are a few reminders to help you prepare.  First, make sure you have what you need, such as water and food, in case  you lose power for a few days.  Second, make sure you have fuel in your automobile.  Third, secure outside items that could be picked up and sent flying by the wind.  Fourth, make sure you have a flashlight that works,  and some way to hear weather alerts such as the possibility of tornadoes.  If there is a tornado near your home,  go to a place in your home, away from outside doors and windows, where you will be safe from broken glass or flying debris.

Most of all, help me pray that God will weaken this storm, so that it causes no more harm. Also pray that our church buildings will be protected, and that we will be able to worship this Sunday and broadcast our Livestream.  Hundreds of people each week look forward to watching our service online, so help me pray that we will be able to have this outreach this Sunday.

As strong as hurricanes are, they are no match for the power of our God.  The psalmist sang, 

“He calms the storm, so that its waves are still.” (Psalms 107:29 NKJV)

Yes, the Lord can calm any storm, even the natural kind. So let’s pray, as Ian makes its way inland, that the Mighty God,  the Lord of Creation,  will quiet this storm for us, just as He did for His disciples in Galilee when they faced dangerous winds. Please stay safe, and know that I love you and pray for my church family every day.

 Pastor Donnie

May 7, 2021

Dear Calvary Families,

We are now in the final weeks of school, and I wanted to give you an update about the last days before summer break.

First, our graduation and End of Year Program for the middle and high school will be Thursday, May 27th at 6:00 p.m.
This program is open to all of our Calvary families as we celebrate the achievement of our students and especially our graduating Seniors, the class of 2021. In order to prepare for the program, all students PreK-12th grade will be dismissed at 12:00 p.m. on that day with no aftercare. 

On Friday, May 28th the End of Year Program for preschool and elementary will be at 9:30 a.m. Again, all of our Calvary families are invited, and the school will dismiss all students at the conclusion of the program with no aftercare.   All students need to make certain they take their things home, including their band instruments.

This has been a wonderful year in spite of the challenges. I want to thank the teachers, staff and you, the Calvary families for helping us make this such a successful year.

I also want to thank all of you who reached out to show appreciation to our teachers and staff through meals, desserts, and special gifts. We did feel appreciated and we thank you for that.

I look forward to seeing you at our End of Year Programs. 

Pastor Donnie

April 2, 2021

Dear Calvary School Family,

We have received  the latest guidance from North Carolina and the CDC concerning reopening schools to in-person instruction. Governor Cooper issued  a call to all schools to reopen as soon as possible for in- person instruction, “Recognizing the growing harms to children who are out of school and relying solely on remote instruction, including negative impacts on academic and mental health and food insecurity.”

The guidance goes on to explain,
• There is little evidence that schools have contributed to increased rates of community transmission; countries that have reopened their schools did not see large rises in infection at a population level.
• Overall, studies in the US and internationally have demonstrated limited disease transmission from child-to-child and very limited to no transmission from child-to-adult in the in-person school setting.
• North Carolina’s ABC Science Collaborative found rates of secondary transmission during in-person school instruction significantly less than the surrounding communities and no cases of student to staff transmission.”

The new guidelines have removed the requirement to screen and take temperatures each morning, but we will still require students to wear a mask to school,  take extra measures to sanitize our facilities,  and monitor students throughout the day for any symptoms of illness.  Remember, if your child is not feeling well, please keep them home. In this way we will continue to provide a safe place for our students to learn. We will continue to encourage physical distancing,  but CDC has changed the recommended minimum distance  to 3 feet.

So, things are getting better and we are blessed to have been in our classrooms for many months with no cases of covid in our school.  Thank you for working with us.

I hope you have a great weekend as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. If you would like to worship in-person this Easter Sunday,  join us for our 10:45am Morning Worship Service.  If that is not possible,  join us online at calvarybaptistwilmington.org or on our Facebook page at facebook.com/CalvaryBaptist23rdSt/. Thank you again for being part of our family.

Pastor Donnie

March 1, 2021

Dear Calvary Families,

We are in our finals months of what has been a very good school year.  Thank you for helping to make it a great year.  I am so impressed with our students.  I teach them in Chapel and Band, and I visit them in their classrooms, and I could not be prouder of the job our teachers and students have done this year.  Even as I write, parents are still enrolling students for this school year because their children are struggling in schools that will only allow virtual learning.  I am thankful to God for allowing us to bring our students back, and we couldn’t have done that without your cooperation.  Thank you so much!

Re-enrollment officially begins today, and I want to do something very special for you who are planning to keep your children here.  For two weeks, March 1st -12th, the Registration Fee will be $50 for the 2021-22 school year.  I am only doing this for re-enrolling students as a way to say thank you for sticking with us.  I cannot extend this discount, so please take advantage of it.  After March 12^th, it will be the regular discount of $100 until April 15th.  I hope this helps you and your family.

We are making a couple changes to our calendar.  First, we are not participating in the Fine Arts Festival, so school will meet as normal on March 18 & 19.  However, due to a change in the IOWA testing schedule for Elementary, Middle and High School students, all classes will be dismissed at 12:30pm on April 14, 15 and 16 with no aftercare on these days. 

Thank you again for your dedication to our school.  You are greatly appreciated.

Pastor Donnie

1/11/2021

Dear Calvary Families,

While this has been one of the best years we have had at Calvary, it has also been one of the most challenging.  Covid-19 has affected nearly every family in some way.   I am thankful to the Lord that we have not had an outbreak at our school, but am aware that a number of parents and grandparents have had it.  Let me remind you that it is imperative that your child not come to school sick.  It is also important that your child not come to school if they have had exposure to a person with Covid-19.  The guidelines we are required to follow define “exposure” as being “within 6 feet of someone with Covid for more than 15 minutes.”

If your child has been exposed they must be out of school for 14 days.  I know this poses an inconvenience, but it is better than having a problem that will shut down our school for weeks, or months.  We will be asking your students if they have been exposed, and if so, they will be sent home.  If your child has been exposed, just let us know. We can mail out their school work, so keep them at home for 14 days since the last exposure. 

For some good news, our 2 seniors, Gabie and Hunter, have both been accepted at a number of state colleges including ECU, UNC-Wilmington, UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Pembroke, Campbell and others.  This is an important step for us as a school, and we thank God, our students, parents, and our fine teachers for the strong academics that have made our students attractive to universities.  Keep up the good work.

Thank you for being part of our family,

Pastor Donnie

December 1, 2020

Dear Calvary Families,

Thank you for your continued support of our ministry to your students.  I am so impressed with the character I see displayed in their lives each day.  I am blessed to be able to share the message and love of Jesus Christ with your children.  I pray for them and encourage them and I see God working in their lives.  I hope you notice that as well.  While these have been very difficult and changing times for us, our students and teachers have continued to adjust and make progress.  Some schools in our country are still locked down.  I am grateful that we have been able to meet in person since the beginning of the school year, and we continue to safeguard our students and keep our school well.  Thank you for your help with this.  I’m sure these trying days have placed much strain upon your family, and I pray for God to help you and protect you.

As I am sure you are aware, our Governor has placed more restrictions upon us including masks and a limit in the number of people who can meet together.  Because of this, we have been forced to cancel our Christmas Concert on December 11.  I hate that this has happened, because your students have worked hard to perform for you.  What I can do is have an in-school concert sometime next week and record it so that you may view it.  I will work out these details with our Church video team.  Therefore, there will be no need for a ½ day on December 11, but school will dismiss on Thursday, December 10 at the normal time for Christmas break, and resume on Monday, January 4, 2021.

The Governor’s new restrictions have also affected us in the way of wearing masks.   At first, private schools were free to develop their own plans for dealing with the Coronavirus, but now we are required to follow the guidance given to the public schools which means wearing masks.  The StrongSchoolsNC guidance allows for some mask breaks during the day, and we will give those as we can.  What I do need is for your student to wear a mask when they come to school, and as always, stay at home if they are sick.  I am very sorry about this new regulation, but we must do what we can to comply.

So, once again, I thank you for working with us to get through this difficult time and know that we are doing everything we can to help our students not only academically, but emotionally and spiritually.  I am thankful that we can still open our doors, and that God continues to protect us.  Please help me pray that the next year will see an end to this virus, and all the problems it has caused.  And remember what this season is really about; it is about Jesus our Savior.  His gift of eternal life is the most important gift we could ever receive, and we can be grateful that nothing can take that away from us.

I hope you and your family have a very blessed Christmas.

Pastor Donnie

November 18, 2020

Dear Calvary Parents,                                                                                    

We are nearing Thanksgiving break, and we have so much for which to be thankful for.  We have brought our students back to school, and they are doing really well under these conditions.  We are keeping ourselves sanitized and practicing social distancing, and thus far have had no cases of COVID-19 in our school.  Having said that, we are experiencing a change in weather, and have a number of our students out with colds, and other annual bugs.  In order to keep us safe, I want to have a deep cleaning and sanitizing of our building next week.  In order to do this properly, we are extending our Thanksgiving break for the students. 

The school will be closed for in-person instruction Monday and Tuesday, November 23-24. We will be out for Thanksgiving Break, November 25-27. We will return on Monday, November 30 for normal operation.  The Preschool and Elementary will be working hard this week to have their academics completed by Friday so they will not have assignments next week. The Middle/High School will continue to have assignments virtually on Monday and Tuesday. I know this may cause some hardship for parents, but I feel that this is the best way for us to keep well as we head toward the Christmas break. 

Thank you for all your support, and cooperation during this difficult time.  We have tried to make our year as normal as possible for our students, and they have done so well to keep us safe.  Please remember that your child should not come to school if they are having ANY FLU LIKE SYMPTOMS.   Also, if your child has COVID, or has been around someone diagnosed with COVID, or is having COVID symptoms, they should not return to school until 14 days after the last contact with that person.  While they are out for sickness they can learn through remote learning until they can return to school.  Your teachers will help with that.  Remember; do not send a sick child to school.  If they are not feeling well, please keep them home. 

Please pray for one another as we look forward to the day when all this is behind us. 

Thank you.  May God bless you and your family this Thanksgiving season.

Pastor Donnie Lovette

Dear Calvary family,

I just wanted to give you an update on our first week of school. We are up and running and off to a great start. With the extra measures we are taking to protect our school, everyone is safe and this has been one of the most pleasant openings I can remember. I think everyone is adjusting and starting to relax.  I see many students happy to be back at school.  In fact, the students are really helping us stay safe by practicing social distancing and wiping everything they touch.  We have never been more germ-free than now, and I really don’t sense any fear among the students, or teachers. We have truly had a great start.  We are a little down in our enrollment, but we are gaining students as more parents become tired of the virtual plan forced upon their children.

Now about remote learning, our plan for virtual learning was not designed for a large number of students, but as a way to get through a COVID-19 situation. If a student becomes sick and is out for 14 days, he/she needs virtual learning.  Our remote learning plan was never designed to replace our in class instruction. In fact, having to teach both in class, and online adds an extra burden to our teachers as well as parents.  Eventually, all students need to be in class. Unless we have a health problem, virtual/ remote learning will end by Christmas break, or earlier if possible.  Also, students who were in class when school began may not switch to remote learning unless they are quarantined for COVID-19.   Furthermore, those in virtual learning are required to complete all assignments just as those who are in class.  The CDC has said students need to be back in school, and for us it has been a very good reopening.  While there are a small number of students who do well with virtual classes, most students need the structure and social interaction that comes from being in class.

Elementary band will begin on September 14.  All 4^th and 5^th grade students are in the band, so they need an instrument.  Please make sure they have an instrument for band class, and if there is a problem, please contact me so we can work on it together.  Upper grade virtual students will also have work to do for a band grade.  Because they cannot be in class, I will send home a weekly practice record to be completed and submitted.  I will have the forms for the virtual band students by next week. 

I want to thank all the parents, grandparents, teachers, staff and students who worked together, and made it possible to open our school in a safe and timely manner.  We look forward to a great school year.  Keep up the good work and may God bless you all.

Pastor Donnie