As we begin the New Year 2018, I echo the thoughts of Wendy Silvers, founder of the Million Mamas Movement in my hopes and wishes for our school, our beautiful Oklahoma City, and our world.
"May the true essence and celebration of Chanukah Solstice Christmas and Kwanzaa ~ miracles, light everlasting, love, peace, mercy, forgiveness, generosity, creativity, eternal life, universal principles, draw us close.
May the manmade borders of separatism ~ bigotry, hatred, racism, sexism, ageism, patriotism, elitism, religiosity, power over and war ~ dissolve in our hearts and minds.
May we seed a global heart that nurtures and nourishes the thriving and flourishing of each of us, who represent the One of us, in the most life-affirming and deepest ways.
May all women, mothers, girls, and boys everywhere have freedoms and be cherished.
May our boys, men, and world leaders be guided to know that violence is not the solution but a cause of bitterness and choose differently.
May we, the people, be so inspired, informed and educated about who we really are that we would never harm another or be less than our magnificent selves.
May we, the people, recognize, re-know, that we elected the officials, and that we can disrupt the status quo of policies and legislation that are not healthy for us through our conscious awareness, votes and buying choices.
May all know that there is no power greater or stronger than the power of LOVE. LOVE is the SOULution. LOVE is the Healer, the Revealer, the Restorer, the Unifier, the Liberator. Let LOVE rule. Let LOVE lead the way. LOVE is the one note that everything in this multi-dimensional Universe always vibrates to.
The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas at Casady are full and busy with holiday concerts, special performances, community service projects, and more. Since Casady Upper and Middle Division students take exams before Thanksgiving in our trimester curriculum, students all across campus are able to fully participate and make the most of the Christmas season on campus.
The Rev. Fr. Charles Blizzard, Vicar of St. Edward's Chapel, discusses community service opportunities, performances, and Chapel services in a special Focus on Faculty edition during this holiday season: Focus on Christmas.
This time of year is always full of service opportunities. Primary, Lower, and Upper Divisions held a donation drive for Infant Crisis Services to collect much-needed items including diapers, clothes, blankets, and toys. ICS visited campus on Thursday so the students could fill the van with their donations. And earlier this week, the Oklahoma Blood Institute was on campus for a blood drive and the Art Club in collaboration with YAC (Youth Active in the Community) made and decorated 50 stockings for 3-4-year old of the "Our Spot" head start program. Stockings were filled with art supplies for the children to have art activities to do during the holidays.
On Sunday, Dec. 10, members of our Casady Community came together to celebrate Lessons and Carols in the Chapel of St. Edward the Confessor. The evening was full of carols performed by Upper Division, seventh grade, and fourth-grade choirs.
We would like to wish our Casady Community a joyous holiday season and look forward to our families returning to campus in the New Year on Jan. 2, 2018.
Christmas Eve Service in St. Edward's Chapel
The Casady Community is invited to a Christmas Eve Service on Sunday, Dec. 24 at 7:00 p.m. with prelude music beginning at 6:30 p.m. The Christmas Eve Service is a tradition in the Casady Community, and many alums and families look forward to attending each year. This year the service will take place earlier to accommodate our families at 7:00 p.m. All are also invited to a reception in the East Transept, hosted by the Alumni Association, to celebrate the joys of Christmas immediately following the service.
YAC (Youth Active in the Community) celebrated the Holidays by giving. Co-Vice-President, Katherine S. organized and implemented the ICS Hope for the Holidays Drive. Upper, Lower, and Primary Division brought needed items for infants and toddlers requested by Infant Crisis Services. The drive, started at the LD and PD on December 1st. 4th graders took their donations personally to ICS on December 13th. Katherine arranged for the ICS Baby Mobile to pick up the PD and UD donations on December 14th. The UD collection went from December 11th-15th. Katherine personally delivered the donations brought by high school students the last day of the drive.
Happy Boys and Girls Club Video By Pearce Sapper'17
YAC Co-Vice-President, Sahanya B., organized and implemented the first YAC visit of the year at Boys and Girls Club. Juniors Peyton B. and Megan B. accompanied Sahanya in this first visit to the club on Friday, December 8, 2017. The group took 500 candy canes from Sam's to distribute at the Club for the holidays. Sahanya stated, "We went for two hours and played games and gave out candy canes!" Sahanya did not take pictures of the first visit. She is planning a second visit in January where she will take pictures.
Santa Sammy
Hannah H.'19
YAC Treasurer, Claire Richardson was the point person for the 2017 Casady Blood Drive 2017. Claire and YAC Vice President, Ellison G. and YAC member, Chris Goodall motivated peers to donate. The Casady Bood Drive provided 28 donors. Thank you Cyclones for giving the gift of life during the holidays.
Casady YAC officers, Claire R'19. and Katherine S'19., Casady STUCO President, Luke A'18., and Rainbolt Family Service-Learning Chair, Carmen Clay'74, participated in the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits Visions Recognition Event. One of the honorees was Mr. Gene Rainbolt. He received the Life Time Achievement in Philanthropy.
Thank you, Mr. Rainbolt for the resources you provide to help Cyclone make a difference in the Casady and Oklahoma City Community.
The group's attendance was made possible by the generosity of the Advancement and Development Office at Casady School. Special thanks to Mr. Steve Shelly, Director of Institutional Advancement for making the groups attendance possible and Mr. Matt Cloud, Director of Development for attending the dinner with the Casady Cyclones.
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YAC Co-Presidents, Mariam S.'18, and Safra S.'18 hosted at the Casady YAC Conference Room in Harper, the Art Club's Xmas Stockings Project. YAC started cutting the 50 stockings for children at "Our Spot" Head Start program on December 5th. The President of the Art Club Art, Grace Hall, facilitated the project in collaboration with art teachers, Mrs. Seitter, and Mrs. Pardue and help from Miss Sarah Smith, Mrs. Clay Substitute. Stockings were delivered on the last day before "Our Spot" ended classes for the 2017 school year. Mrs. Pardue stated, "The delivery of the stockings went very well."
Youth & Government presented their brief and successful story of participation in the YMCA YAG at chapel on Friday, December 14,2017.
Last year, per initiative of STUCO President, Luke A., Casady Cyclones attended their first State Conference as process observers. The school year 2017-2018 is the first year, the Casady YAG was fully operational under the sponsorship of history teacher, Mrs. Lisa Bek-gram with assistance of the Service Learning Office as needed.
The Y's Youth and Government™ program is a national program that involves thousands of teens nationwide in state-organized, model-government programs. Students from every corner of the U.S. have the opportunity to immerse themselves in experiential civic engagement and practice democracy. Teens from across every state meet in their local Youth and Government clubs and at statewide events throughout the year to discuss and debate issues that affect citizens of their state through proposed legislation, participation in mock trials, or journalistic reporting. A club can be held at their local school, YMCA, church or homeschool group. Local clubs can meet monthly, weekly, or quarterly. Throughout the year, YMCA YAG provide opportunites for regional training, club officer training, and recruitment. Participating students attend a District Conference in their region to qualify for State Conference. The program culminates with teens serving as delegates at the State Conference, debating bills on the floor of the legislature, arguing cases before state courts, and creating various media publications.
YAC Project Leader speaks at Chapel with 4th Grade Project leaders
ICS Hope for the Holidays Project Leaders Speak at UD and LD Chapels
My name is Katherine Schoeffler, and I’m a junior at Casady this year. I’m here to talk to you all about the Infant Crisis Services Hope for the Holidays Donation Drive like last year, and I’d like to start us off with a quote that I use with the lower division.
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better. It's not.”
This quote is from Dr. Seuss in the book, The Lorax. Now, I absolutely love this quote because it explains the way that change starts with you.
Infant Crisis Services gives food, formula, clothes, diapers, and many other necessities to children in need. During their visit, each child is provided with a week’s worth of these items. This gives them such an amazing holiday, free from worries that young children should never have to face.
Last year, combined with Lower and Primary division, it took more than three cars to send all of the donations to Infant Crisis Services, which is why I’m so excited to share this project with you all. Three cars. That’s amazing.
Another example! There was one incredible student in the Primary Division that used all of her piggy bank money from a lemonade stand last summer to buy three boxes of diapers for babies who needed them. And another student in the high school! She donated nearly all of her stuffed animals that she no longer needed to the cause. These people are just like you. They have truly pure and giving and generous hearts, just like you.
The holidays are an exciting time for everyone. I would love to get everyone to use their holiday spirit to donate items and give babies and toddlers the amazing, worry-free holidays they deserve. This drive is so important to me because 1 in 4 babies goes hungry each night, but we can help them by donating items and volunteering.
Here’s a wishlist provided by ICS. This gives the children such an amazing holiday, free from worries that young children should never have to face, and everyone deserves a wonderful holiday season.
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If you can, please bring to the Giving Tree at the Student Center:
Diapers
New or gently used toys
Baby bottles,
Sippy cups
Blankets,
Gently used childrens clothing
Monetary donations
The drive will take place December 11-15, which is next week, in the mornings and I just want you to know that I’m so excited to introduce you all to this drive, so just thank you all so much in advance for helping a child in need to have a happy holiday.
The Hope for the Holidays Drive UD chapel speech by Katherine and the fourth grade speakers started the drie at tje UD division. The speech took place on Wednesday, December 6. The ICS Baby Mobile will pick-up the UD donations on December 14th after they pick up the PD donations at 10:00 am. As the drive continues until the 15th, Katherine will take last minute donations to ICS at the end of the day of December 15th.
UD Hope for the Holidays Drive volunteers early morning shift is from 7:15-7:55 No chapel should be missed!
Monday: December 11: Katherine, Ellie, Hannah
Tuesday, December 12: Katherine, Ellie, Hannah
Wednesday, December 13: Katherine, Ellie, Hannah
Thursday, December 14: Katherine, Ellie, Hannah
The ICS Baby Mobile will pick up donations from the PD and the UD at a time TBA by Katherine
Friday, December 15: Katherine, Ellie, Hannah
ICS Hope for the Holidays Drive in LD and PD
Santa Sammy by Hannah H.'19
The fourth graders made posters and gave a LD chapel speech accompanied by YAC Vice-President Katherine S.'19. The drive began Friday, December 1st and will end on December 12th. On December 13th, selected 4th graders will deliver the donations to Infant Crisis Services with Mrs. France and Mrs. Freeland. Special thanks to Mrs. Freeland for helping pack the donations and to our staff for transporting the donations boxes from the tree to the caravan of cars that will deliver the LD kindness. generosity, and compassion to ICS.
UD volunteers at the LD report to duty at 7:15 and stay until 7:55. No one is excused from attending chapel
Friday, December 1: Mrs. Clay
Monday, December 4: Mrs. Clay
Tuesday, December 5: Mrs. Clay
Wednesday, December 6: Katherine S.
Thursday, December 7: Volunteers Needed
Friday, December 8: Isabela P. and Ava R.
Monday: December 11: Volunteers Needed
Tuesday, December 12: Claire R.
Wednesday, December 13: Volunteers Needed.
4th graders will transport donations in cars driven by Mrs. France and Mrs. Freeland. Loading will start at 10:30 and leave for ICS at 11:10
The Primary Division also started the ICS Hope for the Holidays Drive on December 1. The ICS Baby Mobile will pick-up the PD and UD donations on December 14th. High School students volunteer on a daily basis to remind the little donors to bring needed items for Oklahoma infants and toddlers in need.
UD volunteers at the PD report to duty at 7:30 and stay until 8:15
Volunteers are excused from UD Chapel to help PD donors and teachers
Friday, December 1: Sahanya B. and Anna B.
Monday, December 4: Sharun P. and Malavika R.
Tuesday, December 5: Volunteers Needed
Wednesday, December 6: Sharun P.
Thursday, December 7: Volunteers Needed
Friday, December 8: Volunteers Needed
Monday: December 11: Sharun P. and Malavika R.
Tuesday, December 12: Volunteers Needed
Wednesday, December 13: Sharun P. and Malavika R.
Thursday, December 14: Volunteers Needed
The ICS Baby Mobile will pick up donations from the PD at 10:00 am on Thursday, December 14,2017.
The Art Club has a holiday tradition of making and decorating Xmas stockings and filling them with art supplies for children of a chosen school to enjoy making art during the holiday break.
It is also a tradition for the UD Service Club YAC (Youth Active in the Community) to help the Casady Upper Division Art Club cut, make, decorate, and fill the stockings. This year, the selected school by the Art Club is "Our Spot" Head Start Program. YAC began the project during the YAC meeting. Mrs. Seitter, Mrs. Pardue and Mrs. Clay explained the history of the project and provided the materials to start cutting the stockings which this year will go to 4 and 5 years olds from a local head start program.
OUR SPOT HEAD START is a licensed Child Care Center that serves children ages 3 years, 4 years, and 5 years old. It is located at 1532 W HEFNER RD. The fifty 2017 Art Club Stockings will be delivered to the children on Tuesday, December 12th at 3:00 PM.
Mrs. Seitter and Mrs. Pardue, Art Club sponsors, and YAC sponsor, Miss Sarah Smith (substitute teacher for Mrs. Clay), are helping the UD Cyclones make and deliver the "art supplies, homemade stockings" for the 3 and 4-year olds who attend the afternoon session. Mrs. Telemico, Our Spot Director (Our Spot <ourspoths@coxinet.net>), stated that the afternoon session only has 47 children as some have moved away. The range of ages in the afternoon classes are 3 and 4-year olds. Stockings will be delivered at 3:00 pm on Tuesday, December 12th by available Art Club, YAC members and sponsors.
Hallelujah! It’s the season for festive performances of Messiah. Would it not be amazing if Handel could enjoy royalties on the December productions of his beloved, atypical oratorio?
Atypical? Wait, it’s one the most famous of all oratorios, right? True, although much of that fame is due to a combination of the traditions surrounding its performance history and the appeal of certain magnificent numbers such as “He Shall Feed His Flock,” “I Know That My Redeemer Liveth,” and “Hallelujah Chorus.”
Otherwise, Messiah classifies as a marvelous wrought, highly effective, but weighty choral work, hastily written in 1741 to fit a specific circumstance. In terms of musical style, it’s “spot-on” in every way: Handel was nothing if not a master of the styles popular in his day. And a work like Messiah would be expected to incorporate nearly all of them.
But its “atypical” nature is due to the style of the words—text—penned by Handel’s colleague Charles Jennens, particularly when compared to other hit oratorios of the day, including others written by Jennens. Before saying more about this, let’s back up and answer the question: what is an oratorio?
An oratorio is a type of multi-sectional music written for solo vocalists, chorus, and instruments that that tells a story. Not staged, costumed, or acted as a play or opera would be, it is performed in what today we call a “concert setting.” Oratorios had humble but important beginnings in Florence and Rome around 1600, although many aspects of both music and text were based on earlier types of music and drama.
When the oratorio was born, it was fairly short, consisting of a handful of musical numbers divided into two parts. These had a unified theme and created an engaging musical framework for a sermon that was delivered within a new type of extra-liturgical service held in . . . ready, drum roll, please! . . . an oratorio.
That’s it. Early “oratorios” were performed in an oratorio—and that’s how this type of music got its name. During the Renaissance, an oratorio was a space often built into the back of churches or somewhere nearby. Today we might call it a prayer hall (cf. Latin oratio, I pray). They were not large, and consequently these new musical works, once they grew in popularity, had to be moved to larger public spaces.
Another factor fostering the growth of the oratorio came from the desire to have some kind of entertainment suitable for Lent. All theaters were shut for 40 days during the penitential season of Lent. That’s a long time for people to be without their favorite type of popular entertainment, and in those days, people most enjoyed attending opera and plays. Think of the response today if either TV or the Internet were to be blacked out for 40 days. Plus, remember this: musicians have to eat! So singers, instrumentalists, text writers (librettists), and composers delighted in the growing popularity of the oratorio.
So now that we have a context, let’s think about what would be “inside” an oratorio in Handel’s day. Oratorios tell a story usually in two acts (remember their origin as framing a sermon). Up until around 1800 the subjects were taken from the Bible or early Christian history, including saints’ lives. Oratorios do have characters (dramatic figures) whom people recognize, such as Elijah, Samuel, Saul, and usually a narrator who conveys part of the plot. So an oratorio’s text looks something like a play script.
But another literary element can be added into the dramatic and narrative components of telling a story, and that is “reflective” or lyrical text. You might want to think of it this way. A narrator might say: “The sun came up the next morning.” A character might say, “Look everyone, the sun is coming up.” But the reflective text describing this same sunrise might be written: “Oh beauteous light of the sun, so eagerly awaited, pouring its gentle light on each us in the early morning, shedding another tear of God’s grace unto our lives, we rejoice in your beauty.”
Got it?
So now, let’s get back to my assertion that Messiah is atypical. In Messiah we find the story of Christ’s birth, career, Crucifixion, and Resurrection, set in three (not two) acts. But most of the story is conveyed through narrative and reflective (lyrical) texts. There are no named characters conveying dialogue.
This doesn’t change the power of this work or the stunning magnificence of Handel’s music, particularly the intricately constructed choruses (one of Messiah’s greatest strengths). But it does help us to see why a story told primarily through lyrical imagery packs a different punch than one that has actual characters, such as joyous women showering praise on the upstart David while King Saul sputters “With rage I shall burst” (Handel’s 1738 oratorio Saul, also written by Charles Jennens).
Well, even though Messiah dominates the season, this 2017 Calendar will soon focus on another oratorio: Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio (Weihnachts-Oratorium), composed in Leipzig for the 1734 Christmas season. With its six short parts, intended for six different occasions beginning with Christmas Eve, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio presents yet another model for oratorio-writing—one that, in fact, isn’t an oratorio at all! Plus it opens with some of the grandest music for trumpet, chorus, and drums you could ever find. But more about that in a few days!
By Professor Carol on Dec 05, 2017 05:00 am Shared with permission from Professor Carol
Nicholas of Myra
Today, Dec. 5, on the third day of Advent. We’ll consider a tradition that occurs tomorrow(Dec. 6th)—the commemoration of an historical figure who is actually an old friend to most of us.
Shoes and socks are important items. In Jesus’s world, the sandal reigned supreme. But for most of us, solid shoes and warm socks have a place, particularly in winter when they help us survive the icy elements.
I pay more attention to shoes than I used to. Living with Russians in our household, we’ve picked up the global tradition of removing shoes upon entering the house. It’s not something I grew up doing, although I have to admit, it does make it easier to find one’s shoes.
But the appeal of socks and stockings, is even more interesting to me. Think how many hours grandmas and moms in past eras had to spend knitting stockings for the family. What is cozier than a favorite pair of socks? Plus, good socks and stockings were, and still are, a luxury in some parts of the world. And they can be expensive! Certainly in my childhood, getting a run in our stockings was a big no-no (in part, a hold-over from the days of rationing during World War II).
Shoes and socks function as symbols, too. Baby’s baptismal socks sometimes get tucked into a keepsake box. First booties may undergo a grand preservation by bronzing and engraving them with the child’s name and birth date. Little can we imagine how we’ll battle to keep shoes and socks on a child’s feet as he grows!
Tomorrow, Dec. 6, is the day when St. Nicholas of Myra is celebrated across Christendom. That makes tonight St. Nicholas Eve, the time for the shoes and stockings to come out!
Yes, this tradition is the source of our “Christmas stockings.” On December 5th, children worldwide place their shoes and socks out tonight, with hopes they will be filled with a treat by St. Nicholas.
We’ve been focusing more on this tradition in recent years. The “gifts” don’t have to be large, or even physical items. Family members can gather poems, jokes, or favorite quotes to fill the shoes. An older sibling might make homemade coupons, offering a service to delight the recipient: perhaps an offer to walk the dog for a month, do all the dinner dishes, or spend more time playing “Play Dough” with the little ones. The goal is to enjoy the loveliness of the tradition (as opposed to racking up gifts).
And, indeed, that’s what I experienced last year on St. Nicholas Eve. I was working as a Smithsonian Study Leader on a ship. We were sailing the Mosel River as part of a 10-day tour of French and German Christmas Markets. To my surprise, our charming ship director invited us to put our shoes out in the corridor on St. Nicholas Eve. Some travelers knew this tradition, but many did not.
Around midnight, I couldn’t help poking my head out and snapping this picture, tickled to see how many of my very grown-up guests eagerly had set out their shoes. Quite a few, as you see. In the morning, people were delighted to find candy, fruit, and trinkets. You’d think they had received jewels. It was the talk of breakfast.
As with so many things in the human experience, the value of the symbol far exceeds its material content. Later that night, Dec. 6th, we docked and watched residents of the villages on either side come together, swimming in the icy water (some had wet suits, some did not). They carried lanterns and created a parade for an illuminated St. Nick (a real fellow), enthroned on a decorated wooden raft. The scene was gorgeous: the candles, the illuminated faces of the swimmers, St. Nicholas’s glittering garments, all against the dark, cold waters of the Mosel.
Of course, the history behind these traditions is a serious one, traced back to a 4th–century Bishop known today as Nicholas of Myra. In his most famous act of beneficence, he afforded three impoverished sisters each a bag of gold coins (or golden balls), which provided them with the dowry necessary for them to be married. From this particular event stems the concept of our St. Nick as a bringer of gifts. (On a completely different note, three golden balls became a medieval symbol for a pawnbroker’s shop.)
But the path to beatification and canonization for Nicholas was due not to this one deed, but to a multifaceted and complex life, including his role in preventing famine, saving citizens from punitive taxation, intervening in unjust executions, and his controversial actions at the famous Council of Nicea in 325.
His icon (wearing a white stole with black crosses) is among those most frequently found in both Orthodox (Eastern) and Catholic churches. For that matter, take any sizable city across Europe, Britain, Russia, Turkey, and even the United States. Count the number of churches named after Nikolaos, Nicholas, Nikolai, or Nikolsky. Think, too, of how many baby boys have been named after St. Nicholas, from priests and archbishops to kings and tsars.
All of this history, art, and spiritual meaning really does stand behind each shoe placed outside of a door on the eve of Dec. 5. So perhaps tonight you and your family might enjoy sharing in the “stocking” or “shoe” tradition. Or tomorrow you may want to look at the role Bishop Nicholas of Myra played in this early period of Christianity. Or you may wish to view the astonishingly beautiful icons of St. Nicholas created across the centuries. Each of these activities gives us yet another glimpse into the richness of the Advent season.
Hallelujah! It’s the season for festive performances of Messiah. Would it not be amazing if Handel could enjoy royalties on the December productions of his beloved, atypical oratorio?
And, indeed, that’s what I experienced last year on St. Nicholas Eve. I was working as a Smithsonian Study Leader on a ship. We were sailing the Mosel River as part of a 10-day tour of French and German Christmas Markets. To my surprise, our charming ship director invited us to put our shoes out in the corridor on St. Nicholas Eve. Some travelers knew this tradition, but many did not.
