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Message Quinte Region Christian Schools offers enhanced Christian education, based on the truth of the Bible, to equip and challenge our students to be disciples of Christ in an ever-changing world. May 2025 Stay in Touch Facebook & Instagram: “QuinteRegionChristianSchools” www.qrcs.ca
Upcoming Events From The Executive Director By Jordan Butcher, Executive Director Every journey starts with the first step. As Christians, Christ frees us from sin and calls us to follow Him. With each step of trusting obedience, we know Him more, we better resemble Him, and we increasingly focus on doing His will. This is who we are as individu-als and as a faith community; this is our vision. Every student is an active disciple of Christ, passionately seeking, serving, loving, leading, and reaching others for today, tomorrow, and eternity. There are many wonderful things happening in our schools: great teaching and learn-ing, practical service projects and community outreach, fun activities to build community and grow school spirit, but the most important aspect of student life involves the faithful, daily sowing and watering of discipleship. I was so blessed and encouraged when, as I was making my rounds recently, one of the teachers told me that two students in her class just came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and were excited to follow Him! This makes it all worthwhile! Home, church, and school are all working together to raise up a generation of humble, sincere, passionate Christ followers. I am so grateful that this is the central focus of our schools. I have no greater JOY than to hear that my children are walk-ing in the truth (3 John 1:4). Thank you for journeying with us. Thank you for your contribu-tions to our schools so that our staff is equipped to help our students take their important next steps. QCHS CLASS OF 1995 HIGH SCHOOL REUNION Calling all Classmates, Teachers, Staff of the Graduating Class of 1995 Thirty years ago we graduated! It might be pretty special to hang out again together. If you are interested, please RSVP to Liz Kirkland (ekirkland@dawsoncollege.qc.ca) When: Saturday, 28 June 2025 Timing: 6:00 p.m. or later What: Potluck at the Prinzen Farm Where: 114 Bloomfield Main St. Prince Edward County Partners, kids, families welcome! Bring a chair and some food to share. Tickets available at: qrcs.ca/news or call QCHS (613) 968-7870.
Join us at our upcoming Membership Meeting! Quinte Christian High School May 21, 2025 7pm Belleville Christian School Campus News From the Board God has created us to live in community, and fellowship together. Student life is a vital aspect of our school's overall health. It shapes our culture, encourages cross-grade relationships, and al-lows us to celebrate our school community. When children go home each day with a fun memory, they are more excited to return the next day. Additionally, student life provides opportunities for old-er students to develop leadership skills by planning and organizing dress-up days, Spirit Week, and other enjoyable activities around the school. At BCS, we organize our students into groups known as Colour Houses. Students from junior kindergarten to grade eight are assigned a colour, which serves as their team for the year. We intentionally separate siblings and friends to encourage inter-actions among students from different classes. Each Colour House competes for points by partici-pating in dress-up days at the end of each month. Students can earn points by wearing their Colour House colour or spirit wear every Friday throughout the year. We tally the points three times a year, and the team with the most points is rewarded with a Dairy Queen ice cream cake. This year, we have enjoyed numerous dress-up days, including our Undercover Spirit Week, during which staff dressed up each day without the students' knowledge. February brought more excitement with plas-tic dinosaurs and Valentine's Day activities. The week before March Break featured our annual Spirit Week, during which our Student Council selected themes and had students dress up in a different costume each day. At the end of the week, we had a fun afternoon filled with games and activities. Student life also involves acts of service and opportunities to practise leadership skills in other forms. Because we are a Leader in Me school, we welcome students’ desire to participate in service projects or other activities for the school. Our grade four class has been busy planning and organiz-ing contests in our school. We have had a bookmark contest, and the bookmarks made were hand-delivered to a local retirement community. The students thought of the idea and executed it with minimal teacher supervision. Our grade four boys ran a comic book contest, and the winning comic book will be put in our library to be enjoyed. The grade five class collected socks for our local home-less shelter. These enjoyable days, contests and service projects initiated by students create a com-munity where students look forward to coming to school and are allowed to be active participants. By Ingrid Roeper, Campus Principal How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!- Psalm 133:1
Trenton Christian School Campus News Thrift Store News Thank you! Through the efforts of our volunteers, sharing their time and talents, $450,000 was raised for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. These funds are used to assist families which require and benefit from some form of tuition assistance or bursary, enabling more students to receive a Christ-centred education in the Quinte Region. TCS students and staff continue to celebrate our theme for this year, “Pursuing Joy,” in ways that honour God and build our community. Our new playground, a true blessing, contin-ues to be a vibrant hub for students and the wider community, both during and after school hours, reflecting the joy of play and fellowship. Winter's arrival brought snowy fun, with students building snowmen and forts, playing hockey, and even enjoying special snow days filled with games, reading, gym time, extra re-cess, and LEGO building—all gifts from God to be enjoyed. Student Council keeps the spirit alive with fun events like school skates, Alphabet Day, and pizza days, fostering unity and joy. Kindness grams will be given out to celebrate ‘pink shirt day’ in the coming weeks. Each stu-dent will have the opportunity to send a message of kindness to a fellow student along with a sweet treat! Inside and outside the classroom, learning comes alive as students explore God's crea-tion and their place within it: Kindergarten explored being creation enjoyers; Grade 1 led chapel and worship, praising God through song and word; Grade 2 collaborated with older students on an animal project, recognizing the wonder of His creatures; Grade 3 created and presented dioramas of sky and water animals, showcasing His diverse world; Grade 4 ex-plored creation at the Royal Winter Fair and Goodrich Loomis, appreciating His handiwork; Grades 5/6 supported Grace Inn through fundraising and a visit to Crown Ridge, becoming community builders and demonstrating Christ's love; Grades 6/7 shared the meaning of being Image Reflectors, understanding their God-given identity; and Grade 8 designed simple ma-chines using great creativity and science! This shared success, rooted in faith, fosters a school-wide sense of togetherness and builds confidence in everyone's learning journey, reflecting God's love and grace. By Amanda deWal, Paraeducator
Little Sparks Preschool Campus News QRCS News By Jennifer deWal, Program Coordinator At Little Sparks Preschool, our program is rooted firmly in "How Does Learning Happen? (HDLH?) Ontario's Pedagogy for the Early Years". "Goals for children's learning, development, health and well-being are integral to all aspects of early years programs, from policies and procedures to environ-ments, experiences and interactions. Grounded in a view of the child as competent and capable, and organized around the foundations of belonging, well-being, engagement and expression, the goals will help educators and administrators remain focused on the children first and foremost throughout all elements of the program." (HDLH?) The foundation of Well-Being challenges educators to guide children in developing a positive sense of self, health and well-being. Learning about healthy nutrition is one way that Little Sparks Pre-school supports the well being of our students. At Little Sparks, all meals and snacks are provided to children. Menus are created in keeping with Canada's Food Guide and the requirements for nutri-tion under the Child Care and Early Years Act. Food is prepared fresh onsite in our school kitchen by our Nutrition Coordinators, and our baking is all done onsite by Mrs. Brenda Bron! Learning about healthy food is also extended to our in class learning. When we cook together, we learn to follow the directions in a recipe, measure ingredients and we observe property changes in our food as it cooks. When we try new foods from different cultures, we learn more about God's people.
To become a corporate sponsor, please email Jordan and Sophie in our Development Office: development@qrcs.ca Spring Golf Fundraising Tournament Sonrise Christian Academy Campus News By Holly Verkuyl, Campus Principal and Gr.1,2 Teacher We all know that January and February can feel long. Recesses can be cold. While some students love to build in the snow, it's not for everyone. So, Mrs. Mackay decided to get some students 'hooked' on crocheting at Sonrise! Every Thursday in January (and continuing into February), stu-dents spent time learning, or practicing their crocheting skills. Some of our students worked on chains, while others fast-tracked to crocheting little stuffed animals! We also decided to liven up the month of January by having some school-wide activities on Friday afternoons. One week we all went sledding for the last period of the day, and we also spent another afternoon celebrating our school colour houses with hot chocolate, a film adaptation of Charlotte's Web, and skating as a school family. Our grade 5/6 class explored Mexican food as they began reading Esperanza Rising in Language Arts while our grade 3/4 students worked on classroom puzzles together when they have completed their assigned work. These little "extras" that we welcome into our school day bring students, staff and families together. Hands-on activities and outings help to create an environment where we learn about ourselves and others through sharing new experiences and hobbies. We learn what talents and interests God has placed within us and hopefully find new ways to shine his love into our com-munities.
Psalm 34:8-11,17,18 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord...The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them ; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Quinte Christian High School Campus News I shared with my staff that at the first school I taught at, the principal would regularly ask, “Are you happy?”. At first I found this a bit odd, but then upon further reflection I appreciated the con-sideration. At times it seemed more like a “hey” or “how’s work going?” However at other times it prompted some great discussions, some deeper conversations that involved a dive into the per-sonal/work life balance. In fact – I now find myself every-so-often asking the same question. It is a good one. It’s important to have these conversations with our high school students as well. For you, if you are a parent or a grandparent, ask your child/grandchildren this question. Navigating the teenage years is no simplistic feat especially in today’s day and age. With all the distractions of social media, AI and determining what is truth in what we see and hear – the time has never been more critical for us to be in tune with our children. They may give the vibe that they don’t care or appreciate our concern, however I urge you to set a pattern or challenge yourself to ‘check-in’ with them at least a few times a week. Perhaps it is by asking ‘Are you happy?’ Recently at staff devotions our colleague led us in a devotions about Belonging and community. It’s incredible when a message you are communicating is repeated in multiple areas, multiple plat-forms. This attention and over communication is necessary when we show that we care. At Quinte Christian High School we engage with students on a variety of platforms – in classes, clubs, activi-ties, sports and simply informally – in the halls and during break times. Community is what we do – it’s what God calls us to be. Psalm 34 was a text that she used to illustrate the fact that God is present and that he is there when we call on him. We need to be reminded of this often and so our call is great when we understand that the teenagers we interact with every day also need encour-agement and reassuring that God is there for them…all the time! By Fred Breukelman, Campus Principal Some students and staff participated in a March break trip to Italy and Europe. Fidgets Comedy Night Sponsors Gold Platinum Silver
Corporate Sponsorship Program Yes, we will support QRCS! QRCS greatly appreciates the strong support of our local community and counts it an honour to promote our local community businesses who support us through our sponsorship and ad-vertising program. We would like to thank you for your sponsorship support in the past and invite you into a new and expanded opportunity. We ask you to consider renewing your event sponsorship with us and expanding your reach and impact throughout the broader school community. The events and programs are run in a similar way as they have in the past, but now you have the opportunity to advertise and support all of our QRCS events if you wish. You can customize your advertising and sponsorship efforts in line with your preferences and budget, with “a la carte” options, and– whichever event you choose to sponsor– to do so with one form, all at once. You can still choose to respond to individual event sponsorship throughout the year on a case by case basis if you prefer, but we want to partner with you to streamline the process. Whichever option you choose, your support dollars are an advertising expense and are tax deductible. Contact us: development@qrcs.ca
Corporate Sponsorship Program Yes, we will support QRCS! QRCS greatly appreciates the strong support of our local community and counts it an honour to promote our local community businesses who support us through our sponsorship and ad-vertising program. We would like to thank you for your sponsorship support in the past and invite you into a new and expanded opportunity. We ask you to consider renewing your event sponsorship with us and expanding your reach and impact throughout the broader school community. The events and programs are run in a similar way as they have in the past, but now you have the opportunity to advertise and support all of our QRCS events if you wish. You can customize your advertising and sponsorship efforts in line with your preferences and budget, with “a la carte” options, and– whichever event you choose to sponsor– to do so with one form, all at once. You can still choose to respond to individual event sponsorship throughout the year on a case by case basis if you prefer, but we want to partner with you to streamline the process. Whichever option you choose, your support dollars are an advertising expense and are tax deductible. Contact us: development@qrcs.ca
Psalm 34:8-11,17,18 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord...The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them ; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Quinte Christian High School Campus News I shared with my staff that at the first school I taught at, the principal would regularly ask, “Are you happy?”. At first I found this a bit odd, but then upon further reflection I appreciated the con-sideration. At times it seemed more like a “hey” or “how’s work going?” However at other times it prompted some great discussions, some deeper conversations that involved a dive into the per-sonal/work life balance. In fact – I now find myself every-so-often asking the same question. It is a good one. It’s important to have these conversations with our high school students as well. For you, if you are a parent or a grandparent, ask your child/grandchildren this question. Navigating the teenage years is no simplistic feat especially in today’s day and age. With all the distractions of social media, AI and determining what is truth in what we see and hear – the time has never been more critical for us to be in tune with our children. They may give the vibe that they don’t care or appreciate our concern, however I urge you to set a pattern or challenge yourself to ‘check-in’ with them at least a few times a week. Perhaps it is by asking ‘Are you happy?’ Recently at staff devotions our colleague led us in a devotions about Belonging and community. It’s incredible when a message you are communicating is repeated in multiple areas, multiple plat-forms. This attention and over communication is necessary when we show that we care. At Quinte Christian High School we engage with students on a variety of platforms – in classes, clubs, activi-ties, sports and simply informally – in the halls and during break times. Community is what we do – it’s what God calls us to be. Psalm 34 was a text that she used to illustrate the fact that God is present and that he is there when we call on him. We need to be reminded of this often and so our call is great when we understand that the teenagers we interact with every day also need encour-agement and reassuring that God is there for them…all the time! By Fred Breukelman, Campus Principal Some students and staff participated in a March break trip to Italy and Europe. Fidgets Comedy Night Sponsors Gold Platinum Silver
To become a corporate sponsor, please email Jordan and Sophie in our Development Office: development@qrcs.ca Spring Golf Fundraising Tournament Sonrise Christian Academy Campus News By Holly Verkuyl, Campus Principal and Gr.1,2 Teacher We all know that January and February can feel long. Recesses can be cold. While some students love to build in the snow, it's not for everyone. So, Mrs. Mackay decided to get some students 'hooked' on crocheting at Sonrise! Every Thursday in January (and continuing into February), stu-dents spent time learning, or practicing their crocheting skills. Some of our students worked on chains, while others fast-tracked to crocheting little stuffed animals! We also decided to liven up the month of January by having some school-wide activities on Friday afternoons. One week we all went sledding for the last period of the day, and we also spent another afternoon celebrating our school colour houses with hot chocolate, a film adaptation of Charlotte's Web, and skating as a school family. Our grade 5/6 class explored Mexican food as they began reading Esperanza Rising in Language Arts while our grade 3/4 students worked on classroom puzzles together when they have completed their assigned work. These little "extras" that we welcome into our school day bring students, staff and families together. Hands-on activities and outings help to create an environment where we learn about ourselves and others through sharing new experiences and hobbies. We learn what talents and interests God has placed within us and hopefully find new ways to shine his love into our com-munities.
Little Sparks Preschool Campus News QRCS News By Jennifer deWal, Program Coordinator At Little Sparks Preschool, our program is rooted firmly in "How Does Learning Happen? (HDLH?) Ontario's Pedagogy for the Early Years". "Goals for children's learning, development, health and well-being are integral to all aspects of early years programs, from policies and procedures to environ-ments, experiences and interactions. Grounded in a view of the child as competent and capable, and organized around the foundations of belonging, well-being, engagement and expression, the goals will help educators and administrators remain focused on the children first and foremost throughout all elements of the program." (HDLH?) The foundation of Well-Being challenges educators to guide children in developing a positive sense of self, health and well-being. Learning about healthy nutrition is one way that Little Sparks Pre-school supports the well being of our students. At Little Sparks, all meals and snacks are provided to children. Menus are created in keeping with Canada's Food Guide and the requirements for nutri-tion under the Child Care and Early Years Act. Food is prepared fresh onsite in our school kitchen by our Nutrition Coordinators, and our baking is all done onsite by Mrs. Brenda Bron! Learning about healthy food is also extended to our in class learning. When we cook together, we learn to follow the directions in a recipe, measure ingredients and we observe property changes in our food as it cooks. When we try new foods from different cultures, we learn more about God's people.
Trenton Christian School Campus News Thrift Store News Thank you! Through the efforts of our volunteers, sharing their time and talents, $450,000 was raised for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. These funds are used to assist families which require and benefit from some form of tuition assistance or bursary, enabling more students to receive a Christ-centred education in the Quinte Region. TCS students and staff continue to celebrate our theme for this year, “Pursuing Joy,” in ways that honour God and build our community. Our new playground, a true blessing, contin-ues to be a vibrant hub for students and the wider community, both during and after school hours, reflecting the joy of play and fellowship. Winter's arrival brought snowy fun, with students building snowmen and forts, playing hockey, and even enjoying special snow days filled with games, reading, gym time, extra re-cess, and LEGO building—all gifts from God to be enjoyed. Student Council keeps the spirit alive with fun events like school skates, Alphabet Day, and pizza days, fostering unity and joy. Kindness grams will be given out to celebrate ‘pink shirt day’ in the coming weeks. Each stu-dent will have the opportunity to send a message of kindness to a fellow student along with a sweet treat! Inside and outside the classroom, learning comes alive as students explore God's crea-tion and their place within it: Kindergarten explored being creation enjoyers; Grade 1 led chapel and worship, praising God through song and word; Grade 2 collaborated with older students on an animal project, recognizing the wonder of His creatures; Grade 3 created and presented dioramas of sky and water animals, showcasing His diverse world; Grade 4 ex-plored creation at the Royal Winter Fair and Goodrich Loomis, appreciating His handiwork; Grades 5/6 supported Grace Inn through fundraising and a visit to Crown Ridge, becoming community builders and demonstrating Christ's love; Grades 6/7 shared the meaning of being Image Reflectors, understanding their God-given identity; and Grade 8 designed simple ma-chines using great creativity and science! This shared success, rooted in faith, fosters a school-wide sense of togetherness and builds confidence in everyone's learning journey, reflecting God's love and grace. By Amanda deWal, Paraeducator
Join us at our upcoming Membership Meeting! Quinte Christian High School May 21, 2025 7pm Belleville Christian School Campus News From the Board God has created us to live in community, and fellowship together. Student life is a vital aspect of our school's overall health. It shapes our culture, encourages cross-grade relationships, and al-lows us to celebrate our school community. When children go home each day with a fun memory, they are more excited to return the next day. Additionally, student life provides opportunities for old-er students to develop leadership skills by planning and organizing dress-up days, Spirit Week, and other enjoyable activities around the school. At BCS, we organize our students into groups known as Colour Houses. Students from junior kindergarten to grade eight are assigned a colour, which serves as their team for the year. We intentionally separate siblings and friends to encourage inter-actions among students from different classes. Each Colour House competes for points by partici-pating in dress-up days at the end of each month. Students can earn points by wearing their Colour House colour or spirit wear every Friday throughout the year. We tally the points three times a year, and the team with the most points is rewarded with a Dairy Queen ice cream cake. This year, we have enjoyed numerous dress-up days, including our Undercover Spirit Week, during which staff dressed up each day without the students' knowledge. February brought more excitement with plas-tic dinosaurs and Valentine's Day activities. The week before March Break featured our annual Spirit Week, during which our Student Council selected themes and had students dress up in a different costume each day. At the end of the week, we had a fun afternoon filled with games and activities. Student life also involves acts of service and opportunities to practise leadership skills in other forms. Because we are a Leader in Me school, we welcome students’ desire to participate in service projects or other activities for the school. Our grade four class has been busy planning and organiz-ing contests in our school. We have had a bookmark contest, and the bookmarks made were hand-delivered to a local retirement community. The students thought of the idea and executed it with minimal teacher supervision. Our grade four boys ran a comic book contest, and the winning comic book will be put in our library to be enjoyed. The grade five class collected socks for our local home-less shelter. These enjoyable days, contests and service projects initiated by students create a com-munity where students look forward to coming to school and are allowed to be active participants. By Ingrid Roeper, Campus Principal How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!- Psalm 133:1
Upcoming Events From The Executive Director By Jordan Butcher, Executive Director Every journey starts with the first step. As Christians, Christ frees us from sin and calls us to follow Him. With each step of trusting obedience, we know Him more, we better resemble Him, and we increasingly focus on doing His will. This is who we are as individu-als and as a faith community; this is our vision. Every student is an active disciple of Christ, passionately seeking, serving, loving, leading, and reaching others for today, tomorrow, and eternity. There are many wonderful things happening in our schools: great teaching and learn-ing, practical service projects and community outreach, fun activities to build community and grow school spirit, but the most important aspect of student life involves the faithful, daily sowing and watering of discipleship. I was so blessed and encouraged when, as I was making my rounds recently, one of the teachers told me that two students in her class just came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and were excited to follow Him! This makes it all worthwhile! Home, church, and school are all working together to raise up a generation of humble, sincere, passionate Christ followers. I am so grateful that this is the central focus of our schools. I have no greater JOY than to hear that my children are walk-ing in the truth (3 John 1:4). Thank you for journeying with us. Thank you for your contribu-tions to our schools so that our staff is equipped to help our students take their important next steps. QCHS CLASS OF 1995 HIGH SCHOOL REUNION Calling all Classmates, Teachers, Staff of the Graduating Class of 1995 Thirty years ago we graduated! It might be pretty special to hang out again together. If you are interested, please RSVP to Liz Kirkland (ekirkland@dawsoncollege.qc.ca) When: Saturday, 28 June 2025 Timing: 6:00 p.m. or later What: Potluck at the Prinzen Farm Where: 114 Bloomfield Main St. Prince Edward County Partners, kids, families welcome! Bring a chair and some food to share. Tickets available at: qrcs.ca/news or call QCHS (613) 968-7870.
Quinte Region Christian Schools offers enhanced Christian education, based on the truth of the Bible, to equip and challenge our students to be disciples of Christ in an ever-changing world. May 2025 Stay in Touch Facebook & Instagram: “QuinteRegionChristianSchools” www.qrcs.ca