Advent and Christmas 2021 Celebrations

We praise God that we were able to have normal school from the end of the summer holiday in spite of Corona. Life in Schneller School was pretty normal apart from the necessary preventative measures which everyone got used to very quickly.
The week before the First Sunday in Advent, boys and girls made advent wreaths and placed them in the hall of every boarding home. A large advent wreath was also made for St. Michael's church.
Singing in evening chapel slowly shifted to Advent and Christmas hymns. Boarding homes, classrooms, and hallways were decorated with lovely Christmas decorations.
Kindergarten children celebrated St. Barbara's day by making face-masks and visiting the director in his office to sing the traditional song and get a chocolate treat.
St. Nicolas' Day was also celebrated on Tuesday 7 December during evening chapel. At the end of the service, two students dressed as St. Nicolas gave each student a bag containing tangerines and peanuts.
The Minister of Education decided to start the Christmas holiday early this year from 16 December 2021 and extend it until 10 January 2022. Miss Rabab Matta and her team of educators had to rush to the shops to get the Christmas presents for all the boarding children in time for the Christmas celebration which was moved one week earlier than the planned date.
The boarding department celebrations were held on Wednesday 15 December starting with a service of Lessons and Carols held at six o'clock in St. Michael's Church.
The traditional Christmas dinner followed the service. We thank our kitchen staff for preparing the delicious food.
Teachers, trainers, and members of staff were not invited to the Christmas dinner this year to limit the spread of Corona and prevent people from getting sick.
Later in the evening Santa distributed the Christmas presents to all students of the boarding department.
We express our sincere gratitude to the Theodore Schneller School chapter of the Alumni Association that kindly donated the funds for the Christmas presents this year.
We also thank the Lutheran Board for Mission Support - USA for allowing us to transfer the fund which they sent for Christmas presents this year as they do every year, to the hangar project for necessary work there.
The academic department held its Christmas program on Thursday 16 December at 1.30 PM. It was a wonderful program prepared by the teachers of the Academic Department. Teachers also had festive activities with their students in the classrooms the last period. 
We thank all our students, teachers, educators, and members of staff who prepared all these wonderful programs.
We also sincerely thank Mr. Ghassan Shehadeh and the Lebanon chapter of the alumni association for donating a photocopy machine for the vocational department.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!