Welcome!

We’ve compiled some great resources here that will hopefully help you find out all sorts of information about the school, the weather in Sherman, ways to get involved in the parish community and also some homework helping website links and ways to grow deeper in your Catholic faith or find out more about the Catholic faith.

If you can think of any resources that should be here but are not please email us!

| TAPS Bus Info | Teachers’ Wish Lists | Flu Season School Procedures |
| SMS Family Handbook | Teachers’ Favorite Links | Documents & Forms |
| Catholic Links for Growing in Your Faith | Homework Help | Box Tops For Education |
| Gift Card Program (SCRIP) | Lunchroom Volunteer Schedule | Safe Environment Training |

ST. MARY’S CATHOLIC SCHOOL
GIFT CARD (SCRIP) PROGRAM

What is The Gift Card (SCRIP) Program?

The Gift Card (SCRIP) Program is a term that means “substitute money.” When you purchase gift cards, you’re purchasing negotiable gift certificates and prepaid cards that are used for everyday items like food, clothing, gasoline, and other essentials. We make these purchases anyway, so why not earn revenue for our school while doing it. It’s a good way to help keep our tuition low.

How the Gift Card Program generates revenue for St. Mary’s School

The Great Lakes Scrip Center acts on behalf of churches, schools, and other non-profit organizations to purchase large amounts of gift certificates and prepaid cards from grocery stores, department stores, and other retailers. because the certificates/cards are purchased with cash up front, the participating retailers offer a substantial discount. Our school buys the certificates/cards from Great Lakes Scrip Center at a discount, and re-sells them to families like yours for full face value. The discount – from two to fifteen percent or more — is our school’s revenue. Here’s an example of this…a $25 Walgreens card (purchased at full face value) is currently offering a 6% discount or rebate, which would earn $1.50 for our school for just that purchase.

This is basically “shopping cart fundraising” because families don’t have to sell anything. SMS families and friends produce revenue by making their regular household purchases for items like groceries, prescriptions, clothing, toys, gifts, gasoline, hotels, even airline tickets. Some of the popular retailers that participate in the program include JCPenney, Old Navy, WalMart, Starbucks, Shell, Pizza Hut, Red Lobster, Marriott and many, many more.

Here is just a quick example of the potential revenue for St. Mary’s School:

Say a family of 4 spends the following:

……….Groceries and home supplies…$100/week x 4 = $400
……….Gas and auto care………………$ 75/week x 4 = $300
……….Dining out and entertainment….$100/week x 4 = $400
……….TOTAL……………………………$275/week x 4 = $1,100 per month

At an average of 5% earnings, this family would raise $55 per month for SMS! Also, for any of our families with businesses who are buying regular supplies at places like Office Depot, Staples, Lowe’s and Home Depot, (YES, THESE RETAILERS ARE ON THE LIST!) this could be a great opportunity to help our school. Just think of the possibilities…

Ordering Process

Step-by-step process of order to completion/pickup:

1. Decide which retailers to purchase gift cards from. You can go to www.glscrip.com for a current list of retailers.
2. Complete the order form. Make sure to provide your email address and specify your preferred delivery method.
3. Turn in order form to school (via child folder or mailbox in school entryway) or to Parish Office with cash or check payable to St. Mary’s Home and School (memo: gift card program).

Orders will be processed weekly, so any sent to church or school by noon on Thursday, will be placed with the Great Lakes Scrip Center (GLSC) by noon on Friday. The expected turnaround is about a week. Payment for the order must be made before it can be processed.

Find Out More

–Download Gift Card (SCRIP) retailer list here… http://www.glscrip.com/.
–Download Gift Card Order Form here to print.
–Online shopping/ordering is now available by enrolling your family as a member at www.shopwithscrip.com. You will need a username, password, zip code, email address, and our enrollment code of 2E35ED54219L6 (this represents St. Mary’s). All other entries are optional.

For questions or information, contact Chris De Mond, Gift Card Coordinator at chrisd@cableone.net, (903)627-0572 (h) or (903)818-6989 (cell).

Only cash or check can be accepted for payment at this time.