St. Mary School Featured Families

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St. Mary School Featured Families

St. Mary School Featured Families

The Wiedmeyer Family

John & Danielle

Tiffany Wiedmeyer, 27

Chelsea Wiedmeyer, 24

Paige Wiedmeyer, 17

Carter Peters (grandson), 8

Charlie the Pug, 3

*About our family

Danielle has been the Administrative Assistant to the Principal at St. Mary School for 3 years. John has worked at Michels Corporation for 22 years. We have been married for 21 years and have 3 daughters, one grandson, and a sassy Pug named Charlie. We have lived in Mayville for 20 years.

*What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

Some of our favorite activities include spending time with friends and family, traveling and camping.

*What is a tradition that our family has?

A tradition in our family is that each Christmas we get each of our kids an ornament that is relevant to the year. My parents did this with me growing up and we have now done this with our girls, our grandson and our nieces as well.

(FF 2/16-2/19)

The Surita Family

Mike & Lora

Logan Surita, 14

Audyn Kennedy, 8

Aubryanna Pankow, 7

1 dog - Chico, 5 yrs old

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

We came looking for early education as no one offered it but St. Mary's and here we are years later. Audyn started the journey first when he started 3K.

* What do you love about St. Mary School?

We love the strength in religion that the kids received and believe in, and everything the staff has done.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

Some of our favorite activities include hiking, biking and just being together. We enjoy going up north also. We love to play hard and work harder.

*What is a prayer, Saint or tradition that is important to your family?

We do a prayer before dinner. (Audyn loves to pray before dinner!) A family tradition we have each year with the kids is a New Year's Even cajun seafood boil. They look forward to it every year!

(FF 1/26-1/29/21)

The Frank Family

Brad & Ashley Frank

Nora, 3 yrs old

1 dog - Bosco

2 kittens & 2 chickens

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

We are members of St. Andrew’s and love the family feel of the parish. We wanted to send Nora to a small school with Christian values – St. Mary’s is the perfect fit.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

We spend a lot of time outside in all seasons. Summers we spend at Grandma’s pool, family lake houses or at Dad’s baseball games. Fall and spring we like hiking and exploring parks. Winter is for sledding and ice fishing.

*What is a prayer, Saint or tradition that is important to your family?

As Nora has gotten older we take time at night to say prayers before bed. We share what we are thankful for and end with a prayer.

(FF 1/18-1/22/21)

The Feucht Family

Gavin & Katie Feucht

Lydia, 7

Josie, 16 months

2 Weimaraners: Ashton & Fletcher

1 cat: Franny

8 ducks, 30 chickens

2 steers: Blue & Chocolate

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

Gavin attended St. Mary School through 8th grade. Katie attended St. Matthew's in Iron Ridge. So when we became parents, it was very important to us to send our children to a small school that emphasized an education rooted in Christian faith, but also housed an environment where our children would feel loved and safe. That’s exactly what we love about St. Mary School.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

Travel. Before Covid we would take at least 3-4 trips to Door County each year. We have also been to Michigan and California as a family. We also enjoy growing our hobby farm. We raise chickens for meat and eggs, turkeys for meat, and steers for meat. In the spring we tap trees for making maple syrup and in the summer we tend to our bee hives for honey. Summers also consist of planting Christmas trees, pumpkins and sweet corn Most of all we just enjoy spending time together as a family.

*What is a prayer, Saint or tradition that is important to your family?

Gavin’s dad passed away when Lydia was 14 months old. He is buried at St. Mary’s Cemetery. During the warm months of the year we enjoy going to McDonald’s for breakfast and taking our breakfast picnic style to the cemetery. We share stories about Grandpa John and enjoy the hill top view of Mayville.

(FF 1/11-1/15/21)

The Clark Family

Tim and Danielle Clark

James, 5

Jonah, 3

Joshua, 1

2 dogs: Zea & Oliver

2 kitties: Suess & Fluffy

16 goats and 50+ chickens

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

Tim attended St. Mary School through 8th grade.

* What do you love about St. Mary School?

We love the small class sizes, the faith-based education and the teachers.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

Some of our favorite activities to do as a family include working on the farm and caring for our animals. We go for walks along the Rock River to the strawberry fields and go for Gator rides around the farm.

*What is a prayer, Saint or tradition that is important to your family?

We always ask the kids who or what they would like to pray for after we say our before-meal prayers. James started the tradition by pointing to everyone at the table and now it has grown as the kids become older.

(FF 1/4 - 1/8/21)

The Yanke Family

Justin & Denise Yanke

John, 5 (4K)

Oliver, 3 (3K)

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

Denise’s aunt Mary Goetz taught here for decades, but it also has a wonderful reputation and seemed to feel like a small family.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

We love to spend time outdoors whenever possible. Hiking new trails or finding a new park is one of our favorite things to do. We also like to grill outside and play in the yard while maybe helping Dad with a few outdoor projects. Recently we have been starting to play a lot of Board Games together. Both classics from when Mom and Dad were kids and games that are new to all of us!

*What is a prayer, Saint or tradition that is important to your family?

Since John and Oliver are just starting to learn more about our Faith, the table prayer is extremely important. We love to make time each day to share at least one prayer and meal. Also passing along all of the Faith based Holiday traditions we learned as children is something fun that we are able to do now!

(FF 12/14 - 12/18/20)

The Schuller Family

John and Amanda Schuller

Matthew, 8 yrs

David, 6 yrs

William, 4 yrs

Daniel, 2 yrs

2 turtles and 2 goldfish

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

We came to St. Mary School because of the faith-based education.

* What do you love about St. Mary School?

We love St. Mary School because of the family atmosphere and how passionate the teachers and staff are about our children's religious and academic education.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

Our favorite activities to do as a family are going hiking, playing outside and visiting family in Iowa.

*What are some of your family's traditions?

One of our family traditions is "Pizza and a Movie Night" every Friday night.l It's been a great way for us to relax as a family and something simple that the boys look forward to each week.

(FF 12/7-12/14/20)

The Jahnke/Jensen Family

Chuck Jahnke and Ariel Jensen

(Soon we will be just "Jahnke Family!"

Yuna Jahnke, 4 yrs old

One Coonhound - Sarah

Two Anole Lizards - Emily and Elizabeth

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

We live across the street from St. Mary's School and Yuna attends daycare there. It is very convenient for us, plus we like the teachers and staff.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

We love to cook out, go to the zoo, have a bonfire and make s'mores, swim in our pool, go shopping and watch movies together.

Camping is a tradition we like to do every year around Yuna's birthday. It is important to us because it brings peace and adventure. We like to have salmon every year for Easter. We have a special recipe that we love and have crafted together.

(FF 11/30 - 12/4/20)

The Pielmeier Family

Dylan & Katheryn

Landon, 3 1/2 yrs old

1 pet dog

* What brought your family to St. Mary School?

St. Mary School is right down the road so we can walk to school if needed.

* What do you love about St. Mary School?

We love seeing all of the different art sheets that Landon brings home from school.

* What are you favorite activities to do as a family?

Our family goes on bike rides, we go on walks and go fishing together.

Our family sits at the dinner table together and we enjoy good quality family time. At Thanksgiving and Christmas we love to be with our family and friends.

(FF 11/16-11/20/20)

The Staiduhar Family

Troy and Leah

4 children: Madysen, 16; Kalynn, 15; Landon, 13; Grayson, 4.

2 dogs - Lily and Boe

*What brought your family to St. Mary School?

We were looking for affordable care for Grayson as well as a family atmosphere that will teach great values.

*What are your favorite activities to do as a family?

We like to swim, watch sports, and go to the zoo. We also enjoy hiking and anything outdoors, watching movies and travelling to new places and making memories.

Picking out a real Christmas tree while drinking hot chocolate with candy canes is one of our family traditions. This is the start of the giving season and a time for family and memories. We also decorate the entire house as a family, including putting the star on the tree.

(FF 11/9-11/13/20)

The Yauck Family

Tom & Mary

3 Children: Kyle, 42, Wilmington, NC; Melissa, 40 (Brian), West Bend, WI (2 grandchildren, Maya, 8 & Jackson, 6); Michael, 38, Hartford, WI. 2 dogs, Willow & King

What are your favorite activities to do as a family?

We have a cottage on a lake in Wautoma WI. We love spending time there together. Our grandchildren love fishing with Papa and taking a pontoon boat ride around the lake. We love to anchor the boat and go swimming in the middle of the lake. We enjoy winding down from a day of fun in the sun with a campfire, telling stories, and roasting marshmallows. Nana tries to get in a chorus or two from one of my favorite songs but am quickly hushed because of questionability of the quality of my voice. I think they all need hearing aids.

We love getting together after Mass on Sunday's and eating lunch together. We either try a new restaurant or go to one of our houses to enjoy lunch and spend some time playing games, unless of course it is a Packer Sunday then we are glued to the TV for the game. It gets a bit loud at our house during the game. This tradition has been missed greatly due to COVID. I cannot wait until we can bring this one back. Miss it terribly.

One of our favorite sayings is "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff". Life is to precious to worry about all the little things that come up daily or those that we have no control over. Two Saints that we have to guide us and have as role models are St. Mother Teresa and St. Francis of Assisi. Mother Teresa is a symbol of pure love and humanity. She is known for her sacrifice, fearlessness, and tenacity. She has many beautiful sayings. Some of our favorite include "God doesn't require us to succeed He only requires that you try", "I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples", "Lead with kindness". St. Francis of Assisi found the good in all of God's creation. He had few needs and showed others kindness and happiness even when the situation seemed hopeless. Stories are told of his ability to talk to the animals and that they understood him. He is the Patron Saint of animals. Some sayings that we hold close to our hearts from St. Francis include; "All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle", "Lord make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred let me sow love", "It is in giving that we receive".

Traditions in our family have been passed down from generation to generation. I am truly blessed for that. As a little girl growing up, my parents took us to Church on Sunday and then we went to Great Grandmas house to have lunch with the extended family. I grew up in a very large Italian family so lunch at Great Grandmas was about 30 people sitting at long tables that extended from the kitchen to the dining room through the family room and into the front foyer. When lunch was finished the adult men played cards, the women cleaned up and watched Lawrence Welk and the kids played together. I have been able to pass this tradition to my family as well.

We also enjoy our Thanksgiving meal together with my family and extended family up north. There is something magical about being at the cottage, with our whole family, sharing/spending time together. What even makes it better is a snowfall and being able to build a snowman outside with kids. This year will be put on hold but looking forward to next.

(FF 11/2-11/6/20)

The Hurst Family

*What brought your family to St. Mary School?

Billy went to school at St. Mary School.

*What do you love about St. Mary School?

We love the that school is faith-based. We also love the small class sizes and high expectations for the students.

*What are your favorite activities to do as a family?

Our family loves to play sports, ride bikes and go to Disney.

Some of our family traditions include decorating our Christmas tree together and the Hurst family Christmas.

(FF 10/26-10/30/20)

The Decker Family

Danny & Sara, Paxton (10), Sullivan (9) and Crosby (7) and their 2 pet fish.

*What brought your family to St. Mary School?
St. Mary's School has a long history in our family. Sara, her dad and his siblings and Sara's grandmother all attended St. Mary School.

*What do you love about St. Mary School?
We love the small family feel of St. Mary School.

*What are you favorite activities to do as a family?
We love outdoor activities! Camping, boating, fishing, hanging out at the lake or hunting in Oxford. We love to travel to new places and can't wait to do it again.

*What is a tradition that is important to your family?
Holidays have special family traditions for us. We have very large extended families. Attending Mass, having a meal and spending quality time with our family is something we look forward to doing each holiday.

(FF 10/19-10/23/20)