Weekly Updates

Nov. 18, 2018

Hello VAPA Community! This is Dr. Trimis. This week LAUSD schools are closed as we will celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. We will return to school on November 26.

 Congratulations to our Winter Sports teams who are having great seasons, cast and crew of the Fall Play, A Christmas Carol, for a great show, and all who participated in the LAUSD 5K run at Dodger /Stadium on Saturday.

This wonderful summary of the origins of Thanksgiving is taken from the presidential proclamation in 2016. Nearly 400 years ago, a small band of Pilgrims fled persecution and violence and came to this land as refugees in search of opportunity and the freedom to practice their faith. Though the journey was rough and their first winter harsh, the friendly embrace of an indigenous people, the Wampanoag -- who offered gracious lessons in agriculture and crop production -- led to their successful first harvest. The Pilgrims were grateful they could rely on the generosity of the Wampanoag people, without whom they would not have survived their first year in the new land, and together they celebrated this bounty with a festival that lasted for days and prompted the tradition of an annual day of giving thanks.

This history teaches us that the American instinct has never been to seek isolation in opposite corners; it is to find strength in our common creed and forge unity from our great diversity. On that very first thanksgiving celebration, these same ideals brought together people of different backgrounds and beliefs, and every year since, with enduring confidence in the power of faith, love, gratitude, and optimism, this force of unity has sustained us as a people. It has guided us through times of great challenge and change and allowed us to see ourselves in those who come to our shores in search of a safer, better future for themselves and their families.

Please enjoy your week as you get together with family and friends.

Take care,

Dr. Edward Trimis, Principal