Genie

May love and kindness be yours to give and receive. Joy to the season and may this continue into the New Year.

Love from Patrick, Genie, Emily and Matthew
Home sweet home:

Newsletter 2007
The Hogan Family Christmas Card

Hogan's On the Road

Well the Hogan’s went on vacation this year! In fact our extended family that included Patrick’s brother and sister-in-law, Gerry and Linda, and my father (Leo) flew to Fort Frances Ontario for a mini Family reunion. The Fort is home town to the Hogan clan and what a fun time we all had. My cousin Murray and Aunt Pattie were big hits with the kids who treated them to boating and water adventures on the incredibly expansive water wonderland of Rainy Lake. This lake has very special memories for Patrick that go back to the late sixties.

A Dear Friend Visits

It’s been a year of hard work but we have been blessed with the visit of Genie’s long time dear friend Min-Young from Korea. She had stayed with us back in 2001 and that visit was a big success. Her plans are to stay longer and that has given Genie and Patrick an opportunity to date again! You read that right, we enjoy weekly dates which primarily comprise going out to a neighbourhood pub to enjoy a brew, a bite to eat and a long cozy chat. What a treat to go out on a regular basis knowing your children are in great hands. They even took an entire weekend off to celebrate their 8^th wedding anniversary at Harrison Hotsprings. You might say they are content as parents and as a couple who hasn’t forgotten why they married in the first place. Yes, it’s been a year of changes.

Genie: Scholar and Super Mom

Genie has had a very busy year combining her studies in early childhood education at Capilano College and being a homestay mom to several students. Somehow she gets the job done and manages to be a great mom to a very busy family. Not only is Saint Edmunds a new school but a new parish to belong to. That has brought new friends and a closer connection to our faith community and the families that connect our children to it.

Welcome to the 2007 addition of our family's newsletter. Every year it seems I start by saying is was a very busy year and there were many changes and things are getting better. Well, that isn't too far off what has happened in '07. But this year was different in several ways. It really is the first year since 2000 that we can say is sustainable. That's quite a statement in many ways. Things could always get better and we will always strive to make our world and the community around us a better place but this year things have moved to a more comfortable level and our kids seem to notice it though they wouldn't know what I meant by it. Please read on...

2007 was a very eventful year! we sincerely hope it was also a good year for you and your family. Changes seem to be the theme for this year. So what changes made this year different from the previous few? First and sadly, my mother Rita passed away on January 29^th, 2007 at the age of 85. She had been ailing from congestive heart problems when she suffered a fall that broke her hip which led to a necessary operation that ultimately weaken her heart. Two days following her operation her heart failed passing away in Cowichan Valley Hospital with my father Leo at her side. It was a crushing blow to all of us, but especially my dad. They had celebrated their 60^th wedding anniversary only 8 months earlier. What a remarkable couple. Rita is sorely missed and Christmas this year will not be the same without her but she remains in our memories and our prayers.

Leo & Rita Hogan (1921-2007)

We can confidently say that the other changes were very positive and have taken our family down new pathways. For the kids the big change was their school. Thanks to their Grandfather’s generosity we have been able to put Emily (Grade two) and Matthew (Kindergarten) in Saint Edmunds Catholic School. They both love the school and their excellent teachers so we are thankful for this blessing.

24/12/2007

Emily and Matthew at Saint Edmunds Catholic School

Emily and Matthew continue to explore new interests and develop ones they experienced before. At the top of the list are dance and theatre arts for Emily. Her dance school, Pro Arte continue to help Emily discover the fun and challenge of the performing arts which included an all-school gala performance in June on a theme of Pinocchio. Emily is tops in her acrobat class and has made several close friends at the school. But she is also doing extremely well at St Edmunds especially in reading and arithmetic where she leads her class. We are grateful that Emily has responded well to her new school and the extra attention she gets there is proving the wisdom of our decision to switch schools.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most

Emily and Matthew at Saint Edmunds Catholic School

Emily and Matthew continue to explore new interests and develop ones they experienced before. At the top of the list are dance and theatre arts for Emily. Her dance school, Pro Arte continue to help Emily discover the fun and challenge of the performing arts which included an all-school gala performance in June on a theme of Pinocchio. Emily is tops in her acrobat class and has made several close friends at the school. But she is also doing extremely well at St Edmunds especially in reading and arithmetic where she leads her class. We are grateful that Emily has responded well to her new school and the extra attention she gets there is proving the wisdom of our decision to switch schools.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most

Emily and Matthew at Saint Edmunds Catholic School

Emily and Matthew continue to explore new interests and develop ones they experienced before. At the top of the list are dance and theatre arts for Emily. Her dance school, Pro Arte continue to help Emily discover the fun and challenge of the performing arts which included an all-school gala performance in June on a theme of Pinocchio. Emily is tops in her acrobat class and has made several close friends at the school. But she is also doing extremely well at St Edmunds especially in reading and arithmetic where she leads her class. We are grateful that Emily has responded well to her new school and the extra attention she gets there is proving the wisdom of our decision to switch schools.

Emily and Matthew at Saint Edmunds Catholic School

Emily and Matthew continue to explore new interests and develop ones they experienced before. At the top of the list are dance and theatre arts for Emily. Her dance school, Pro Arte continue to help Emily discover the fun and challenge of the performing arts which included an all-school gala performance in June on a theme of Pinocchio. Emily is tops in her acrobat class and has made several close friends at the school. But she is also doing extremely well at St Edmunds especially in reading and arithmetic where she leads her class. We are grateful that Emily has responded well to her new school and the extra attention she gets there is proving the wisdom of our decision to switch schools.

Emily and Matthew at Saint Edmunds Catholic School

Emily and Matthew continue to explore new interests and develop ones they experienced before. At the top of the list are dance and theatre arts for Emily. Her dance school, Pro Arte continue to help Emily discover the fun and challenge of the performing arts which included an all-school gala performance in June on a theme of Pinocchio. Emily is tops in her acrobat class and has made several close friends at the school. But she is also doing extremely well at St Edmunds especially in reading and arithmetic where she leads her class. We are grateful that Emily has responded well to her new school and the extra attention she gets there is proving the wisdom of our decision to switch schools.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most of you will likely know what is really meant by that last comment.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most of you will likely know what is really meant by that last comment.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most of you will likely know what is really meant by that last comment.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most of you will likely know what is really meant by that last comment.

Matthew is a charmer who seems to always attract positive attention. Though Matthew is less scholastically inclined than Emily, he is showing a great start to his formal schooling. He continues to be a favourite buddy to several of his classmates. If there was an award for most-often-invited-on-a-play-date I think Matthew would likely win. Mothers always say “He can stay as long as he likes…”. I guess Emily has taught him well in the art of sharing and not being too pushy. Most of you will likely know what is really meant by that last comment.

Season's Greetings

May the Grace of God Be With You and Your Family

Patrick returns to computer programming

Patrick has also seen positive changes in his working world. After several months of self-study in Windows programming languages he has been able to take on the role as full-time programmer for Bancorp Financial Services. United with his old boss from the days he was employed at the Trust Company, has found himself very much back in the saddle of computer technology. Continuing his tutoring and web services all combine to make him rather busy these days. On the bright side I get to work from home in my nicely renovated home office in the studio-workshop building in the back of the property. Life has been good for Patrick’s career this year.

Our extended family at the Hogans.