May News

As we wrap up our 2021-2022 school year words can not express the deep appreciation I feel for the constant support of our SJS staff. It has been a long few years and we are thrilled that we have been able to weather the storm. From spacing, cleaning, temp checks, online learning, mask mandates and a constant change to rules and regulations, I take great pride in all of the work and dedication the staff at SJS has provided. Teacher appreciation week begins May 2nd this is a wonderful time to let your teachers know how much you appreciate all that they do for our students. We have an amazing staff of professionals who have dedicated their lives to educating our children they do this every day through their faith and devotion to our school.

I would like to take a moment and congratulate all our SJS students who participated in any of our Extra Curricular activites. On April 24th we celebrated the following programs offered at our school.

Michael P Honan Award

Cross Country

Boys Baseball

Girls Softball

Boys Basketball

Girls Basketball

Girls Volleyball

Track

Cheer

Student Council

Altar Servers

Band

Lego League

Art Club

A special congratulations to our 2 PND scholarship recipients : Eila Brian and Alex Evans

Thank you to all of our school families who have completed in enrollment for the 2022-2023 school year. If you have not had the chance to complete enrollment today is the day. Our current discounted registration fee ends April 30th changing registration from $75 to $150 per student. We are looking forward to an amazing 2022 school year.

Are you in need of financial assistance to attend SJS next fall? We have scholarships available to all school families. In order to receive assistance please complete the following steps.

1. If Catholic : Apply for the Spalding Scholarship : Deadline April 29th https://cdop.org/why-choose-catholic-schools/financial-assistance/

2. Once you have applied to the Spalding Scholarship your student will also be considered for our Angel Fund scholarship.

3. If your not Catholic: Complete the FACTS financial information: https://online.factsmgt.com/aid / once completed send Mrs. Sarff an email regarding need no later than May 20th, 2022

All Scholarships are awarded by July 2022

We are excited to announce that we will be offering the following opportunities/experiences to our Middle School students next school year. We have been hard at work thinking of ways for our students to get out in the community and learn some new skills and explore career opportunities. These opportunities are possible due to our class sizes and our St. Joseph School supporters. Students will be taking tours, shadowing jobs, and learning about each career field. Can’t wait to see the learning that will be taking place in 2022 -2023. Keep watching for more opportunities to be added!

6th Grade - Out of School Opportunities - Pekin Township, Pekin Pottery, LaGondola job shadow

In School Opportunities- Tech time learning to code, Marketing with Ms. Willoughby, Nursing with Christa Larkner, Community Work with Bill Fleming

7th /8th Grade - Out of School Opportunities- Chamber of Commerce, Art Studio, OSF Jump Labs, Pekin Public Library, Pekin Park District

In School Opportunities- Candy Making, OSF Jump , Decals with Hunter Willoughby, Cooking with Mrs. Burton, Photography with Lisa Pallardy, Sewing with Mrs. Dickson, Attorney with Jerry Hall

6th-8th Grade - Out of School Opportunities- Sheriff's Department

In School Opportunities- Bank, Pekin Police Department, REMAX / Traders , Tech time, Stained Glass with Pekin Glass, Dr. Honan and Dr. Lee Ho

Garage Sale Results:

· Over 40 families donated (estimate 60, not all were documented)

· Hundreds of people from the community attend the event (estimate at least 2,000)

· 36 volunteers set up and worked the sale, including 14 students and 5 school staff members

· We collected over $5,000 through sales and donations

· More sales will come in as highly valuable donations were set aside to sell on eBay

We had so many donations, the tables and hangers were overflowing. With such a short set up time, our volunteers demonstrated incredible teamwork and efficiency. Our student volunteers went above and beyond, proving their maturity and innate desire to help our community. The St. Vincent de Paul Food Truck helped hauled our leftover items to the Hope Chest, which significantly reduced our clean up time. Leftover items were also donated to TAPS and Goodwill.

We want to highlight the generosity of the Pekin Moose Lodge, who donated their space and tablesfor two days.

Our Garage Sale Results cannot describe the excitement and appreciation we observed at the event. St. Joseph School and Parish served our community in a unique way, touching so many lives in a time of financial hardship for many.

Thank you to everyone who donated items and time to the sale!! We hope this is a new tradition!

As many of you are aware, Mrs. McConnell is retiring at the end of this school year. Mrs. McConnell has served St. Joseph School for 20 years with her teaching career in Kindergarten and 1st Grade. Mrs. McConnell has been a wonderful model of our faith by her devotion to our students education. We thank Mrs. McConnell for everything that she has done for SJS and wish her a blessed retirement.

Join our SJS Team

* Aftercare Leader : 3:15pm-6pm : Monday-Friday : Minimum Wage

* Cafeteria Assistant: 10am-1pm: Monday-Friday: Minimum Wage

We are very excited that we are approaching our goal for our Building our Future Campaign. It is a very exciting time for us! The Parish Center will provide much needed space for us to gather and for us to work. Our School Parents and Family can look forward to utilizing this space for many things we could not accomplish before. Students may be involved through the use of the kitchen space to explore cooking lessons and life skills. There will be plenty of room for a class to gather in several of the areas that we plan to build. We also are looking to add more green space to the Campus as a whole for everyone’s enjoyment. This new addition will be utilized by all of us with no doubt! Please join in the excitement of helping us achieve our goal!

We are thrilled to announce a few staff changes to next school year. Mrs. Coyer will be teaching 1st grade, and we welcome Ms. Melissant as our new teacher in 4th grade.

Hi, my name is Joan Melissant. I am so excited that I have been asked to come and teach at St. Joseph’s School.

Let me tell you a little bit about myself. I am originally from Galesburg, Illinois. I have two beautiful children, Ashley and Jake. Also, I have two adorable grandchildren, Lorelei and Asher. When I have any free time, I try to spend as much time with them as possible. I also am a huge animal lover. I have 3 dogs; Bouscemi, Sadie and Maggie, and one cat, Rizzo. They are like my kids. I’m sure you will be hearing lots of stories about my kids and my animals. They are the biggest part of my life.

I love warm weather. I like taking walks, swimming, going to garage sales and listening to live music. I also like riding my bike. Since I just live down the street from the school, I will probably ride my bike to school when the weather permits. I like working in my yard, which is an endless job, since I have 3 dogs!

As far as my teaching history, I’ve been a teacher for over 30 years. I spent my first couple of years in New Jersey teaching. I loved that job, but wanted to be closer to home. When I moved back, I got a job in Creve Coeur and have been there for 29 years. I absolutely love teaching. I love watching the students learn new things and applying what they learned. It's such a great feeling to watch these young people enjoy learning as they grow. I am blessed that I am able to be a part of guiding them in this amazing journey.

I want to again, let you know how excited I am to become part of your “family” at St. Joseph and am looking forward to a very exciting 22-23 school year in the 4th grade.

Thank you to all of our parents who have volunteered to coach our sports teams for the 2022-2023 school year. We all know the value in our Extra Curricular activities at SJS.

We are currently in need of 1 or 2 Assistant Coaches for our Girls Basketball team.

The season takes place from September - November

Commitment includes - assisting with practices, assisting with games, and working with the Head coach and AD

Requirements- Safe Environment training, Concussion training

Please contact Mrs.Sarff if you are interested or know anyone who would be interested

All school families are responsible for selling or purchasing 10 raffle tickets to support our Parish. Each ticket is $20 and the grand prize is $10,000. All tickets must be sold by Friday, May 6th. If you have not sold your tickets you will be charged via FACTS on this date.

May 1- 2nd Grade 1st Communion Mass - 1pm

May 2nd- May 6th -Teacher Appreciation Week

May 6th - 2nd Grade Recreation Mass, May Crowning

May 12th- Clap Out 11am : 8th Grade Graduation 6pm at Church

May 17th- Preschool Graduation 6pm at Church

May 18th- Preschool Roundup 9:30am

May 20th- Spring Music Encore performance 6pm at School

May 24th- Move Up Day for students

May 25th- SJS Fun Day - details to come

May 26th- Last Day of School 11:30 Dismissal