Eagle's Eye

St. Joseph Catholic School fosters a diverse community of disciples empowered through a rigorous and inclusive Catholic education rooted in Gospel values and service to others.

• Family members of students at St. Joseph Catholic School who would like to attend school Mass at 8:15 a.m. must preregister by 12pm on Tuesday, December 17, 2024.
• If you have previously visited SJCS and been cleared through the Raptor System using your driver's license, simply submit the form below.
• **Please note that you must be cleared through the Raptor System each school year. If you have not had your driver's license scanned this year, please go to the school office to have this done.
• If you haven't been cleared through Raptor, please complete the form below AND you must go to the school office to have your driver's license scanned into our Raptor System for attendance at future events by 12pm on Tuesday, December 17, 2024.
• If you submit by noon on the Tuesday before Mass, please plan to arrive at the back doors of the church in the courtyard by the Parish Center between 7:55 a.m. and 8:05 a.m. on the day of the Mass. The church doors on the Avenue M side will be locked and no admittance will be given to anyone attempting to enter on that side.
• Once Mass begins, we will not open doors to visitors for the safety of our students.

Click here to sign up to attend Mass: https://forms.gle/6R262iXcvZbzD8RD8

In Monday’s sermon, Father Glenn touched on how everybody has choices, but there are some cases where you do not get a choice. His message about how we do not get to pick our parents conveys the idea behind how God made sure Jesus had the best of the best; Mary was conceived without sin. From the first reading, we read the story of how Original Sin came into the world. In the Gospel, Gabriel, the Angel, had greeted Mary as “Hail Mary, full of grace.” This message shows us that Mary was originally born filled with all of God’s grace and that she had no room for sin.

Khang, 8A

In the Gospel, God revealed why he chose Mary to carry his child; she was born immaculate. Mary had a mission to be the mother of Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. God had a plan set for Mary before she was born, and in the end, we were saved from our sins by her son, our Savior. When we trust in God’s plan we will live happily.

Claudia, 8A

The Church will have the Nativity story before the 4:00 PM Christmas Eve Mass on Tuesday, December 24th. They are inviting our students to take part in this special event and bring the story of Jesus' birth to life. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to get involved, contribute to the festive spirit, and create a meaningful experience for the parish. All interested participants are encouraged to sign up and be part of this cherished tradition. Please email Mrs. Brown at ibrown@stjosephwhschool.org if your child is interested in being a part of this.

There will be no Aftercare available next Friday, December 20th. It is a 12pm dismissal and all students will need to be picked up by 12:30pm.

We will be gathering as a school community on Friday, December 20th at 11:30 am for Christmas Caroling. Sign up on the link by Thursday, December 19th, to join us: https://forms.gle/RR1uWgztw5hWx4uc7

Mark your calendar now for our annual Christmas programs. The PreK-2 students will be performing at 10am on Thursday, December 19th, in the Church. Grades 3-5, choir, and band will perform that evening beginning at 6pm in the Church. SIgn up on this link by Wednesday, December 18th, to join us for the PreK-Grade 2 program https://forms.gle/Xd1rHRkdidAkyUrF9 . No sign up is needed for the evening program . We hope to see you there!

SJCS’s chapter of the National Junior Honor Society is teaming up with Meals on Wheels for our Advent service project, Meals for Change. Beginning December 2 through December 19, we will be collecting change each day in every classroom to pay for ”Angel Meals.” Our donation to Meals on Wheels of Polk County will help support their mission to provide nutritious meals and keep seniors safe and living independently in our community. $195 provides someone meals for a month. The students’ goal is $1,500! These gifts will ensure that when a person with limited income needs a meal they will be served. We have already raised $387.00. We appreciate any help you can give to this worthy cause.

With the cooler weather upon us, we want to take a moment to share a few reminders regarding cold weather uniforms.

• Outerwear Outside the Building: Students are required to wear either an SJCS jacket, sweater, or sweatshirt (P.E. day only) when they are outside the school building (e.g., during carline, recess, etc.). These must be purchased from Sir Walter.
• Outerwear Inside the Building: Students are also required to wear Sir Walter issued cold wear gear, such as the school sweatshirt (P.E. day only), sweater, or jacket, inside the buildings.
• Boys Pants: Boys MUST have one pair of trousers for Mass days and cold weather (blue for K-grade 8; khaki is appropriate for grades 6-8).
• Girls' Leggings and Tights: Please note that leggings are not permitted. Only tights that extend from the tip of the toe to the hips are allowed. Students wearing leggings to school will be asked to remove them.
• Girls' Pants: Navy blue pants are acceptable for grades K-5; navy blue or khaki pants are acceptable for grades 6-8.
• Sweatpants: Sweatpants may only be worn by students on PE days and must be Sir Walter issued with the school logo.
• Hoodies: Hoodies are not permitted, including pull-over or zipper style. On dress down days, hoodies are not permitted.
• Heavy Outerwear: On extremely cold days, students may wear heavier outerwear that is NOT from Sir Walter. These must be removed once inside the school building.

We are pleased to announce that this year’s musical will be Princess Whatsername! All middle school students interested in being part of the musical should attend an informational meeting on Monday, December 16th from 3:30-4:30 to receive audition materials and information about the musical.

Middle School Edge will be on Wednesday, December 18th from 6-8pm in Room 2. Middle school students who attend EDGE may dress down on Thursday, December 19th. Parents who volunteer to help with EDGE may earn SJCS service hours.

Thank you for all your support with the book fair! It was a great success! I know that there was some confusion because we switched from Scholastic to Good News Book Fair, but the feedback I received from students and parents about the quality of books and pricing really does make me believe that this was the best choice to ensure that our students have access to quality, appropriate literature that is in line with our Catholic values.

Some parents did reach out about the Scholastic eWallet they had set up last year because there was money left in it. I looked into this and found out that Scholastic policy is turn the remaining funds into an egift card balance that can be used on the Scholastic Parent Online Store (shop.scholastic.com/parents). Be sure to sign in with the same email used to create the eWallet and you should see the funds listed there.

Parents interested in chaperoning for field trips are reminded that they must wear a SJCS shirt. There are several options. Parents may either purchase a SJCS polo from our uniform company or a t-shirt from Boosters. Please keep this in mind as you start making commitments to chaperone field trips. These can be purchased in the office.

Our middle school Chess team will practice Friday afternoons from 3:30-4:30 pm in Mrs. Motsch's classroom. The coaches are Mrs. Motsch, Matthew Motsch, and Noah Brown.

Upcoming Schedule Dates:

• Practice: Friday, 12/13

We have a few different choirs at SJCS.

School Mass Choir
Students in grades 3-8 are invited to sing in the choir at all school masses. Practice will be once a month with the next one January 7th. Please don't arrive to pick up your child(ren) until 4:00 pm if they are staying for choir.

Church Children's Choir

The Children's Choir for our church will practice from 3-4pm on Thursdays. Jitka Cinibulk, music director from our church, coordinates this ministry. This is for students to sing at weekend Masses. If you have any questions about this opportunity, please email her at jcinibulk@stjosephwh.org.

Concert Choir with Mrs. James

Students in 3rd-8th grade have the opportunity of joining Concert Choir. The SJCS Concert Choir performs at various community events during the school year including Carols in the Park, the Christmas program and singing the national anthem at the Rays, Bucs and Tropics games. During rehearsals, students will be developing many vocal concepts such as correct posture, resonance and technique. We will be singing a range of repertoire and work on two and three part harmony.

Grades 3-5

Rehearsals: 3rd, 4th & 5th grade on Wednesdays at 3:15-4:00pm beginning on Wednesday, Sept. 19th

Middle School Rehearsals: Thursdays from 7:15-7:45am

Please e-mail Mrs. James at vjames@stjosephwhschool.org if you have any questions. Thank you!

Church Handbell Choir

The Church Handbell choir is looking for 2-3 new ringers. The starting age is 10, so if any student is interested, this would be a great time to join us. Practice is on Thursdays 6-8 pm in the church. If you have any questions about this opportunity, please email Jitka Cinibulk at jcinibulk@stjosephwh.org.

We have a new religious education coordinator, Ms. Melady Roque.

If you intend for your child to receive any sacraments (such as First Communion or Confirmation) through St. Joseph Catholic Church, you can call the church office at 294-3144 or email Melady Roque at mroque@stjosephwh.org.

Confirmation classes will take place every Sunday from 12:15-1:00pm in Room 2. Confirmation is open to grades 8-12. Parents can contact Mr. Nathan Hayes with any questions at nhayes@stjosephwh.org or by calling the office at (863) 294 - 3144 ext. 224.

The crowds asked John the Baptist,
“What should we do?”
He said to them in reply,
“Whoever has two cloaks
should share with the person who has none.
And whoever has food should do likewise.”
Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him,
“Teacher, what should we do?”
He answered them,
“Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.”
Soldiers also asked him,
“And what is it that we should do?”
He told them,
“Do not practice extortion,
do not falsely accuse anyone,
and be satisfied with your wages.”

Now the people were filled with expectation,
and all were asking in their hearts
whether John might be the Christ.
John answered them all, saying,
“I am baptizing you with water,
but one mightier than I is coming.
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor
and to gather the wheat into his barn,
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
Exhorting them in many other ways,
he preached good news to the people.

Our next Box Top goal is $400. Remember all you have to do is scan your receipts to help us reach this goal and all students will earn another dress down day.

Pikmykid is the new servicer for our Parent emails. All whole school emails will show as being from noreply@pikmykid.com.

If you feel like you are not receiving parent alert emails, please contact Mr. Kupka. He will contact PikmyKid so that a case can be created to get the email re-subscribed to the parent alert list.

Important calendar dates for the 2024-2025 school year are listed below. ***Please note that the school intentionally schedules school closures at times throughout the school year. We are giving these dates to you early to help your planning for the 24-25 year. Families should schedule family vacations and other commitments during scheduled school closures; vacations should not be scheduled when school is open. Vacations are not considered excused absences and are a violation of the School Attendance Policy.

• December 23rd - January 3rd: Christmas Holiday: No School
• January 20th: Martin Luther King Day: No School
• March 17th-21st: Spring Break
• April 18th-23rd: Easter Break
• May 26th: Memorial Day: No School
• May 29th: Last Day of School

This section of the Eagle's Eye will remain in every edition of our newsletter. It will contain links to information that parents may need from time to time. When parents have questions, we urge you to check this section for possible links that could get you the information that you need.

• School Calendar
• Lunch Menus
• Maschio's Birthday Order Form
• Registering for a lunch account
• PikMyKid User Guide (English)
• PikMyKid User Guide (Spanish)
• Fingerprinting/Safe Environment Certification Instructions
• Fingerprinting/Safe Environment Certification
• Uniform Company
• Technology Responsible Use Policy for Students
• Parent Student Handbook
• Attendance Policy
• Accessing Facts Family Portal
• Family Portal Login
• Logging Service Hours: Parents and students can now enter and view their own service hours. You can use your app to view the hours, however, you have to use the web version to enter new hours. go to FACTS Family Portal. The district code is STJC-FL. Once logged in, click on the Family option in the menu on the left side. At the top of the screen, select the family member who will be adding the service hours. Click on the Add option on the right side of the screen in the Service Hours box. Fill out the information and click Save.

O Blessed Joseph, faithful guardian of my Redeemer, Jesus Christ, protector of Mary, the virgin Mother of God, I choose you this day to be my special patron and advocate and I firmly resolve to honor you all the days of my life. Therefore, I humbly ask you to receive me as your client, to instruct me in every doubt, to comfort me in every affliction, to obtain for me and for all the knowledge and love of the Heart of Jesus, and finally to defend and protect me at the hour of my death. Amen.

Principal: Mrs. Insua

Assistant Principal: Ms. Lucarelli

Assistant Principal: Mr. Kupka

Parochial Administrator: Fr. Glenn Lopez

Canonical Administrator: Fr. Tim LaBo

Superintendent: Dr. Erika Wikstrom

Email: jinsua@stjosephwhschool.org
Website: stjosephwhschool.org
Location: 535 Avenue M Northwest, Winter Haven, FL, USA
Phone: 863-293-3311