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.

In today’s Mass Father Glenn was talking about your life priority in the Gospel. He was talking about how you have to bond, spend time with your family on Sunday. It is not a work day, it is a day to go to Mass, bonding and loving your family. Especially bonding your time with our Lord, Jesus Christ, not just our family. He was also talking about how his professor was protecting the precious bible book while they were walking to one building in the rain, while other people were covering their heads with the book. As you can tell by that you know that they care about their head more than the precious, glorious Bible Lord Jesus gave us to read about him and his life. Lastly, always remember Sunday is a day to be holy and bond with your family, not to go to the office or clean your house and do work. So this following Sunday I myself, prefer you to take your family to church and celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ!

Rona D. 4A

In the homily today Father talked about your priority in life. At first he told us how his old German teacher protected his books from getting wet in the rain, it was his priority because his books were special. Then he talked about Jesus, and how he healed the man with the slivered hand. The people told on Jesus because he was doing work on the Sabbath day. During the homily I listened and thought, my priority in life was to be a good person. I will try to remember this homily forever.

Victoria F. 4A

Today at Mass Fr. Glenn talked about our priorities. He talked about how his professor protected his book throughout the rain while everyone else used the book to cover their bodies. Fr. Glenn told us that the professor cares about the book and what is special about the book meanwhile everyone else cares about their bodies not the book. Then he talked about “‘what is our priorities, what do we care about more?” And then towards the end he talked about not being selfish to us and others and care about the people around you and to be kind to everyone even if you don’t know them, for example if you see a homeless person you can give at least some money or some food you’re going to throw away to the homeless.

Kylie T. 4A

Congratulations to our latest Soaring Eagles:

Congratulations to our latest Acts of Kindness winners:

Recently, we’ve noticed an increase in students forgetting essential items such as homework, lunches, or supplies for school. While we understand that this can be challenging for both parents and students, we see this as an opportunity to teach valuable life lessons about responsibility and problem-solving.

When students forget items, natural consequences often arise, such as needing to make alternative arrangements or managing without the forgotten item. These experiences help students learn to plan ahead, organize their belongings, and take ownership of their responsibilities.

We encourage you to support this learning process by allowing your child to face the outcomes of forgetting an item, rather than immediately bringing it to school. This approach helps reinforce important life skills that will benefit them in the long run. Of course, we will continue to provide guidance and support to students as they navigate these situations.

For the next few weeks, students in grade 3-5 for Aftercare will be in the PreK4B room around the corner from the Science Lab. Middle school will still be in the science lab and Prek-grade 2 will be in Mrs. McDonald’s PreK4A room.

If you are a returning family and have a new student who you would like to be considered for admission, you only have until this Sunday January 26,2025 to apply for that student with preference (your student will be assessed and interviewed before other applicants). We will not be giving sibling preference to applicants after that date. Applications have been open since January 6, 2025.

If you are planning to register your child in VPK at SJCS for the 2025-2026 school-year, you will need to apply for a Certificate of Eligibility. You can do this on the Early Learning Coalition website by clicking on the following link and following the directions.

https://elcpolk.org/families/voluntary-prekindergarten-education-program/how-to-apply-for-vpk/

Applying for VPK is a two-part process and your application is not considered complete until we receive BOTH of the following items:

1. Registration Packet (from SJCS)

2. Certificate of Eligibility (from The Early Learning Coalition)

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Brown, Enrollment Specialist: sbrown@stjosephwhschool.org

Catholic Schools Week begins this Saturday, January 26 to February 1, is an annual celebration of our Catholic schools. The theme for 2025 is "Catholic Schools: United in Faith and Community". Our SJCS students will be hosting Masses the weekend of January 25th and 26th. Please join us on Saturday at the 430pm Mass or on Sunday at the 730am or 1100am Mass.

Click the link to RSVP for the Mission: Family Faith school scavenger hunt on Monday, January 27th, at 6pm. https://forms.gle/QyEchGoJZYuuXRjW7

Next week, we have 4 dress down days planned. If you would like to make a donation on any of those days, we will collect that money and send it to Catholic Charities. They will send it to California to those who have been affected by the recent fires. We pray for their continued safety during this difficult time.

Would you like fries with that? Don't cook dinner Tuesday night! Instead, join us at McDonald's located at 245 Sixth Street for SJCS Spirit Night on Tuesday, January 28th. You are sure to find SJCS classmates and staff at McDonald's. A portion of the proceeds from that evening will be donated back to SJCS.

Calling all SJCS alumni! Please join us for our Alumni Basketball Game on Wednesday, January 29th at 6pm in the gym. Reach out to Coach Edwards to confirm your participation at ledwards@stjosephwhschool.org.

Grandparents Day is next Wednesday, January 29th. All grandparents are invited to join us for Mass and a special morning at school. Please note that this event is reserved for grandparents or older relatives/close friends that serve in the role of grandparent for a student.

If a grandparent is not able to join us at school the morning of January 29th, they can send a card/letter to the school with the name of the student on the envelope. We will be sure that the student receives this piece of mail during Grandparents Day activities.

Below are the procedures for Grandparents Day.

• Students in grades PreK-5 will not need to bring backpacks to school the day of Grandparents Day. Middle school students who are staying for the remainder of the school day will need to bring their backpacks.
• If a grandparent is NOT accompanying your child(ren) that day, please drop your child off as normal.
• We strongly encourage grandparents to arrive at SJCS church parking lot WITH their grandchild(ren) between 8am and 8:10am. Please let grandparents know that they do not want to arrive before 8am as they will be among carline. Parents and grandparents can also connect with one another in the parking lot to join grandparents with your child with his/her grandparent. We will be unable to call students from class to meet their grandparents for Mass.
• When grandparents arrive at school with their grandchild(ren), they will go directly to the church and sit wherever they like.
• Following Mass, we will have volunteers take pictures of grandchildren with their grandparents.
• Grandparents will visit the child's classroom until about 10:30am.
• If grandparents will be checking out your child(ren), parents must have filled out the Google Form that was sent out by the classroom teacher earlier this week. This Google Form indicates whether your child will be checked out by his/her grandparents.
• Please note, if your child's grandparent will be signing him/her out of school at the end of Grandparents' Day, please be sure the grandparent is on the list of persons acceptable for signing out your child or contact the office to give permission.

We appreciate the cooperation of all to make this morning a success.

As previous years, after mass we will have cookies and water set up on tables throughout the school for all students and the grandparents. We are in need of donations of cookies and jugs of water for this special day. If you are able to donate either cookies or water please refer to the SignUp link to be included on our next week Eagle's Eye. Donations will be collected the day before in the office or during carline that morning. Your donations are greatly appreciated to make this day a memorable one for our children and grandparents.

2025 SJCS Grandparents Day

Our annual Family Picnic will be held on Friday, January 31st from 12pm until 12:30pm. Families are invited to join us on campus for lunch. Please plan to arrive to campus promptly at 12pm. We will open gates at 12pm for parents to go to their child's class to pick up your child(ren) for lunch. At that time, please let your child's teacher know if you will be checking him/her out. Bring picnic blankets and find a spot outside to enjoy lunch! Students will not be permitted to play on the playground equipment and must stay with their families during the picnic Students will return to their classrooms for movies and popcorn at 12:30pm. *Please note that school lunch will NOT be available on Friday. All students will need to bring lunch to school that day.

There will be a table in the Parish Center parking lot for you to sign your child out if you are taking them home early.

The first day of the 2024-2025 school year will be Monday, August 11th, 2025.

St. Joseph Catholic Church is in need of money counters on Monday mornings to help with counting each week's collection from the Masses. Money counters must have fingerprint clearance and parents of SJCS can earn service hours for this. The money counters will work on a rotating basis of every other Monday. Please contact Mr. John Richards at hrichards@stjosephwh.org for more information.

We need parents of 5th-8th grade students join our booster club! For information, please contact Brittany Coulter (brittanycoulter@gmail.com)

Booster clubs play a vital role in supporting extracurricular programs, particularly in schools and sports. They help provide essential funding for equipment, uniforms, and travel expenses that may not be covered by school budgets. Beyond financial support, booster clubs foster community engagement, bringing together parents, alumni, and local businesses to rally behind students. Their efforts contribute to enhancing the overall experience for participants, while strengthening school spirit and teamwork. In essence, booster clubs are crucial for enriching student activities and creating a thriving, supportive environment.

We are in need of donations of rolls of paper towels. If you are able to help, please drop off your donation to the office. Remember that every $10 spent counts for 1 hour of the 20 required service hours for the school year.

Income Verification Forms were sent home on Monday, January 6th. A form is needed from each family. This form is for our school to be able to receive Title funds. Please send these back by tomorrow.

If you know anyone who is interested in applying for these positions, please have them visit https://www.orlandodiocese.org/find-jobs/

They can also contact Mr. Kupka for more information!

Reregistration for the 2025-2026 school year has begun! Reregistration is $250 if completed by Friday, January 24th at 3:00 pm. After 3pm on January 24th, reregistration will be $350.

Do you have duplicates of Christmas gifts or gifts that just don't fit you? Do you have bottles of wine that you will not use? Do you have leftover baskets that can be used for making our Gala baskets for the silent auction? If you can answer yes to any of these questions, we would love to have those items! Please send in any of the above items to the office and let us know they are for the Gala.

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.

Middle School Edge will be on Wednesday, January 22nd from 6-8pm in Room 2. Middle school students who attend EDGE may dress down on Thursday, January 23rd. Parents who volunteer to help with EDGE may earn SJCS service hours.

I wanted to highlight a website that can help you determine if a book, movie, show, or video game is appropriate for your children. Commonsensemedia.org offers incredibly detailed reviews of content. Each review gives an overall rating and age recommendation and then provides specific rating from 1-5 for violence, language, romance, and substance use with a detailed explanation of what specific parts of the book earned that rating. You can also set preferences for each of your children and books will "flag" if the media is outside your allowed ratings.

The website allows for 3 free reviews a day with their free account. Their paid account has unlimited reviews and is priced at $3.99 a month or 39.99 a year.

Interested in helping us replace lost and/or damaged books? Be a book fairy and donate a book from this list: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2S6G0MFCC15VU?ref_=wl_share

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.

The chess club meetings will be meeting on January 24th and January 31st.

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 February 4th. 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.

As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

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.

• 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.

Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events
that have been fulfilled among us,
just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning
and ministers of the word have handed them down to us,
I too have decided,
after investigating everything accurately anew,
to write it down in an orderly sequence for you,
most excellent Theophilus,
so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings
you have received.

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.

He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
"Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing."

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