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, November 19, 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, November 19, 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/G4o4LUYg5FQcMcBK7

Please remember that anyone who wants to attend Mass MUST register using the above form by Tuesday at 12pm. ONLY those who register by Tuesday will be able to attend Mass. The school office will not be available to accept late registrations on Mass days.

We will be collecting toiletries this week for Catholic Charities. We will have a dress down on Thursday, November 21st, for students who donate at least 1 item this week. Thank you for helping us help others in need!

• Monday Shampoo
• Tuesday Deodorant
• Wednesday Bars of Soap
• Thursday Toothbrushes
• Friday Toothpaste

In the first reading from Titus, we learned that God helped bring love and kindness into the world and into people's hearts. Then the Gospel explained how Jesus healed ten lepers, and only one came back to thank him and trust in him. We should always give to others and thank others for what they give us, and we shouldn't take it for granted. Jesus is a great example of how we should live.

Jihanna, 6A

In Mass today, we learned to be peaceful and kind to others from God saving us, instead of being foolish or disobedient. This showed me that we should fulfill what God gave to us as a savior, and follow what he told us while being a good Christian, instead of a horrible, ungrateful human being. In the Gospel of Luke, it made me realize that the people who came to follow Christ were saved by him, unlike everyone else who thought down on him. This inspires me to be a better human by avoiding all bad ideas and doing what is right for anything or anyone. I feel that these readings told us to be the best Christians or Catholics we can, instead of ungrateful sinners, like the ones in the Gospel of Luke.

Landon, 6A

Catholic Charities continues to be in need of the following items if your child is able to bring in one or more of these items for Mass next Wednesday: cereal, canned meat, canned fish, spaghetti sauce, pasta, oatmeal, mac & cheese, rice, beans, canned vegetables and fruit, applesauce, and granola bars. Thank you for your continued generosity!

We are so proud of all of our students who earned awards for meeting Accelerated Reading goals as well as achieving Honors, High Honors, and Principal's Honors. Congratulations!

Our Fall Fest was such a wonderful success! Thank you so much to all of our Fall Fest chair people, volunteers, and sponsors. We appreciate you!

Laura Salzlein, Thomas Brown, Maria Rivera, Dr. Lugo, the Burns family, Pantaleon/Camilo family, Rovira/Clark family, Lombard family, Mai/Aguiling family, Garcia Concrete, Cadavona family, Ms. Estevez, Alvarez family, Robinson Paint and Body, Cooper family, Hamilton/Daney family, HydroScout Center, Inc., Williams family, Vazquez/Espinosa family, Jonathan Jones & family, Roe family, Publix, Pepsi/McDonald family, Knights of Columbus, Columbiettes, Nguyen family, Molina family, KMR Cakes, and Pinzas family.

We had our Great American Teach In today and it was a wonderful success! We are so appreciative of all the parents and community members who shared their careers and hobbies with our students!

Our Read A Thon hoedown will be next Friday, November 22nd. We are excited to celebrate the great job the students did in helping to raise funds for our 4 Square Court and replacing windows in our school.

These are the locations of where students will be for aftercare:

• PreK-1st grade will be in Mrs. McDonald's room by the playground.
• Grades 2-5 will be in the Parish Center.
• Grades 6-8 will be in the Science Lab.

Sweets with Santa will be on Saturday, December 7th. Make plans to attend now! The train is back this year, as well as the book fair. We will need volunteers for this event. Please sign up to help by calling the school office or emailing Ms. DeHaven at sdehaven@stjosephwhschool.org. We hope to see you there!

We are so close to our goal of $250 in Box Tops. All you have to do is scan your receipts to help us reach this goal and all students will earn another dress down day.

We have had an amazing few weeks celebrating the reading successes of our students during the first trimester! Our students clearly love reading!

One of the great joys of being media specialist is having students recommend new books for the media center. The students either want to share their love of a series with other students or they want to dive deeper into a subject or genre. I read book reviews, pour over book publishers' website, looking for the best new books for our students. It's been interesting to watch different series gain popularity with different grades and there are several books that never stay on the shelf for long...which leads to a very worn-out book! While I do everything I can to prevent and repair book damage, eventually books become so worn or damaged they can no longer circulate and need to be replaced. The real struggle happens when that book is in the middle of series! I face the choice of replacing these books instead of buying new titles, letting these books remain off our shelves, or hoping for a book fairy to arrive and replace them.

So, I am calling all book fairies!! Below you will find an Amazon Wishlist that has books that have been lost or damaged to the point they need to be replaced in our library. If you are able to and would like to be a book fairy, it would be such an amazing gift to our media center!

SJCS Book Fairy Wishlist:

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.

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

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 December 3rd. 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. Malady Rogue.

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.

Jesus said to his disciples:
"In those days after that tribulation
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

"And then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in the clouds'
with great power and glory,
and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.

"Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.
Amen, I say to you,
this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.

"But of that day or hour, no one knows,
neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

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.

• November 25th-29th: Thanksgiving Holiday: No School
  
• 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