WeeklyNewsletter–November18,2018 FromthePrincipal’sDesk

MISSION STATEMENT Rooted in Catholic faith, and committed to academic excellence, St. Joseph Catholic School

develops personal responsibility, character, service, and leadership

Thanksgiving Vacation

Monday – Full Day of School Tuesday – 11:30 am Dismissal – NO AFTER CARE

Dear St. Joseph School Community,

The first part of the 2018-2019 year has gone by quickly. Our students have completed the first quarter and are well into our second. Please remember, you can always check your child’s current progress by logging into your Parent Portal account.

As we reflect on the many things for which we are thankful, I want to take this opportunity to share just a few of them with you: We are thankful for our students who come to school every day ready to learn – they give us all a daily reminder of what is important and why we are here. We are thankful for the support of our parents and guardians who create an outstanding partnership for our students. We are thankful for the teachers, assistants, school nurse, bus drivers, administration staff, lunchroom assistants, and maintenance staff, who really care about student achievement and have the best interests of our students at heart. We are grateful for the pastors and priests of our supporting parishes who so generously provide scholarship assistance. We are also thankful for all of our volunteers who enthusiastically contribute so much to our school, and who have provided so many exciting opportunities for our school family.

Each day, we see dedicated and tireless individuals going above and beyond to make sure that great things happen in our school. All of you make a difference, and the children, in their own individual ways, benefit from those efforts.

Most importantly, we are thankful for the families who have kept their faith in us. You continue to share your most valuable possession with us and work hard and sacrifice to be a partner in your child’s education, safety, and well-being. For this, all of us are grateful.

During these days when we take time to say ‘Thank You’ for our many blessings, we remember each of you. May you and your families have a blessed, happy, healthy and relaxing Thanksgiving holiday!

With gratitude for each of you, Deborah Suddarth, ED.S

St. Joseph Catholic School

Thanksgiving – A Time to Remember Others

Last week, our students put their faith in action. They started out the week by collecting canned cranberries and fruit for our food pantry. They ended the week by bringing donations for the fire relief efforts in California.

Five grocery carts were needed to transport 1,254 cans to the Food pantry. In addition, over $200 was collected to donate directly to the food pantry for their immediate needs. Mrs. Ferguson’s class brought in the most cans, and got to deliver everything to the grateful food pantry staff.

On Friday morning, SJCS Student Council members

passed out donuts as students and staff arrived on campus. Their project “Bring in the dough for the Diocese of Sacramento”

offered support for the fire rescue efforts for Paradise, California. They collected

$748.00 through their Friday donut drive.

AnAdventTimeofReflectionWillBeOurGifttoYou!

AsweAwaittheBirthofJesusDecember3,10,and17-AdventReflectionMornings

8:00–8:45amintheSt.JosephRoom

Howmanymileswillyoucoverthismonthdrivingyourchildrentoschoolandtheircountlessactivities?Howmuchtimewillyouspendtakingcareofyoursoulinthefaceofallthe“shoulds”thatlifepresents?WithChristmasbitingatyourheels,howwillyougetitalldone?Here’sanoffer–freeofcharge,nostringsattached!StartingMonday,December3,afteryou’vedeliveredyourchildsafelytoschool,stopintheSt.JosephRoomfora“Pause”beforeyoutackletheworld.Weguaranteeitwillstillbethereafteryou’vehadacupofcoffeeandalittletimetobreathe.We’llhaveafew

minutesofquietandsomeconversationaroundthefactthatbeforetherecanbeChristmas,theremustbeatimeofwaiting.SoweproposethatwewaittogetheraswejourneytowardChristmas.Ourhopeisthatthisseasonmightbeabitlessrushedandcrazyifyoutakethetimetogiftyourselfwithanewwayofwaiting.Themallisn’tgoinganywhere,andthemomentsyoutaketocatchyourbreathcandogreatthingsforyourmoodastheholidayapproaches.Toregistercall941-756-3732andleaveyournameandyourtelephonenumber.

Save the Date for the December PTO Meeting and Decorating of the Courtyard!

The Next PTO Board Meeting will be Monday December 3rd, at 8:15 am in the Aftercare Room. The main Topic of Discussion will be Cookies with Santa, and the Decorating of the Courtyard will occur immediately thereafter. Please let us know if you plan on attending by RSVPing at the Signup Genius HERE: https://sugeni.us/3LJi

Coffee as well as bottled water will be provided, and we look forward to seeing you there! ***Please note the location change to the Aftercare Room for this meeting.*** PLANING TO ATTEND THE ADVENT REFLECTION? JOIN US AFTER THE ADVENT MEETING TO HELP WITH DECORATING THE COURTYARD! SJCS PTO Board

New High Points Club Members

Congratulations to Catherine Johnsen and Camden Lawrence who have met their Accelerated Reader goals for High Points Club! Great Work!

2018 Knights of Columbus Spelling Bee

On Wednesday, November 7, the St. Joseph Spelling Bee, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, was held in the St. Joseph room. Thank you to all the participants who practiced at school and at home to prepare for the competition. Your efforts were appreciated!

• Representing 5th grade: Djoudly Auguste, Michael Brunette, Clark Keyvani, Laura Lopera Michelle Lupescu, & Carlos Martinez

• Representing 6th grade: Olivia Igoe, Emily Inman, Serena McCormick, & Veronica McMahon • Representing 7th grade: Joey Colonneso, Isabel Estigarribia, & Joshua Ogline • Representing 8th grade: Dominic Berardi, Nicolas Curci, Perla Pelegrin, & Crystal Struening

Ribbons were awarded to the following Level I (Grades 5/6) contestants: • 1st - Clark Keyvani • 2nd - Michelle Lupescu

Ribbons were awarded to the following Level II (Grades 7/8) contestants: • 1st - Crystal Struening • 2nd - Joshua Ogline • 3rd – Nicolas Curci

Congratulations to the first place winners who will go on to represent our school at the Regional Competiton on January 12th, which will be held right here at St. Joseph School. Good luck!

Kindergarten Celebrates a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

Our eighth grade students enjoyed their recent visit to Cardinal

Mooney High School.

HOT LUNCH – MONDAY ONLY Our regular lunch service will not be available.

If students did not submit orders for Pizza on Friday, they may not order on Monday of this week. They will need to bring a lunch.

No late orders can be accepted.

WEEKLY ACTIVITIES Monday, November 19

• 3:00 pm Jr. Legion of Mary • 3:00 – 5:00 pm Odyssey of the Mind • 3:00 – 4:00 pm Choir Practice • 3:15 pm Little Pro Soccer

Tuesday, November 20

• KONA ICE Morning Treat • Keep Christ in Christmas Poster Contest Begins • 11:30 am Dismissal • NO AFTER CARE

HAPPY THANKSGIVING Monday, November 26th School Resumes

• DAR Essays Due for students competing in Grades 5 to 8

Advent Jesse Tree – Giving and Sharing with Others

Advent begins on Sunday, December 2nd, and our students prepared Jesse Tree ornaments for this year’s Giving Tree. The preschool students came to the office and helped decorate by hanging the ornaments. Students from each class will stop by the office to choose an ornament. Once again, we will be assisting four social agencies in our community: Hope Family Services, Palmetto Migrant School, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Samoset Elementary School. Each ornament on the tree has the name of the agency and a gift

We do not expect expensive gifts—under $20 is preferred. Gift cards can be $5. We do not want this to be a burden for our families, but rather to instill in your children the true meaning of Christmas by giving to those in need. Participation is optional so please return your tag to the office if you cannot provide a gift this year, or if you have several children and prefer to only have one tag for your family.

Remember: Do not wrap gifts. Adhere tag firmly to the gift with tape. Return the gift with the tag to school by December 7.

Members of the National Junior Honor Society and Student Council will be delivering the gifts to the agencies, on December 13th.

We will be collecting books for Samoset Elementary students in K through Grade 5. Most students in this school read below their grade level. Please look at your books at home and bring in gently used or new books. We need many books for these children.

JESSE TREE TRADITION FOR FAMILIES The Jesse Tree has a long history when a special ornament was hung each day during the Advent season. The ornaments represented stories about the characters of the Old Testament from Adam and Eve to the birth of Jesus. At SJCS, we hung all of the ornaments at one time, but we encourage you to look at your child’s ornament and the Scripture reading at the bottom. You may want to visit the Loyola website for more information about the Jesse Tree and how to share this tradition with your family during Advent. www.loyolapress.com/the-jesse-tree.htm

941.465.0802 | scedwards@kona-ice.com | www.kona-ice.com

25% of our proceeds will go back to your school

Tuesday, November 20th

Thanksgiving TreatPlease bring $2-$6 for Kona Ice