The Page
Weekly Newsletter - October 24, 2019
the month of the holy rosary
Our Motto: Teaching the Mind...Nourishing the Soul
Theme for the Year - Goodness
At St. Joseph Catholic School, we are striving to become missionary disciples, recognizing the goodness of God in our lives and in the world around us, each and every day.
Our Mission and Vision Statements
Mission:
St. Joseph Catholic School provides students with a safe and prayerful learning environment, enveloped by an intimate community of active and faithful families.
Vision:
Catholic schools in the Diocese of Fort Worth are committed to opening the doors so that our students can reach further than the walls that would otherwise enclose them and therefore are able to recognize and cherish the eternal and transcendental goods of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness.
From the Principal
In case you missed this portion of last week's newsletter, here it is again! This is worth repeating! Go, Knights!
I wanted to share with you some exciting news from one of our 4th grade teachers, Ms. Brennan. Earlier this school year, she was asked by her friend and Executive Director of the Arlington Tomorrow Foundation, Ms. Carolyn Mentesana-Westerlage, to participate in a project with the City of Arlington and the Chamber of Commerce, to help secure the Medal of Honor Museum for Arlington, Texas. Ms. Brennan's portion of the larger project was to help represent the community of Arlington by working with her students to provide patriotic letters and artwork in honor of heroes who served our country, and allowing her students to share their opinion with the search committee as to why Arlington would be a fine place for their museum. Ms. Brennan welcomed the opportunity to showcase her students' writing and creative abilities. Her 4th graders went to work writing, and she asked our 1st graders to work on drawings. Once completed and submitted to Ms. Mentesana-Westerlage, the student letters and drawings were placed into welcome baskets for the search committee members upon arriving in Arlington, many of whom are Medal of Honor recipients themselves.
Fast-forward to the press conference where the committee announced the Medal of Honor Museum will call Arlington, Texas home. The museum's CEO told the crowd that one of the deciding factors was the committee receiving "beautifully written letters and drawings from Arlington's students...we knew we were in the right community when we read their words. It was (the letters and drawings) the most amazing take away from our trip here." Our students' letters and drawings brought tears to the eyes of the Medal of Honor recipients on the committee. The CEO was the former CEO of the 9/11 Memorial in New York and he told the crowd, "I'm used to being moved by events, but it's been awhile since I've been touched like the letters impacted me." How beautiful and wonderful is that!
Ms. Mentesana-Westerlage says, "I can't tell how much your support and kids' efforts did to win this for Arlington. I'm going to be sure the mayor comes by to thank y'all personally. Until then, I'm sending my gratitude!"
I am so very proud of our students for honoring our military heroes in this manner, while representing their hometown and their Catholic school community. Arlington, Texas is lucky to have students like ours.
In Christ's service,
Diane Price, M.Ed.L.
Principal
Resource on How to Pray the Rosary
Theme for the Year: Goodness
Goodness Bible Verse for october
new saintly quote to ponder
We must hope that God, in His goodness, will bless your efforts and bestow upon you all the graces you need to accomplish His most holy will because you were chosen for this work by the guidance of Divine Providence. - St. Louise de Marillac
New Campus-wide Virtues Program
St. Joseph Catholic School is incorporating a new virtues program across all grade levels to help forge a stronger relationship with Jesus, and to grow in both wisdom and virtue. The program is called: Virtues in Practice by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia in Nashville, TN.
Please click on image below to view the program. Program details may also be found on the school website under the "Curriculum" tab and in Parent Links under the "Resources" tab.
Latin and greek roots challenge
-clos
Click below to purchase AK2R tickets!
AK2R Raffle Time!
Top seller gets a Nintendo Switch Runner up gets a pair of cordless Apple Air Pods
- Every student who sells 14 tickets wins a prize!
- Tickets were sent home on October 7th
- For every 14 tickets that a student sells in a given week, they will be able to spin the prize wheel during lunch on Wednesday.
- For every additional 14 tickets a student sells they will be able to spin the wheel for an additional prize.
- To be eligible to spin the wheel on Wednesdays, tickets and money must be turned in to the homeroom teacher by 8:30 AM each Monday.
- Every week our 2 top selling students, 1 from upper school and 1 from lower school, will earn an Alley Cats gift certificate or a Starbucks gift card.
- For the 2 classes selling the most tickets, 1 from upper school and 1 from lower school, the homeroom TEACHER will earn a Starbucks gift card.
- TEACHERS can also win. The teacher selling the most tickets for the week will win a Starbucks gift card!
A Knight to Remember - Help your class have the best basket of the night!
Car Line Reminders
- Please remember that if you are walking your child into the school building, you are to park in the large lot in front of the field. Foot traffic should not be occurring in the parking lot in front of the school, unless you have a physical need for a shorter walk and are parking in a handicapped spot. It is dangerous to be walking between the cars in the line.
- For the safety of all, please be aware of your speed as you move through the parking lots, and be watchful and courteous.
- Please be patient with friends and extended family members who drop off and pick up students. Many times they have not been informed of the proper way to navigate the car line. We do reach out to families after arrival and dismissal who seem to not understand the car line pattern.
- If you have a friend or extended family member picking up your child, please take a minute to explain the procedures to them. Please reference the diagram. Thank you!
- We would ask that a cell phone not be in your hand while driving in the car line. We all know it only takes one sudden distraction to alter lives forever.
Reminders and Upcoming Events
- NO SCHOOL - Tomorrow, Friday, October 25th due to Diocesan Inservice Day.
- Friday, November 1st - This is a Holy Day of Obligation. Please come in Dress Uniforms for Mass. It is also the day of our All Saints Day Parties (2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.)
- Book of Life and Remembrance Wall - Please feel free to write down names of loved ones passed in the Book of Life found in the school office. The names will be read over the school announcements during the month of November. Also, we are accepting photos of family members who have passed, to post on the Remembrance Wall in the school cafeteria. You may drop these photos off in the school office and they will be placed on the wall for you. PLEASE be sure to write your name on the back of the photo if you would like it returned to you at the end of November.
- Box of Joy Program - Thank you to all the families who have chosen to participate in this important program. We have about 30 boxes left (in the school foyer) if you are interested in packing a Christmas gift for a child in need. Please click this link to read an article from the North Texas Catholic detailing the value of the program and featuring our efforts: buff.ly/2nt585v pic.twitter.com/pajKVaPLUL. Boxes are due to the school the week of November 4th. All boxes must be packed and returned no later than Friday, November 8th.
- Do you have an extra bottle of wine? We are in need of bottles of wine for the "wine pull" at our biggest fundraiser of the year, "A Knight to Remember". This is a super fun way to possibly win a fabulous bottle of wine at our gala! If you have an extra bottle, or would like to purchase one for the event, please bring your donation directly to the school office. We would be thrilled to accept it! Remember, you receive one service hour for every $10 spent to help the school. Go, Knights!
- Please follow the Parent/Student Handbook guidelines on appearance and uniform requirements like socks, hair color, length and style, nail color and length, etc. Thank you.
- If you are an Amazon customer, please use Amazon Smile! We receive a donation from Amazon when you shop. Go to: smile.amazon.com to participate. It is a very easy way to support the school! Thank you!
- If you know a St. Joseph Catholic School alumni, please let them know we are looking to stay in contact, and would love to hear how they are doing. See the notice in our alumni section of below.
Home and School Association (HSA)
- Our next Home and School Association (HSA) Meeting will be held on Wednesday, January 15th at 7:00 pm in the school cafeteria, with "Meet the Artist" in the library, beginning at 6:00 pm. More information to come about that. We hope you can attend!
- The children of HSA Members who have paid their dues to join, and are able to attend the monthly meetings, are allowed to wear any SJCS spirit shirt purchased through the school with blue jeans and tennis shoes of their choice to school on the Thursday after the meeting!
HSA Spirit Night Contest
This year we are going to have a Spirit Night Contest!
The class that has the most attendance for Spirit Nights will win an ICE CREAM Sundae Party!
Each teacher will be given an envelope to keep the receipts and it is easy to participate!
Three Easy Steps:
1. Attend a Spirit Night
2. Save your receipt
3. Turn the receipt in to your teacher (if multiple students turn in their receipt to one teacher, be sure to write all the students' names on the receipt)
Shop with Amazon? Why not help the school?
Amazon Smile is a program that gives back to organizations. If you have an Amazon account, just Google "Amazonsmile" to find out how to give back to St. Joseph Catholic School. Each purchase contributes a small portion to our school.
SJCS parent, Stacey Lewis, discovered some news regarding Amazon Smile:
For those with Android phones, you can now activate your Amazon Smile account through the Amazon app (instead of having to use the web browser).
Note- this is only available on the updated Amazon app (the app with the white icon, not the black and orange icon). And unfortunately this is not currently available on Apple devices.
Hopefully, with this added convenience, we can contribute a much larger amount to the school!
Thank you for your commitment to raising money for the school, Mr. Lewis!
Next Water Walk planned for November 22nd - A Must Read!
H2O For Life - St. Joseph Catholic School Water Walk Project Completed!
Updated - Safe Environment Training Requirement
Safe Environment Certification for Adult and Teen Volunteers is REQUIRED PRIOR TO SERVING in Ministry in schools and parishes AND MUST BE RENEWED EVERY TWO YEARS. All adult volunteers are required to make a VIRTUS Profile, to complete the Volunteer Ministry Application, to authorize a criminal background check by completing an Authorization Form, to sign the Diocesan Code of Conduct, and to complete Safe Environment Training. A live training, “Safe Environment Awareness Session,” is required for all volunteers.
Log on fwdioc.org, click on Safe Environment, select Awareness Sessions and click on I need a VIRTUS Profile if you do not already have one. When you make a profile, print out the Code of Conduct and Volunteer Ministry Application when it is complete. Safe Environment Coordinators cannot see your answers and signatures. If you do not print it out, we will need a hard copy for your file. The office can provide you with the Authorization for Release of Information for the background check. This form is needed in the file so we may input your correct information into ScreeningOne. Turn in your paperwork to the school before or right after your Awareness Session. Contact Lori Zalesak in the school office with the date of your session so you can be tracked through the process and placed on the Volunteer List for the school when complete. When you are sent home a copy of your VIRTUS Completion Certificate, you are ready to volunteer in the school and at events. Contact the office if you need further information.
Knights in Action!
8th Grade Student of the Month
Congratulations to Justin Pham for receiving this month's 8th Grade Student of the Month Award from St. Joseph's Knights of Columbus. Justin is helpful to his fellow classmates, and does whatever is asked of him with a positive attitude. He serves as a role model for others. Thank you for doing your best to live like Jesus taught us, Justin.
Monday Morning Prayer Service
Volleyball Teams
8th grade Team
7th Grade Team
5th/6th grade gold team
5th/6th grade black team
Moments Captured around campus
Estimating
Show Time!
Lego Time!
Field Trip Fun
Art this Week
Here are a few images from SJCS Art classes this week:
1st Grade completed a Halloween Design Grid using markers and 4th Grade completed Egyptian Art using hieroglyphics. Students created personal name plates or cartouches. Well done, Knights!
Displays around campus
First Parent's Night Out
STREAM Wish list
STREAM Enrichment would love to have these items donated for your children's use.
Thank you!
- Q-tips
- pipe cleaners
- clothes pins
- Popsicle sticks ( big and small) (colorful and plain)
- plastic spiders (Halloween)
- string
- cotton balls
- candy corn
- marshmallows- small
- colored pom poms
- scotch tape
- gallon plastic bags
- toothpicks
- Jolly Ranchers
- Starburst
- Hershey's Kisses
Roboknights
Alumni News
Do you have any information you would like to share with the entire Knight Community? We would love that as well! Please send your news to mhurtado@stjosephtx.org.
Once a Knight - Forever a Knight!
TWinning!
Are you in need of prayers?
Meet our Dominican Sisters!
Meet our parish priests!
St. Joseph Roman Catholic Parish
- Be sure to look into FORMED.org. The parish has paid for your subscription to this vast library of inspiring videos and essential reads to help grow your faith. Just go straight to the "Enter Code" button and enter 4BDX9H to begin the process. You may also access this through the parish website link below. Enjoy!
- Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is occurring after daily Mass in the Chapel until 5:45pm. Come spend some time with our Lord.
- Please enjoy this link to a lovely article in the North Texas Catholic about the pastor of St. Joseph Parish, Fr. Kelley: https://t.co/3ItrotxIyf
Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth link:
Contact us at (817) 419-6800
ST. JOSEPH, PROTECTOR OF FAMILIES, PRAY FOR US.