Father Sebastian had to walk 5 miles each day to school. He said to be prepared for anything because one day he went to school and he had an unexpected test that his teacher gave him. He said we have to be prepared like Scouts. He also said to be prepared for an unexpected test, you study every day and do your homework. He said to be prepared spiritually because Jesus can come at any time. To be prepared for Jesus' coming, you can pray, read the Bible, and study the saints. By being prepared, loving the Lord and continuing our Christian life, your are doing just enough. - Jayleen

Father Sebastian stated that if a teacher gave you a pop quiz, you need to be prepared. He said we need to be prepared for the arrival of Jesus. He was wearing the color red for the martyrs that died preaching the Word of God. - Shanely

Thanks again to all who joined us at Crispers last week for SJCS Spirit Night. Today, SJCS received a check for $214. This money will be placed in the PTO account. It was a fun evening!

Following the closure of SJCS for Hurricane Ian, we recently received guidance from the Superintendent's office. Based on his guidance, and after a review of the instructional hours we have remaining in the calendar, SJCS will NOT have to make up any of the missed days of school. At this time, we will plan to be closed February 20th and January 2nd.

We will be eliminating a couple 2pm dismissal days. Please adjust your calendars. SJCS will have regular full school days on Thursday, January 12 and Thursday, February 9th.

Navy or white tights may be worn in the colder months under jumper or skirts. Leggings are not permitted. Girls may not wear sweatpants underneath their uniform. For clarification purposes, girls may wear tights (with feet in them) underneath their school uniform.

Remember, boots are never acceptable, even on dress down days.

There will be a Uniform Sale on Saturday, October 29th from 9am-11am in the Parish Center. This is your opportunity to shop for uniforms to wear in cool weather. Please remember there are very specific guidelines regarding appropriate uniforms on cooler days. If you cannot stop by the parish center on October 29th from 9-11am, you may call the school office to get information on placing an order.

The Lost and Found bins are quickly filling up. There are many water bottles and SJCS outerwear. If your child has misplaced an item, we invite parents to stop by the school office during school hours and take a look. Also, it is SUPER HELPFUL if parents label ALL items. When missing items are found with a name, we will get it back to the owner very quickly. Your attention to this request is greatly appreciated.

Our Living Rosary on Friday, October 7th was beautiful! Throughout the month of October, we honor the month of the Rosary! We will pray the Rosary as a school again at 8:15am on Friday, October 28th in the church. All parents are invited to join us.

Announcements regarding basketball:

5th -8th grade girls basketball: 3:30-4:30 Monday/Wednesday

There will be a JV Basketball Meeting for 5th and 6th grade boys after school on Thursday 10/27 from 3:30-4:30.

Varsity basketball for 7th and 8th grades have started. Contact Coach Edwards at ledwards@stjosephwhschool.org for more information.

All families are required to give a minimum of 20 volunteer hours by June 1, 2023.

• Families should have 10 hours logged before reregistration opens in January.
• Families are required to give a minimum of 2 hours toward Fall Fest.
• Please be sure to log volunteer hours in Renweb. (See Resources section below for directions on how to log your hours.)

We are still looking for volunteers at Fall Fest!

FAMILY SERVICE HOUR OPPORTUNITIES AT FALL FEST

• being a sponsor of a rental item (contact Laura Salzlein laura.salzlein@gmail.com for info).
• volunteering during the event. Sign Up NOW at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0d49aea728a0fb6-fall
  

DONATE ITEMS FOR THE BASKET RAFFLE

One of the most anticipated parts of Fall Fest each year is our Basket Raffle! With the generous gifts of families, our PTO puts together some amazing baskets that are raffled off on the day of the Fall Fest. You can purchase chances to win a basket for $1 a chance.

We invite all families to donate an item for our baskets. Please see the Amazon Wishlist by clicking on the link below. When you donate an item on the Wishlist, it will be shipped directly to the committee to be included in a basket. This is another way for families to earn service hours. For every $10 you spend on basket items, families earn 1 volunteer hour. Thanks in advance for your contribution to a basket.

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/251GPR2WDCA1Z?ref_=wl_share

Fall Fest is around the corner! We expect our largest turnout ever and are looking forward to a really great day! If you haven't been to Fall Fest before, you can expect really long lines at the start of the Fall Fest to purchase game, inflatable and food tickets. You can avoid the long lines by preordering your tickets ahead of time. The deadline to order Fall Fest tickets is Tuesday, October 25th. Please submit your order and payment to the office as soon as possible. Tickets will go home with students the day of the Fall Fest.

Please keep in mind that all treats and plans for celebrating holidays must be coordinated with the approval of the classroom teacher. With Halloween coming very quickly, grades 3 and up have very specific expectations of how those classes will celebrate. Parents of all grade levels should not send in any sweets or treats without the prior approval of the teacher. This policy will be enforced. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

SJCS will celebrate National Red Ribbon Week the week of October 24th. We will celebrate the following dress down days to show our commitment to being drug and bully free:

Monday: Camo- Hide from the drugs (wear camouflage)

Tuesday: Too smart for drugs, dress Smart (Nerd/smart student attire)

Wednesday: Band together against drugs (wear bandana)

Thursday: Don’t Fall for drugs (wear Fall colors)

Friday: Too Bright for drugs (wear Neon/sunglasses)

During the week of November 14th, our school will be participating in the Great American Teach In. This annual event is held nationwide to celebrate American Education week . Members of the community are invited into the school to share information with students about their career or hobby. It is also an opportunity for students to see where education can take them. We are in need of volunteers to come and speak to our students in kindergarten through 8th grade. We are looking for the following career areas to share with students:

Health care (medical and dental)

Animal care

Cooking/Baking

Law Enforcement

Musicians

Horticulture

Engineering

News/Meteorology

Scientists

If you are interested, please fill out the Google Form at Fill out in Google Forms . If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Insua at jinsua@stjosephwhschool.org or 863.293.3311.

We invite all middle schoolers to come out on October 26 to play Hungry Hungry Human Hippos at the church’s Youth Ministry.

For the past few months, we have been talking about proofs and theories for God’s Existence, this fun night will focus on helping our youth see how their desires to be known, loved, and cared for reflect God, who loves them and fulfills all of their longings.

Upcoming Service projects:

• November 5, Saturday, is a service opportunity. The youth will be making nursing home cards for the elderly from 1:30 PM to 4:00 PM in Family Life Center Room 2. We ask that all youth who wish to participate bring their own art supplies. This includes any special card-type paper they wish to use.

If the teen is 15 years or older, they will need to be fingerprinted and background checked by the Diocese in order to participate. (Turnaround time for this process can take 2-3 weeks.) If your teen is 15 years or older, parents will need to email Ashley Brown at abrown@stjosephwh.org their teen’s name a week prior to the service project so I can verify with the diocese they are cleared to participate.

Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else.
"Two people went up to the temple area to pray;
one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector.
The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,
'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity --
greedy, dishonest, adulterous -- or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.'
But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.'
I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;
for whoever exalts himself will be humbled,
and the one who humbles himself will be exalted." - Lk 18:9-14

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: https://stjosephwhschool.org/wp-content/uploads/calendar-for-parents.pdf
• Parent-Student Handbook: https://stjosephwhschool.org/wp-content/uploads/St.-Joseph-Parent-Student-Handbook-2022-202-Repaired.pdf
• Menus: https://stjosephwhschool.nutrislice.com/
• Registering for a Lunch Account: https://www.payschoolscentral.com/
• PikMyKid User Guide: https://stjosephwhschool.org/wp-content/uploads/1-_Parent-App-User-Guide_English_2021.pdf
• Fingerprinting/Safe Environment Certification Instructions: https://stjosephwhschool.org/wp-content/uploads/SEC-with-Code.pdf
• Fingerprinting/Safe Environment Certification: https://www.orlandodiocese.org/safe-environment/english/
• Uniform Company: https://store.sirwalteruniforms.com/schools/st-josephs-winter-haven.html
• FACTS Family Portal Login: https://logins2.renweb.com/logins/ParentsWeb-Login.aspx
• FACTS Family Portal Instructions: https://stjosephwhschool.org/wp-content/uploads/FACTS_Family_Portal_Parent_Access_Instructions.pdf
• 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 https://logins2.renweb.com/logins/parentsweb-login.aspx 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.