St. Joseph
Catholic School

Psalm 49

R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! 

Hear this, all you peoples;
hearken, all who dwell in the world,
Of lowly birth or high degree,
rich and poor alike. 

R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! 

Why should I fear in evil days
when my wicked ensnarers ring me round?
They trust in their wealth;
the abundance of their riches is their boast. 

R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! 

Yet in no way can a man redeem himself,
or pay his own ransom to God;
Too high is the price to redeem one’s life; he would never have enough
to remain alive always and not see destruction. 

R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! 

For he can see that wise men die,
and likewise the senseless and the stupid pass away,
leaving to others their wealth. 

R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!

From the Principal

Dear Parents,

Thanks to all who attended the extravaganza last night. It was a huge success. The gym floor is to be installed in over the Mardi Gras break. The Dad’s Club did a great job of promoting the dinner and making all the arrangements. Special thanks to Jerod Breaux for initiating the push to redo the floor along with Artie Thompson and the rest of the Dad’s Club. Special appreciation to Brad Poche, Artie Thompson, Kevin Raiford and Troy Davis; each sold over ten tickets. Preliminary figures indicate that along with the football raffle, the floor will be paid for before it is installed.

Congratulations to the students that represented the school so well at the District Literary Rally last Saturday. They did exceptionally well. In the picture above, from left are, Brennan Currier (2nd (6th Physical Science I), Alex Wisecarver (6th Physical Science I), Olivia Maurer (4th Algebra I), Mallory Vining (9th Algebra I), Joseph Pellettieri (1st English I), and Lane Pierson (9th English I).

Joseph, Brennan, and Olivia will represent St. Joseph at state literary rally on April 5. 

The school recently requested from the Knights of Columbus a donation to cover the cost of a set of videos of Bible stories and Church sacraments that will add significantly to our religion program. They were most gracious and kind in their response. The films are being used now in our classes.

During Lent the Knights have two fish fries, one on March 7th and one on April 4th. The dinners are eat-in or carry-out from 5 pm to 7 pm. Tickets will be on sale at all Masses on the weekend before the fry. Mr. Tommy will also sell tickets in the car pool line in the afternoon. Toot your horn and he will come over. He will have change. This is a way to return the Knights' many kindnesses to the school.

Last week we congratulated the Girl’s Varsity for their success in basketball. We wish to thank the other teams for representing the school and demonstrating the sportsmanship that make us so proud. 

The Boy’s Varsity team was Grant Amerson, Kade Bleakley, Thomas Casey, Michael Dickson, Brandon Falcon, Cody Flynn, Justin Hutches, Kaleb Kraemer, Chase Mack, Ethan Mauterer, Joseph Pelltierri, Dane Schmitt, Kole Sonnier and Collin Thibodeaux. They were coached by Sherman Mack. 

The Boy’s Junior Varsity was Collin Babin, Anthony Cazedessus, Gabe Hester, Cody Majeau, Nicolas Maggio, Brady Nunez, Sal Nuzzolillo, Mason Perrin, Lathan Raiford, Ethan Robertson, Jonah Schmitt and Matthew Wisecarver. They were coached by Brian Maggio and Kevin Raiford. 

Finally, the Girl’s Junior Varsity consisted of Skylar Cheek. Krislyn Dapprich, Madison Gill. Maria Guay. Cheyanne Hartman. Mackenzie Stewart, Emily Wells, and Emily Wilson. They were coached by Kristi Gill, Shari Amerson, and Lauren Long as were the Girl’s Varsity.

A special thanks to the coaches for their dedication and long hours of service. 

-- Dr. Gerard Toups
    Principal

Calendar-at-a-Glance

Wednesday, February 26
Fair Meeting in Library @ 6:30

Friday, February 28
Spirit Dress (or fair t-shirt)
Read the Most from Coast to Coast

Monday-Friday, March 3-7
Mardi Gras Holidays - No School
 
Wednesday, March 5
Ash Wednesday

Sunday, March 9
First Sunday of Lent 
Daylight Savings Time Begins

Monday, March 10
Classes Resume
Fair Basket Drop-Off this Week 

Wednesday, March 12
Mass @ 8:30
Bring canned, boxed, or bagged food the needy in our area.
Adopt-a-Child Collection
Fair Basket Drop-Off this Week

Thursday, March 13
Exams (grades 6-7-8) English & Science
Field Trip (fifth grade)
Fair Basket Drop-Off this Week 

Friday, March 14
Spirit Dress (or fair -shirt)
Exams (grades 6-7-8) Math
Stations of the Cross @ 1:45
Math-a-Thon Money Due
Accelerated Reader Deadline (third quarter)
Fair Raffle Tickets Due (to qualify for prizes)
Fair Ride Pass Orders/Money Due
Fair Jambalaya Entries Due
Fair Basket Drop-Off this Week

Sunday, March 16
Second Sunday of Lent

Monday, March 17
Exams (grades 6-7-8) Reading & Social Studies
Last Day of Third Quarter

Fair Meeting - February 26

The next Spring Fair planning meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 26, at 6:30 in the school library.

This is a very important meeting as it is the last one prior to the Spring Fair. Please make every effort to attend.

It's not too late to attend for the first time. All parents/grandparents are encouraged to come out, participate, and make this the best fair ever!

Fair T-Shirts

Fair t-shirts have been sent home today, Wednesday, February 26.

Students may wear fair t-shirts with blue jeans, school shoes and socks on the following Fridays:

February 28

March 14

March 28.

Thanks to all who bought t-shirts. 

We have a few extra shirts in the office for those who still want to purchase one. Cost is $13 each. Sizes are limited.

Mardi Gras Holidays - March 3-7

St. Joseph School will be closed Monday, March 3 through Friday, March 7, in order for our families to enjoy the Mardi Gras holidays.

School will reopen on Monday, March 10.

Dads' Dinner Free Dress - March 10

All students whose parents purchased a ticket to the Crusader Dads' Benefit Dinner may come to school out of uniform on Monday, March 10. 

The dress code for out-of-uniform days can be found at DRESS CODE.

Exam Schedule - March 13-14&17

The end of the third quarter is quickly approaching. 

The exam schedule for students in grades 6, 7, and 8 is as follows:

Thursday, March 13 - English and Science

Friday, March 14 - Math

Monday, March 17 - Reading and Social Studies.

A/R Deadline - March 14

The last day to take Accelerated Reader tests for the third quarter is Friday, March 14.

Fair Holiday - March 21

St. Joseph School will not have school on Friday, March 21.

We will take that day as our fair holiday.

Classes will resume on Monday, March 24.

Spring Fair - March 21-22-23

We are ready to start collecting donations of good, clean stuffed animals as fair prizes. They can be sent to the office.

We continue to collect cleaned egg shells for the confetti egg booth for the Spring Fair. Please check the FAIR tab for directions on how to clean the eggs. Those who contribute may qualify for the popsicle party!

All of the Spring Fair news can be found under the FAIR tab on this website.

February Crusaders

Congratulations to our February Crusaders of the Month:
Mini Crusader - Morgan Watkins - 2nd grade
Crusader - Lathan Raiford - 5th grade. 

We are so proud of our Crusaders!

Congratulations to our Accelerated Readers

Emily Stricker is our newest member of the Accelerated Reader 100 Points Club! 

The Photo Albums of the website has been updated with all of the Points Clubs members pictures. It can be visited at ACCELERATED READERS.

Congratulations to all of our SJS readers!

Fourth Grade Field Trip

Our fourth grade students recently enjoyed a field trip to the Insectarium in New Orleans. More pictures of their trip can be seen at INSECTARIUM.

Krewe of Crusaders Roll

Kindergarten student McKena Thompson and her eighth grade buddy Taylor Raiford prepare to roll their festival float in the annual SJS Krewe of Crusaders Parade on Friday, February 21. 

All of the PreK and Kindergarten floats can be enjoyed by visiting PARADE.

Respect for Life Poster Contest Winners

The Respect for Life poster contest winners have been announced. In 8th grade, our winners are, from left, Kristie Chen, third place; Olivia Maurer, first place; and Michael Dickson, second place. 

The contest is sponsored by the Knights of Columbus. Winners were awarded their prizes at a dinner given by the Knights. 

To see winners from other grades, please visit the RESPECT for LIFE.  

Parish News

Personnel
Fr. Paul A. McDuffie, Pastor
Larry J. Melancon - Deacon
Mike Agnello - Deacon
Dr. M.J. "Dutch" Schanzbach - Deacon

Weekend Mass Schedule
Saturday Vigil Mass - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday Mass - 8:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 5:00 p.m.

Weekday Mass Schedule
The week day Masses on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday will be at 8:30 a.m. Reconciliation (Confessions) will be available before all week day Masses at 8:00 a.m. in addition to Confessions on Saturday from 3:30-4:30 p.m.

Contact Information
Address - 255 North 8th Street (P.O. Box 368), Ponchatoula, LA 70454
Phone - 985.386.3749
Website - www.stjosephsonline.com