St. John the Baptist School gives thanks for:

Our teachers. St. John the Baptist teachers are the heart of the school. They make significant sacrifices for our children and for our faith. Their dedication is largely responsible for our students’ academic, emotional, and spiritual success.

Our families. We realize there are many schooling options and are thankful that over 200 families have chosen to send their students to St. John the Baptist. It is truly an honor to partner with our families in the education of our children.

Our students. Students are the focus of our school and the reason the school exists. Seeing them learn to read and to love their neighbor is a reward without measure.

Our parish. It is a great honor to partner with our pastoral leadership, our parishioners, and our community. We are humbled to share a common mission to help others know, love, and serve Jesus Christ.

Jesus. Jesus Christ is the reason for our school. His love, His cross, His mission, gives everything meaning and purpose. May we always remain focused on Him.

The K-8 students are busily preparing for the Christmas concert which is scheduled for Thursday, December 9th.

• 9:00 AM Performance; doors will open at 8:30 AM 
• 6:00 PM Performance; doors will open at 5:30 PM; students must arrive by 5:45 PM (glass doors to the school will open at 5:45 PM, if students arrive before then, they may wait near the vending machines)

The 6:00 PM event will be live-streamed. For the live-stream link or to share with family and friends, follow the event on Facebook. 

WIN CASH ALL YEAR IN 2022 

Once again, all 9 GRACE schools have the opportunity to raise money for their schools through the GRACE Calendar Raffle!  Order forms were sent home today. Please review the materials and decide how many calendars your family will purchase and also sell to extended family and friends (your upcoming Thanksgiving gatherings are a perfect opportunity to sell plus these raffle tickets are a great stocking stuffer idea for Christmas)!

• $20 per raffle ticket
• $10,000 in prize money!
• 200 drawings throughout 2022 at $50 each
• Tickets are entered in every drawing, so win more than once (multiple SJB families won more than once in 2021)!
• GRACE sends winnings directly to the winner in the mail!
• You can also view more details and print more order forms by clicking here!

Last year, we earned over $8,000 for SJB!   Let’s see if we can beat it this year! Families who sell 10 or more tickets are entered into a drawing to win one of multiple $100 SCRIP Gift Certificates!

Questions?? Contact Kelly Dougherty at kelly54304@yahoo.com or 920-217-0844.

Our annual Christmas program will take place on Thursday, December 9th. 9:00 AM and 6:00 PM showtimes. This event will also be live-streamed, as in years past. More information will be coming soon. 

There are many intangible benefits to choosing Catholic education. The one that seems to stand out the most to people is the sense of family that permeates the school environment. There is something unique and valuable about knowing that each family chooses SJB knowing its Christian values. Our scriptural values lift us up in good times and hold us together during tough times. 

This sense of family is shared by our staff, students, and families. When describing why they stay at SJB, so many teachers describe their co-workers as their family. I’ve heard many stories of families dealing with struggles and difficulties. Often these families share that their friendships from SJB helped them get through the challenges. Also, we see day in and day out beautiful stories of our students caring for one another and helping each other out. Like any community, people make mistakes and fall short, but having a common set of Christian values to hold us together keeps us strong and resilient.

Family Highlights

Javelin Spirit Award – This fall and winter, we will be highlighting stories of students who live out their faith by showing love and kindness to their peers. These videos are posted on Facebook. Check them out and offer congratulations to the family for the recognition.

Parent Prom – I asked SAC to host a family social for our school parents that is not a fundraiser. The intent of this event is to bring families together to have fun. There is no cost! Come as you are and get to know some new families. I hope to see you there this Saturday!

At SJB, we teach a biblical-based friendship curriculum called Friendzy. This curriculum stretches across our entire school community. In addition to our homeroom teachers sharing lessons, our specialists will lead students through a monthly project and game. This month the theme is better together. The goal of this theme is “to recognize that we are designed for friendship and are better together.”

This theme is an excellent lesson for our students and is likewise a good reminder for us as parents and members of the parish community. By working together, compromising, and acknowledging the common good, we will create a strong and healthy environment for our children to grow. What can you do today to help strengthen our community and be an example of a peacemaker for our children?

Conferences: Our school staff knows that children will grow in virtue and learn best when home and school collaborate. An essential way for us to partner at the end of this month is parent-teacher conferences. A mutual dialog constructively focused on helping each child grow between home and school is essential to help each child develop. This is a visible way where we can mutually live out this commitment to be better together. Conference sign-up is on PowerSchool and directions can be found here. There are options for in-person and virtual sessions.

Please see below for the flyer and ticket order information.

This year we handed out a book titled Celebrating Sunday for Catholic Families at Open House. Parish faith formation and our school gave every registered family a copy of the book (extras available in the office). It provides simple reflections and questions to consider for each Sunday Gospel. It is a great book to keep on your kitchen table or to keep in your car to help prompt reflection on the Word of God each Sunday. The Gospel this Sunday is very timely as Christ models for you and me how to approach conflict, division, and children. I ask everyone in our community to take some time and pray with this week’s Sunday Gospel. 

Mark 9:33-37 They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, he began to ask them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they remained silent. They had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest. Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”  Taking a child, he placed it in their midst, and putting his arms around it, he said to them, “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me.”

It’s time to bring your paper to SJB to be recycled and turned into cash! Please see the attached flyer for what can be recycled and what cannot. And PLEASE break down boxes! Space is very limited in the dumpster and we need to maximize every inch. Thank you!

St. John the Baptist School exists to provide families a choice in education. A choice that is different, academically rich, and supported by a community. Most importantly, we exist to help children build a personal relationship with Jesus.

Below is an excerpt from a recent homily from Pope Francis, reminding us that Jesus wants to be personally involved with you and your family:

“It might make us more comfortable to have a God who stays in heaven without getting involved, while we can manage matters here on earth. Instead, God became man to enter into the concrete reality of this world… God became man – for me, for you, for all of us – to enter into our lives. And he is interested in every aspect of our life. We can tell him about what we are feeling, our work, our day, our sorrows, our anxieties – many things. We can tell him everything because Jesus wants this intimacy with us. Let us invite him into our home… Jesus will be at the table with us and we will be fed by a greater love.”