St. Joseph School
25 Squire Street
New London, Connecticut 06320
“This is a holy place where we discover each other in God’s love.”
March 27, 2024
Dear St. Joseph School Families,
As I have continued to mention each week of Lent, our prayers during this time are centering around the Baptismal signs and symbols in preparation for Easter. We concluded these prayers on Monday with the white garment, reminding us that in Baptism we put on Christ. As with the caterpillar that becomes a butterfly, we became brand new! May you take a moment once again to remember your own Baptism and that of your children in praying with us this Holy Week.
Our students in Grade 8 will present the Living Stations at St. Joseph Church on March 29th, Good Friday night at 7:30 p.m. Please mark your calendars in order to support them in this important Lenten gift.
We are in the midst of Holy Week. It is during this week that we are reminded of the suffering and death of Jesus, as well as his resurrection on Easter Sunday. On Thursday we remember the Last Supper during which Jesus celebrated a meal with his apostles and in doing so gave us the gifts of the Eucharist and the Priesthood. Good Friday helps us to commemorate the suffering and death of our Lord. On Holy Saturday, some, who have been preparing for Baptism, the Eucharist and Confirmation are called forth to receive these Sacraments. The new fire and the holy water are also blessed. Finally, on Easter Sunday, we celebrate new life in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Please give your children the gift of sharing faith with them during this most important time.
Special Alert! You may have seen the Special Olympics “Over the Edge” at Mohegan Sun last year. All proceeds go to support Special Olympics. This year the Diocese of Norwich is asking our schools to participate. This means getting sponsors for each participant. There are at least 11 of us at St. Joseph who have agreed to rappel from the Mohegan Sun Hotel and we will need to raise $1250 each. We feel we can do this with the support of area businesses and our own family and friends. Our school will support, in part, with our next two casual days. This takes place on August 30, 2024. Bishop Cote has given all schools who participate the day off in order that families can be our cheerleaders at the hotel. Currently, our list of participants includes Miss Cote, Mrs. Andriks, Mrs. Batch, Mrs. Bustamonte, Mrs. Egan, Ms. Ford, Ms. Kornacki, Ms. Lakowsky, Ms. Lawton, Mrs. Pisarz, and Mrs. Williamson.
We also wish to thank all those who took time to celebrate Black History Month in February with a special thank you to Joan Telemaque for her research for our trivia challenge and donating the prizes to those who participated. We also thank those whose planning highlighted Women’s History Month and Music in our School Month during March.
Important Dates:
- March 25-29th Holy Week. School prayer will include Monday morning Lenten prayer, the reading of the Passion by the 8th Grade on Tuesday, and our traditional school seder on Thursday.
- Holy Thursday March 28th School closes at 12:30 p.m. for the Triduum celebrations (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday.)
- Good Friday March 29th NO SCHOOL., Living Stations, Grade 8 in Church at 7:30 p.m.
- Happy Easter! March 31st.
- Easter Monday, April 1st NO SCHOOL
- April 3rd Grade 8 Play at 1 p.m., Home School Meeting—6 p.m..
- April 5th First Friday Mass at 9 a.m., report cards, 12:30 p.m. dismissal.
- April 8th through 12th Spring Vacation. NO SCHOOL.
- April 16 Paid Pizza Day
- April 17-18 D. Sardelli, Poet, visits the school.
- April 18 Spring Concert at school, 6:30 p.m.
- April 19 Grades 6-7 to NESS, Basket Social in the evening, 5 p.m..
- April 22 6-8 Science Fair, First Reconciliation—Grade 2
- April 23 Kindergarten Screening by application and appointment.
- April 24 Dine-In Night at Mr. G’s.
- April 26 Grade 4 Play
- April 28 First Communion Grade 2 10:30 Mass
We continue to keep everyone in our prayers. God’s blessings on you and your families during the Lenten journey toward Easter.
Marianne Cote, Principal