2006-2007 News Archive

Staff Farewells
On Wednesday, June 13, 2007 we honored Mrs. Rose Smith, Mrs. Rosemary Findlay, Mrs. Lindsay Westby, and Mrs. Milly Skeggs for the work that they have done for the school and blessed them in their future endeavors.

Field Day: 2007
On Monday, June 11, 2007, the Student Council for the 2007-2008 school year conducted a fun Field Day under the leadership of Mrs. Schwoob, Ms. Isla, and Mrs. Miller. The day included fun games and the traditional "Soak the Teachers" water balloon fight. Then, the sprinklers were turned on and even Josie got in the action.

Kindergarten Graduation
On June 8, 2007, our Kindergarten Class graduated in an A/V Room that was packed with people. Congratulations to the Kindergarten Class of 2007. We look forward to seeing you grow spiritually, academically, emotionally, and physically during the coming eight years.

Graduation Dinner Dance
The Graduation Dinner Dance was wonderful, from beginning to end. We extend a special thank you to everybody who worked so hard on the evening. The event had a "Red Carpet" theme, complete with a limousine in front of the Parish Hall, a red carpet entry, movie posters and full size cut-out figures, portraits of famous stars (that is, our very own graduates), and wonderful jaguar paw print Class of 2007 glasses as party favors.

Time Capsule Burial
We filled, blessed, and buried our 50th ANNIVERSARY TIME CAPSULE on June 4, 2007 at morning assembly. It was a wonderful way to bring our anniversary year to a close. We left messages for the SJC School Community of 2016-2017 so they can unearth it and discover what life was like in the "good old days" of 2006-2007.

Sports Booster Club Family BBQ
On June 1, 2007, our Sports Booster Club sponsored an end-of-year Family BBQ and skating/bicycle party. Proceeds from the BBQ benefit our sports programs at SJC.

SJC Talent Show: 2007
On June 1, 2007, some of our students demonstrated their talents by singing, dancing, or playing musical instruments at our talent show.

8th Grade Passes on the Torch of Leadership to 7th Grade!!!
In May, our 8th graders passed on this torch of leadership to our 7th graders, and prayed that they would continue to foster our SPARCCLS throughout the coming year.

Sports Spirit Day and Sports Award Afternoon
The Spirit Day and Sports Award Afternoon on Thursday, May 24 were great successes. We especially want to again thank all of our wonderful SJC Coaches for volunteering so much time and energy to our sports program; and to our Athletic Directors, Mrs. Lisa Wicht and Mr. Kent Squarcia who organized the Sports Awards, just as they organize everything that has to do with our after-school sports program.

SJC Artists Win Accolades at State Art Contest
Earlier this year, St. Joseph of Cupertino school art students were awarded 1st and 2nd place in the 2007 Memorial Art Contest sponsored by the Cupertino Federated Women?s Club. At the state competition 'Apple Line Up' won second place and 'Red Fox' won first place. Congratulations to our SJC artists.

St. Joseph Band Plays Three Gigs at Three Different Venues in One Day
The Band Recital on Wednesday, May 23, was quite impressive. We had the opportunity to hear from our 3rd Grade recorder class, and the beginning, intermediate, and advanced bands

Shamisen Master Baisho Matsumoto Plays 'Mini-Concert' for SJC Students
On Monday, May 21 we were treated to a school assembly, featuring the musical talents of Master Baisho Matsumoto playing the Japanese instrument, the Shamisen.

6th Grade Helps Cleanup Local Creek
On May 18th the 6th grade class visited their adopted creek, the Calabazas, for yearly clean-up. Their day began with some creek studies: Bugs as Barometers and scientific investigations (water temp, percent oxygen, width, depth, stream flow and pH.) Then they broke for a picnic lunch, followed by litter removal in the creek.

St. Joseph's Honors Mary at May Crowning
The May Crowning Prayer Service held on Thursday, May 17 was such a special evening. Many thanks for bringing your children and for joining in the prayerfulness of the evening. We are so proud of our 8th Graders for the many, many ways in which they led us.

Cupertino 500: Custodians' Appreciation Day
We celebrated Custodian' Appreciation Day on Wednesday, May 16 and boy was it exciting! The Student Council not only presented a gift certificate for a third golf cart, they also had a 'mini-race', making us all feel like we were at Daytona.

SJC Track Team Wins over 41 Ribbons at Annual Track Meet
We had a huge contingent of students attending the Track Meet on Friday, May 11 and Saturday, May 12. Students in Grades 4-8 were eligble for the meet. There were nine events. Many thanks to all who supported this event. Forty-one students won one or more ribbons.

Students Run for Leadership Positions
We applaud all who ran for Student Council. The candidates conducted great campaigns and gave fine speeches. We congratulate our 2007-2008 Student Council.

Fourth Grade Delivers a High Power, Electrifying Performance
We extend a huge round of applause to our Fourth Graders for their amazing performance of the science musical, It's Electrifying!

SJC Yearbook Cover Contest Winners Announced
An Eighth grader and a Fourth grader won first and second place, respectively, in the Annual Yearbook Cover Contest. Over 20 students entered the cover contest and their entries can be found in this year's yearbook. Congratulations to the winners and many thanks to those who entered the contest.

Students Make Promises to be Life-Long Learners and Strong Communicators
The SPARCCLS Prayer Service on Friday, May, 4, was another meaningful prayer experience. We reflected on our Confident and Community Oriented promises, and made our Life-Long Learners and Strong Communicators promises. Please pray for us as we strive to live out these promises on a daily basis.

Students and Staff Honor Donors at Annual Mass of Gratitude and Luncheon
The Mass of Gratitude, held on Thursday, May 3, was a beautiful celebration. As these guests left at the end of the luncheon they told Ms. Lyons how happy they were to support such an amazing school. Our promise to them is that we will constantly keep them and their loved ones in our prayers.

Student Council Installs Tetherball Poles
When Nick was one of our school's sports commissioners, he made a campaign promise to purchase and install tetherballs for the school. The tetherballs have been installed.

Layette Item Drive - May Crowning Reach Out Project
If you would like to participate in our Reach-Out Project for the May Crowning, please send in layette items (baby items) which will be blessed at the May Crowning, and then donated to the Juan Diego Society, an organization that stands by young, pregnant women.

S.S. Jaguar Sails the Mediterranean
We all had a great time at AUCTION 2007 as we were CRUISIN' THE MEDITERRANEAN! The event was, of course, a huge success in terms of fun and laughter, plus we were once again extremely successful in financial terms. I want to take this opportunity to extend a special thank you to Chairperson Leslie Bonner and all on her committee.

8th Graders Become Principal and Vice-Principal for a Day
PRINCIPAL and VICE PRINCIPAL FOR THE DAY was lots and lots of fun. This was an Auction Prize, and the 2006 winners were both Eighth Graders. They visited classes, explained that they were looking for children who acted out our SPARCCLS, asked the children what they were learning, served on yard duty, gave out "Angel Cards" to students who were being thoughtful, kind-hearted, and helpful, made P.A. announcements, and presented honors awards. In between they attended a "business lunch" with their colleagues, Mrs. Jio, Mr. Lee, and Ms. Lyons. They led the school with great spirit and enthusiasm, and we all enjoyed their leadership style.

Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Sudent Council Honors the School's Secretaries
Our current Student Council officers planned a very touching and clever tribute to Mrs. Brown, Mrs. McLeod, and Sr. Vivian in honor of SECRETARIES' DAY. Their theme was ?Princesses for a Day.? They created a medieval setting and made these three wonderful ladies feel like true queens. We once again thank our secretaries for all they do for us, and applaud the Student Council for their leadership in planning and leading Secretaries' Appreciation Day.

Noreen Hurley Handwriting Competition
During Christmas vacation Mrs. Smith was saddened to hear of the passing of her mother-in-law's Mom, Noreen Hurley. She had known Mrs. Hurley from the age of 13 and loved to get cards and letters from her; she always admired Mrs. Hurley's beautiful penmanship. So she organized a handwriting competition as a worthy memorial to this loving wife and mother.

St. Joseph of Cupertino School Art Students go to the State Art Competition!
St. Joseph of Cupertino school art students were awarded 1st and 2nd place in the 2007 Memorial Art Contest sponsored by the Cupertino Federated Women's Club. Their art work will go on to the California state level competition in late May.

St. Joseph Students Recognized for Third Quarter Achievements
We honored students for their achievements and service in the third quarter of school. Congratulations to all of the recipients. Keep up the hard work.

SJC Walks In Jesus' Footsteps with Operation Rice Bowl and Hunger Awareness Day
We participated in Catholic Relief Service?s Operation Rice Bowl as part of our Lenten journey. On March 30, World Hunger Awareness Day was a powerful experience for your child. As a school community we gave up snacks and lunches filled with our favorite items.

Ms. Lyons Wins First Ever SPARCCLS Academy Award
The staff and students honored Ms. Lyons on Wednesday, March 28 with Principal Appreciation Day. It was a wonderful day, and Ms. Lyons thanks everybody. The theme of the day was the Academy Awards. Ms. Lyons walked down the red carpet, heard the nominations, was declared the winner, and received the Academy Award (an engraved star, of course).

St. Joseph Singers Represent School at the Diocesan Choral Music Festival
Our St. Joseph Singers represented us at the Diocesan Choral Music Festival at Sacred Heart Church in Saratoga. The singers then provided two important outreach service projects - they sang for the Cupertino Senior Center on Thursday and for the retired sisters in Sr. Dorothy?s community center on Friday, March 16 after school.

Students Exhibit What They Learned at Annual Science Fair
The Annual Science Fair displayed exhibits from our 4th, 6th, and 8th grade science experiments. You would be impressed by how much our students have learned. The experiments were so well conducted and it was obvious that our students learned a lot by following the scientific process.

SJC Academic Decathlon Team Competes in Diocesan-wide Competition
The SJC Academic Decathlon Team competed in the Diocesan-wide competition. They represented our school very proudly and did quite well, earning ribbons in both Math and Religion.

Cultural Views and Foods Shared at International Night
Our Annual International Night was a great evening. We thank all who participated, and extend special thanks to chairperson Luz Arreola for doing a splendid job of organizing such a pleasant community evening.

Teams Honored at First Ever Sports Awards Afternoon
Sports Awards Afternoon (rather than Sports Award Evening) worked out very well. It was so nice to see all of the players up front being recognized as a team. We think the children really enjoyed receiving their special awards in front of the entire school, as well. Please let us know your thoughts on this change.

SPARCCLS Families Make New Promises for the Third Quarter
On Tuesday, Feburary 20, we continued our quarterly SPARCCLS Prayer Service. During this prayer service, we examined our "Academically Prepared" and "Respectful" promises and made new family promises to be "Confident" and "Community-Oriented".

'Lovely' Day Spirit Rally
On Valentine's Day the Student Council held a Spirit Day. 'Lovely' Day, was great fun. The school was awash with red and pink. Everybody got in the spirit, from the youngest Kindergartner to our wonderfully spirited 8th graders to our fun-loving staff.

Students Honored for Second Quarter Achievements and Service
We honored students for their achievements and service in the second quarter of school.

Over 500 People Attend our School's 50th Anniversary Celebration
WOW!!! The school's 50th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION was an absolutely amazing experience. RSVPs kept rolling in until we had over 500 people planning to attend the luncheon, with even more attending the Mass.

St. Joseph of Cupertino School Receives $1,000,000 Gift from the Harriet and Edward Cali Trust Fund
Harriet and Edward Cali were pioneering members of both the town of Cupertino and the parish of St. Joseph of Cupertino. They were instrumental and generous supporters of their community and church. In the 1950s they helped to spearhead a huge building project so that their parish could open an elementary school. In 1956 the doors to this school opened, welcoming the local children. Now, 50 years later, St. Joseph of Cupertino School is thriving and is celebrating its Golden Anniversary.

Open House
Pictures from Open House in case you couldn't make it. Tours available upon request. Call (408) 252-6441 to schedule a tour.

Star Journey
The Christmas Musical was fantastic. The Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Grade took their audience on a "Star Journey", where we saw the story of the birth of the Savior from the perspective of the moon and stars. We discovered that though the Savior was born more than 2,000 years ago, He still can "light our way" today.

Misi?n Guadalupana Family Partnership ? In Santee
During the last several years, under the leadership of Sr. Dorothy, some SJC families have partnered with families form Santa Maria Goretti?s parish in the Santee area of San Jose. This year we have 57 children from Santee.

Christmas Celebration Day at SJC
Santa visited, we had a prayer service, band recital, caroling in Spanish, cheerleader performance, a raffle drawing, and caroling.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Feast Day Celebration
Last Friday our parish celebrated the feast day of Guadalupe and it was a wonderful celebration. The Mass was beautiful. Our 8th graders gave up the first hour or so of their Junior High Dance so they could re-enact the story of Juan Diego and Our Blessed Mother during the Liturgy. Under the direction of Mrs. Rose Smith, they did an absolutely beautiful job. Also, thanks to Mrs. Gabriela Lopez, our students participated in Aztec Dancing, Mexican Princess Dancing, and the Procession of the Americas.

Wishbook Reach Out Project
During December, the school community, will reach out and assist the Bay Area Community by collecting money for the Mercury News Wishbook Project. As you know, part of our community's Advent Journey is reaching out to those who may not be able to experience all of the joy of the season if others did not lend them a helping hand.

Prayer of Gratitude for Mrs. Edem 's Time in Kindergarten
On Thursday, November 30, the Kindergarten Class, Mrs. Schwoob, and the entire school thanked Mrs. Erin Edem for being our long term subsitute teacher.

Thanksgiving Food Drive, Prayer Service, and Feast
Thanks to all who helped with the food drive, prayer service, and feast.

Blast From the Past - Ten Years to be Exact
Last Tuesday we opened the TIME CAPSULE which we buried during our "40th Birthday" Celebration in November, 1996, and it was quite an experience! We started the afternoon off with a very meaningful 50th Anniversary TIME CAPSULE Prayer Service.

Advanced Math Moves to New Tutoring Room
During last week, all of the Advanced Math classes moved from our second tutoring room, to our newly refurbished Advanced Math/Youth Ministry Room. The new room is the result of a cooperative spirit between Mrs. Donna Brock, the school's Advanced Math/Algebra teacher, and Fr. Chady Segovia, the parish's Youth Minister, and the youth ministry leadership team.

Parish Thank You Dinner
St. Joseph of Cupertino Parish Staff honored parish volunteers during this season of gratitude with a "Thank You Dinner" on Friday, November 17. Over 150 volunteers were served drinks and dinner by a grateful parish staff.

Students Honored for First Quarter Achievements
On Friday, November 17, we honored students for their achievements in the first quarter of school.

SPARCCLS Families Make New Promises for the Second Quarter
On Thursday, November 9, we continued our quarterly SPARCCLS Prayer Service. During this prayer service, we examined our "Spiritual" and "Peaceful" promises and made new family promises to be "Academically Prepared" and "Respectful".

Halloween at SJC!!!
We had a wonderful time on Halloween. The Parade and Carnival were great fun.

Haunted A/V Room Returns to SJC
This weekend the A/V Room turned into a "frightening" site (or sight!) as the Class of 2007 ran their own haunted house to benefit their graduation fund

Pajama Day Spirit Rally a Huge Success
The Sleeping Bag Chariot Race was one of many fun events at the rally.

Over 400 People Attend Our Annual Spaghetti Dinner
Many thanks to all who planned and staffed our ANNUAL SPAGHETTI DINNER

The Sally Foster Fundraiser is a Great Way to Support Our School! (of Fish?)
On October 10 as a kickoff to our Sally Foster Fundraiser, our Student Council led our morning assembly audience to an adventure "Under the Sea" to show that even the fish need Sally Foster. We make 50% of all sales.

The Carnival was Fantastic Fun
Carnival Thank You's and Pictures

SJC Introduces our New Teachers
SJC welcomes Ms. Larsen, Mr. Sullivan, Ms. Westby, Sr. Vivian Snow, Ms. Isla, Mrs. Carmona, and Mrs. Wilbanks.

Caring for All Creatures Highlighted at St. Joseph's Blessing of the Animals
No rain fell in Cupertino on Tuesday, October 3, but the assembly of animals in front of St. Joseph of Cupertino School seemed fit for Noah's Ark. Students from kindergarten through eighth grade arrived with pets of all kind for the school's Blessing of the Animals.

Our First SPARCCLS Prayer Service and International Day of Peace Observance
On Thursday, September 21, 2006, the SJC school community attended our first SPARCCLS prayer service for the 2006-2007 school year. This first SPARCCLS prayer service coincided with the United Nation's International Day of Peace, which was a perfect combination as we discussed promises to be spiritual and peaceful.

SJC Parish Dedicates New Statute in Honor of St. Joseph of Cupertino
This past weekend we held a Parish Celebration in honor of our patron saint, St. Joseph of Cupertino. All of our teachers attended the 11:00 a.m. Mass, the dedication of the beautiful new statue of St. Joseph of Cupertino, and the party that followed.

New Students and Staff Welcomed at Opening Prayer Service
On Friday, September 8, we started off the year with an opening prayer service during which we installed our new Student Council, introduced our SPARCCLS focus, welcomed and introduced our new students and staff, and prayed for peace in remembrance of the events of September 11, 2001

Solar Camp???
Solar Camp? You may have heard of a summer camp before, but a solar camp? What about a solar summer camp? Believe it or not, that is what six students experienced this summer. The goal of this class was to learn more about solar energy and the other forms of energy around us.

Physics Fun at SJC
Between July 17 and July 20, 12 students explored the world of physics as the worked with spaghetti bridges, mousetrap cars, and egg drop competition.

Grant Lights Way for Student Research on Solar Energy
Some parents in Cupertino may be wondering if it makes sense to install a solar energy system in their home. To find out, they may just have to ask their kids.

Students Have a Blast at SJC This Summer
You may wonder what happens during the summer at SJC and the answer is easy - Rocket Science. Yes, that is right, this summer nine students from SJC built rockets from common household items as part of Mr. Lee's Model Rocket Summer Camp.