The woman was old and ragged and gray and bent

with the chill of the winter’s day.

The street was wet with a recent snow and the

woman’s feet were aged and slow.

She stood at the crossing and waiting long, alone,

uncared for, amid the throng

Of human beings who passed her by nor heeded

the glance of her anxious eye.

Down the street, with laughter and shout, glad in

the freedom of "school let out,"

Came the boys like a flock of sheep, hailing the

snow piled white and deep.

Pat the woman so old and gray hastened the

children on their way.

Nor offering a helping hand to her—so meek, so

timid, afraid to stir

Lest the carriage wheels or the horses’ feet should

crowd her down in the slippery street.

At last came one of the merry troop, the gayest

laddie of all the group;

He paused beside her ands whispered low, "I’ll

help you cross, if you wish to go."

Her aged hand on his strong young arm she

placed, and so, without hurt or harm,

He guided the trembling feet along, proud that his

own were firm and strong.

Then back again to his friends he went, his young

heart happy and well content.

"She’s somebody’s mother, boys, you know, for all

she’s aged and poor and slow,

And I hope some fellow will lend a hand to help my

mother, you understand;

If ever she’s poor and old and gray, when her own

dear boy is far away."

And "somebody’s mother" bowed her head in her

home that night, and the prayer she said

Was, "God be kind to the noble boy, who is

somebody’s son, and pride and joy!"

Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers, near and far, with us and with the Lord.

Pax et Bonum,

Ms. S. Joyce Thaler

During April several students received special recognition from important sponsors and supporters of the schools of the Archdiocese of Baltimore for their hard work and effort.

Richard Urbanski, grade 4, was named as a Commended Scholar by the Knott Foundation. 158 applications from fourth grade students were accepted for review by the Knott Scholarship Fund this year. Twelve grade 4 scholarships were awarded and five additional students were named as Commended Scholars. We will present Richard with a certificate from the Knott Fund at our Awards Assembly in May.

Kelly Stadelman, grade 3, has been selected as the State Champion for the third grade level in the 1999 National Handwriting Contest sponsored by Zahner-Bloser and PaperMate. Approximately 129,000 students competed in this year’s contest nationwide, so being chosen as a State Championship is an honor well earned. Kelly’s handwriting sample will move on to the National Level which will be judged in May. (Kelly is our second State Level Champion in 3 years. Carlyn Bullinger won the award when she was in 1^st grade.)

Michael Madeio, grade 6, represented SJS for the second year in the Archdiocese Spelling Bee for Grades 4-5-6 sponsored by Houghton Mifflin. Michael did an outstanding job in the finals at John Paul Regional School on April 21. He competed against the top spellers from 41 schools across the Archdiocese. After almost 90 minutes of nail-biting, hand-wrenching competition Michael and one other student remained. Michael will always remember that cashmere is costly! Mrs. Owens, Mrs. Zinn, Michael’s mother and grandparents, Mrs. Romanowski, Jimmy Tobin (our runner-up) and I were all very, very proud of the outstanding job done by Michael. He’s #1 is our book!!

The 2^nd grade students of SJS and CCD and a few of our 3^rd grade students made their First Eucharist in April. Some students are celebrating as individuals at parish or family Masses. This milestone in their lives as members of Our Lord’s family is one that is most special. We congratulate the students, their families, and their teachers.

Our annual spring spelling bee took place in late March and April. During the school year, classroom spelling bees, test results, and effort help determine the grade level champs for the school’s finals. Each week’s competition proved that spelling is still important to learning and success. Each competition went down to the wire!

Orders for P.E. uniforms, sweat pants and sweat shirts went home with last month’s newsletter. Orders are due by May 3. If you haven’t placed your order, it must be to Mrs. Panageotou by Monday, May 3. No order for these items will be taken in the fall. Orders will be delivered to the students when school reopens.

Representatives from J.P. McEvoy Co. will be here to assist parents in ordering school uniforms on Wednesday, June 2 from 8:00 am to 3:15 pm in the Supper Room. Students may accompany parents to the Supper Room for fittings, if needed.

McEvoy also carries the walking shorts that students may wear during the warm weather of spring and fall.

Remember that orders to McEvoy may also be mailed directly to the store on Edmondson Avenue or you may visit and order directly. The earlier orders are place the better. All students are expected to be in complete uniforms when school opens.

We received our quarterly report from the United Way of Central Maryland in April. During this reporting period, 8 donors have contributed $1723 to our school endowment fund.

Thanks to the parents and friends of SJS who listed our school as the recipient of their payroll deductions by listing us as a Private Sector Choice.

Mrs. Jane Malone, chairperson, wishes to thank everyone who contributed Giant and Metro receipts for the 1998-99 school year. Collected were $315,088 in Giant receipts and $252,099 in Metro receipts. The following equipment for the school has been ordered: (2) 27" color TV’s, (2) VHS cassette recorders, multiple software items, a plant study package, science balances, classroom wall maps, and various balls.

Special thanks to Margaret Michael and Terry Trzcinski who spent many hours adding the receipts.

Note: Thank you, Mrs. Malone, for doing such a great job with the details of this program!

We are still seeking word processing help for compiling our Middle States Report for Re-Accreditation. If you have a PC with MS Word 95 or97 and are familiar with this program, we need you! The page set-up and format will be pre-set so all you will do is enter information. All work must be done by July 15 so that the entire report, which will be over 100 pages, can go to the printer.

If you can help or would like more information, please call Mrs. Thaler or Mrs. Michaud at school.

NOTE: The faculty is in the final stages of completing the MSA self-study for our 3^rd accreditation. Many, many hours of discussion, investigation, and hard work have gone into this project. Mrs. Michaud, steering committee chairperson, and the members of the steering committee done a fine job bringing all sub-committees together this past year. A huge round of applause to all for the professional job done.

We have been notified that the Visiting Team will come to SJS Nov. 9—12. Plans for that visit will be made over the summer. Specific protocols are given by MSA.

Soon to be Eagle Scout and SJS grad, Al Swiston, has created a web site for our school. The site features information about the school and the monthly newsletter. Al took his project to Mr. Jim Jagielski (father of Jonathon, gr.4 and Tim, gr. 1) whose JaguNet serves as the ISP for the page. Mr. Jagielski has donated the space for the site. Al is currently working with Mr. Cuneo and Miss Kocur along with a few students to ensure that the page is kept current after his work is concluded.

Many thanks to Al for bringing his idea and his talent to this project. And to Mr. Jagielski for contributing the cyberspace to have is on-going.

Misplace your newsletter? Check out the site by connecting with

www.stjoeschool.org

Again this summer, several of our teachers will be offering summer classes here at school. Small group work or individual tutoring will be offered in the areas of reading, math, and study skills. Information sheets for signing up will be sent home later this month. These classes are an excellent way to keep your child working over the summer. Some students may be recommended for these programs.

Remember we are also offering an excellent workbook for math work over the summer. Order forms went home in April.

Research shows that elementary students who spend scheduled time each week during the summer doing some academic reinforcement work do better when school reopens in the fall. We want to help you keep students on the road of progress.

Many area high schools also offer a variety of academic and activity programs during the summer. Call them for schedules and details. Also remember that the Archdiocese is offering a Summer camp for the Arts. Brochures went home earlier. Call us or the Division of Catholic Schools to request another.

Kaleidoscope’s Silent Auction needs volunteers to Friday or Saturday, May 14-15. Perfect job for those who do not want to stand or be outside. 2 and 4 hour shifts are available. Contact Donna at 41-529-2583

…Kristin Hood, gr. 7, for her poem, The Y2K Mess, being published in Brainstorm Magazine.