Dear St. John Bosco Community,
As Catholic Schools Week comes to a close, my heart is filled with gratitude for what was truly a joyful, faith-filled, and memorable week. Catholic Schools Week beautifully showcased the very best of St. John Bosco Catholic School—our faith, our students, our educators, and our incredible community.
This week also reminded us why St. John Bosco is proud to be recognized as a National and Arizona Blue Ribbon School. While this honor celebrates excellence in education, Catholic Schools Week highlighted something even deeper—that our commitment to academic excellence is matched by an equally strong commitment to faith, leadership, and service. At Bosco, excellence is measured not only by achievement, but by how we live the Gospel and serve others each day.
A sincere thank you to our Catholic Schools Week Committee for planning and coordinating such an eventful and meaningful week. Your time, creativity, and dedication were evident in every detail. Miss Brenna McLean was our master organizer, writing and rewriting our expansive CSW schedule. And a special thank you to both Mrs. Amy Day and Miss Brenna McLean for creating such welcoming and festive decorations that brought our campus to life.
I am grateful to Miss VanHouse, Mrs. Czerniski, Mrs. Heffron, and Mr. Tyler for organizing the Dollars for Dreams: Building a Brighter Future in Nigeria collection. Your leadership helped our Student Council Officers and the entire student body live out our call to service while supporting a school in our beloved pastor’s home village.
Thank you to Mr. Macdonald, Mr. Tom, and Mr. Al for the countless hours spent on setup, cleanup, and coordinating facilities requests throughout the week. Your behind-the-scenes work ensured every event ran smoothly. A special thank you to Mr. Caradonna for planning and organizing an outstanding Field Day that brought so much joy, energy, and school spirit to our students. We are also incredibly grateful to our Dads' Club for feeding our students hundreds of hot dogs and all the fixings—your generosity, time, and cheerful service helped make Field Day a huge success and a highlight of the week. And ending our Catholic Schools week this Saturday with a sold-out Trivia Night!
Thank you to our PTO for hosting breakfast and dinner for our teachers and staff this week. Your generosity and hospitality mean more than you know.
I extend my gratitude to Mrs. Pamela Boggs, Dr. Luis Rodriguez, Mr. Phil Arkfeld, and Miss Erin Fish for preparing our students for a beautiful and reverent Catholic Schools Week Mass. Thank you to Mrs. Kristyn Piper for guiding our students in creating truly magnificent artwork and for carefully framing each piece, along with her dedicated volunteer helpers.
A heartfelt thank you to Mrs. Amy Molina and Mrs. Kelly McLean for their efforts in organizing and warmly welcoming new families during our Open House. We are also grateful to Mrs. Jena Gump, Mrs. Kelly Rafford, our Campus Ambassadors, and School Advisory Board members, including President Cindy Casaus and members Dr. Moti Salloum, Scott Clark, and Maryola Fabilena, for giving so many thoughtful and informative tours to prospective families.
Thank you to our talented SJB Choir for sharing the gift of music during our Celebration of Learning Open House, and to all of our wonderful teachers for planning engaging, creative Catholic Schools Week lessons and for challenging our students to produce some of the best Science and STEM projects we have ever seen—further reflecting the academic excellence for which our school is recognized.
A special thank you to our 5th-grade class for sharing a meaningful presentation on the life of St. John Bosco with our students and parents. Their performance was both inspiring and faith-filled. We are grateful to Sr. Merced and Mr. Seth Tyler for their thoughtful direction and guidance in bringing this beautiful play to life.
To our parents, grandparents, and community members, thank you for your continued dedication, partnership, and unwavering support of St. John Bosco’s mission to educate the whole child within the traditions of our Catholic Faith.
My deepest gratitude to Fr. Manasseh, Fr. Emmanuel, Deacon Ed, Sr. Liza, and Sr. Novie for your constant love, guidance, and support of our school
Most importantly, I want to thank our students. Thank you to the Student Council for a fantastic kickoff assembly, to our 8th graders for leading Cans Across Campus, and to all of our students for their generosity and participation in both Cans Across Campus and Dollars for Dreams. Through your actions, you remind us that being a Blue Ribbon School means not only striving for excellence in the classroom, but also leading with compassion, service, and Christ-like love.
Catholic Schools Week was a beautiful reflection of who we are as a Bosco community—a school rooted in faith, recognized for excellence, and committed to forming leaders of service. I am incredibly proud and deeply grateful to walk this journey with each of you.
With heartfelt thanks and blessings,
Jamie Bescak
Principal
St. John Bosco Catholic School
Do everything in Love.
1 Corinthians 16:14
