HISTORY/TRADITIONS School Motto The motto of Saint Joseph High School is illustrated on its seal. Love, Hope and Zeal are not only words, they are the true spirit of the students of Saint Joseph High School. School Colors The colors of orange and white stand for the spirit of the students of Saint Joseph High School. They not only brighten but lighten the students' expression of their zeal (orange) for the school and their hope (white) for the future. Each class is represented by a single unifying color-red, yellow, green, or blue. The Jester The  symbol of the Court Jester had its origins in Christ's Passion, one who accepts pain and returns only joy, love and light. The fruit of the Resurrection becomes the promise of eternal joy offered to us by One who paid the ultimate price and invites participation by those who discover the clown in their hearts. Saint Joseph High School's mascot is perfectly suited to the motto of the school. The Jester, a clever, happy, friendly and alive person, can be expected to carry out the theme and life of the school's spirit. This cheerful and amiable character spreads kindness and happiness to others, makes work pleasant and encourages students to participate in the curricular and extra-curricular activities of the school. The Jester, thus, represents the students of Saint Joseph High School. The School Seal The seal of Saint Joseph High School is a shield shaped to represent the strength that comes through knowledge and contains the initials of Saint Joseph, patron of the school. The cross in the background stands for our faith. In the upper left-hand corner, the fleur-de-lis represents the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondelet founded in France in 1650. Alma Mater Saint Joseph our patron, Saint Joseph our aid, May your dear memory never fade. Be our beacon: Be our light, Help us always to do what's right. May our Alma Mater ever stand As a guide for all the land A symbol of love and hope and zeal And a pride that everyone should feel. Saint Joseph our patron, Saint Joseph our aid, May your dear memory never fade. Be our beacon: Be our light, Help us always to do what's right. Orange and white our colors bright and bold Will win for us glories untold So students, raise your hearts to the sky To our Alma Mater-Saint Joseph High. Lorena Cash Sweet, '68 Sister Veronica Brutosky, CSJ School History Cardinal McIntyre asked the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet (CSJ) to found a school for girls in Lakewood.  Saint Joseph High School was founded and established by the CSJs and officially opened on September 14, 1964.  Cardinal McIntyre dedicated SJHS on May 5, 1967.  The pioneer freshman class of 1964 with 103 students began school while construction was still in progress.  An additional class was added each year until the first graduation in 1968. The school has steadily grown, and presently there are 850 students and over 4,200 alumnae.  SJHS continues to be administered and staffed by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, as well as by priests, lay women and men. A short history of the Sisters follows because our connection to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet is integral to who we are as a high school for young women.  From the first CSJ faculty, staff and students to the present the charism of the Sisters has flourished in each of us and in how we educate each of our students--in an Ignatian-Salesian climate in which we strive for "excellence tempered by gentleness, peace and joy" (CSJ Consensus Statement). The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet trace their origin to Le Puy, France where Fr. John Peter Medaille, SJ founded them in 1650, under the patronage of Bishop Henry de Maupas.  The Sisters dedicated their lives to serving the needy, orphans, prisoners, women, sick and the destitute.  The Sisters taught women lace-making enabling them to be self-sustaining members of society.  The community had rapid growth until the French Revolution when convents were suppressed and the sisters were forced to live as lay persons. Five Sisters of St. Joseph were put to death by the French Revolutionaries, and among those imprisoned was Mother St. John Fontbonne, superior at Monistrol.  On July 28, 1794, Mother St. John was to be executed, but was spared when Robespierre’s government fell on July 27th.  Thirteen years later Cardinal Fesch, Archbishop of Lyons requested her to establish a religious community in his diocese.  Through Mother St. John Fontbonne, the congregation maintains continuity with the community founded by Father Medaille and established in Le Puy by Bishop De Maupas. The first Sisters of St. Joseph came from Lyons to America in 1836 in response to a request from Bishop Joseph Rosati for a group of religious to open a school for the deaf in St. Louis.  Carondelet, a village on the outskirts of St. Louis, was destined to become the cradle of the American congregation. In l847, the first foundation outside St. Louis was made in Philadelphia, followed shortly by foundations in St. Paul and Toronto.  A fourth province was added in 1876 in Tucson and moved to Los Angeles in l903.  Additional foundations were established in Hawaii in 1938, in Japan in 1956, and in Peru in 1962.  Sisters of St. Joseph minister all over the world. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, and those who work with them, are called to live the charism of the Sisters—a charism of unity, reconciliation and service to the “dear neighbor without distinction.” Since 1964, Saint Joseph High School has journeyed with the Sisters in this mission.  We invite all new members of our school community to join with us as we continue to strive for unity, reconciliation and service to the dear neighbor in the spirit of love, hope and zeal—our school motto.