Our School

At St. Christopher Catholic School, it is our mission to be an inclusive Catholic learning community that inspires every student to achieve their full potential through faith and education. We recognize our call to love and serve from our Master teacher Jesus Christ, and we are committed to creating a Catholic learning community under the protection of Mother Mary.

The Catholic Graduate Expectations are our foundation as we strive for academic excellence and the acknowledgement of those who achieve it. We recognize God as the source of all life and actively work to focus on social issues within our local and global communities.

We celebrate the diversity within our community with a collaborative approach to learning, in cooperation with parents, the Catholic faith community, and other organizations that recognize the value of our mission. Within the context of Catholic teaching and Sacramental living, our school community strives to demonstrate respect and reverence for all life, thus nurturing a safe, Christian environment for the entire school community.

School Year Calendar

Our board's School Year calendar is now available. Parents are encourage to stay informed of upcoming school events, we ask that you subscribe to our school calendar web page to receive the latest updates and emails on upcoming events and activities happening at school.

French Immersion

We are proud to offer students French Immersion in Grades 1 to 8.

Child Care Partner

We are pleased to partner with the YMCA to provide before and after school care at St. Christopher Catholic School. Call our child care partner at 1-289-928-2711 or email StChris@ymcagta.org to learn more about our services.

School Hours

Our school hours are as follows:

9:05 a.m. - School begins
10:30 a.m. - Morning recess
11:50 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. - Lunch
2:15 to 2:30 p.m.- Afternoon recess
3:35 p.m.- Dismissal

School Prayer

Our school prayer is..
God our Father,
keep us safe at St. Christopher Catholic School.
Help us to use our special gifts to grow in knowledge
and to make our school a place where
peace, love, caring and friendship
can be seen and felt in all our words and actions
so that we can be faithful followers of Jesus
and good examples to others.
Amen.

Patron Saint

Our patron saint is St. Christopher is one of the most popular saints of the East and West. There are many legends concerning this saint, many of which are confusing and contradictory. One of the most popular legends holds that St. Christopher was a giant who helped people across a raging stream. It is believed that he carried the Christ Child across this same stream. Hence, his name of Christopher, which means Christ-bearer. He is the patron saint of travellers and is invoked against storms, plagues, etc. He died a martyr during the reign of Decius in the third century. His feast day is July 25.

Our History

St. Christopher Catholic School opened its doors on September 7, 1956, serving the northwest portion of the Oshawa area. The original building had eight rooms. Rooms 3 to 8 were used as classrooms and rooms 1 and 2 were used for Mass and PTA meetings. The principal was the second person in a hundred years of history to be a layperson rather than a religious. The first year of enrolment in September 1956 consisted of 140 students in grades 1 to 6. The second-year enrolment rose to 181 students and six staff members.

The school was blessed on January 18, 1959, by His Eminence James Cardinal McGuigan. The parish's first Mass was celebrated on October 13, 1957, at the school. A church hall was then built, with St. Mary of the People Parish, the first bilingual parish in the diocese, holding its first Mass in the hall on December 8, 1958, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. On May 25, 1958, a number of students from St. Christopher Catholic School celebrated the sacrament of First Communion at the church hall with Father Gignac. On November 29, 1964, the sod was turned for the church and on September 8, 1965, the first Mass was celebrated there.

In 1961, the first addition to the school added six classrooms to the building to the west of the original eight rooms. On November 26, 1970, another addition of six classrooms, a library, a staff room and a gymnasium was officially opened and blessed by Father Gignac, the parish priest.

In 1999, St. Christopher was once again under construction. The office area was enlarged and a beautiful new library was built at the front of the building to accommodate the growing needs of the school.

St. Christopher is a close-knit community with very strong ties to the parish. Many families have had three generations attend the school. Through all of the additions, renovations and fluctuations in student population, the spirit of St. Christopher has remained strong.

St. Christopher Catholic School is a community, a place where everyone is welcomed and accepted. No one is judged. A sign of this sense of community is found in a statue of St. Christopher that was donated by one of our families. The words on the plaque read:

St. Christopher
- patron of our school -
Donated in loving memory of
David Gregory Schneider
By his family
1986-1998

The sense of community students have at school with their friends and classmates is priceless. Students also get that feeling of community through all the sports and extra-curricular activities they do at school.

In September 2008, St. Christopher welcomed the students and families from St. Michael and St. Gregory when those schools were closed after an Accommodation Review process. The three schools quickly became one, bringing together the best traditions and practices from all three schools.

St. Christopher Catholic School was built and blessed and has grown stronger as a community since 1956.

Principals (Past and present)

Principals at St. Christopher Catholic School include:

Frank Levay (1956 to 1958);
Sr. Mary Beatrice (1959 to 1967);
Bill Ward (1968 to 1974);
John Holowaty (1975 to 1978);
Grant Andrews (1979 to 1980);
Brian Vrebosch (1981 to 1985);
Breen O'Connor (1986 to 1988);
Beryl Cameron (1989 to 1991);
Tim O'Connell (1992 to 2000);
Neil Robbescueten (2000 to 2003);
Suzanne Godin-Gallipeau (2003 to 2007);
Julia Pellerin (2007 to 2010);
Patty Orecchio (2010 to 2015); and
Carolyn Bartlett (2015 to 2021)
Valerie Cappuccitti (2022 to 2023)
Jennifer van Hezewyk (2023 to present)

Philosophy

As Catholic educators, we live according to our Father's code and to lead our students, by example, to live the basic truths of the gospel message. This is an awesome, yet inspiring challenge which we share with the parents of our young men and women.

Children learn what they live. Each day we have the opportunity to teach our students:

to love by the way we love;
to be generous by our generosity;
to be passionate by our compassion; and
to be forgiving by the way we forgive.

However, a person cannot give what he or she does not have. Unless we are living the Gospel message, we cannot lead our students to do so.

There are many hallmarks of a Catholic educator, including:

Prayer - The challenges of our vocation, and indeed life in general, are great. To meet them we need to follow Christ's advice that we "ask the father in My name". Each Catholic educator has a duty to expose students to his or her particular style of prayer in order to assist students to recognize the value of prayer in daily life.
Eucharist - Parish, school, and staff liturgies provide opportunities to celebrate our faith. Our example can testify to the Eucharist as a joyful source of strength and community building.
Social Justice - This is the heart of the Christian message, that we "love one another as I have loved you". As our brother's and sister's keepers, we must be concerned about the aged, the poor, the oppressed, and any other marginalized group - both at home and abroad.

Student Agenda

Read the St. Christopher Catholic School's student agenda for information regarding daily routines in our school, dress code, parish information, and more.

Links

Below are links to resources to help you achieve success while at St. Christopher Catholic School.

We welcome your questions, comments and concerns.

Principal: Jennifer van Hezewyk

431 Annapolis Avenue,
Oshawa, Ontario L1J 2Y5
Phone: 905-725-7672
Fax: 905-725-3361

Follow us on Twitter @St_Chris_dcdsb