The RamPage

January 27, 2023

January 28th

Class of 2027 Placement Test

January 30th

Grandparents' Mass & Lunch

January 31st

Teacher Appreciation Day

February 1st

National Signing Day

February 2nd

Parent Appreciation Day

February 3rd

Community Appreciation Day

February 4th

Student Appreciation Day

February 7th

Junior Step Up Mass

Fog Delay Schedule

February 10

Progress Reports

February 13

School Closed

Earlier this week I was quite moved as I witnessed a truly grace-filled moment: We were gathered in the Chapel in early morning and, with poise and grace, Principal Chambers shared with our faculty/staff her decision to accept the Principal position at St. Anthony’s in Fresno. Her news was immediately followed by kind words from John Fanucchi and then a standing ovation (along with many tears!). While Myka’s departure will be a loss for our Garces family, we should be filled with gratitude as we contemplate her many accomplishments and how blessed Garces has been under Myka’s leadership. Speaking more personally, I have thoroughly enjoyed my time working with Myka and deeply appreciate her many gifts and care for our young people. God bless you Myka!

We now embark on a process to select a new principal for the 2023-2024 school year. The position will be posted on Monday, and I should have an advisory group formed to help guide me in the selection process by the end of next week. I am confident that we will be blessed with an outstanding, mission-driven leader who will build upon Myka’s legacy. 

Prom - New Date

The Prom has been moved back to the original date of Saturday, March 25, 2023, and will be held at Garces on the tennis courts.

Spring Fling Week will be the week of April 17th - 21st.

The Kairos Retreat will be the week of March 20th.

Winter Formal Video Recap

Check out the video below from our 2023 Winter Formal. The venue looked amazing and the students had a great time! Thank you to the ASB Class and Mrs. Thompson for another great night for our students.

Winter Rally Video

ASB did it again! They put on another great rally for our students and faculty. Check out the Winter Rally Highlight Video below. Thank you ASB, Mrs. Thompson, and Ms. Witwer for another great day on our campus!

Financial Aid

It’s that time of year again to apply for tuition assistance for the upcoming school year. Registration will begin on February 1st for incoming and returning families who qualify. We understand that financial aid is crucial for so many of our families and is an annual application process. Applications for financial aid and tuition assistance will close on February 28, be sure to update your 2023-2024 application. 

FACTS Grant & Aid Account: https://online.factsmgt.com/aid 

The tuition assistance process also requires the Request for Tuition Assistance Form to be submitted to Eric Coleman and can be found here: https://garces.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Request-for-Tuition-Assistance-23.pdf

There are also options for scholarships through the Bakersfield Catholic Education Foundation you can learn more about and apply for here: https://garces.org/admissions/affordability/

We will be offering a parent information night for tuition assistance to help guide you through the process and answer any questions that you might have; all from the comfort of your own home. This informational night will be held on Wednesday, February 1st at 5:30 pm on Zoom. To register for our Virtual Parent Information night on tuition assistance please use the link below to register or contact the admissions office. https://garces.org/admissions/virtual-parent-night-registration/

In the past few years, we have continued to grow our enrollment by providing meaningful Christ center education, small class sizes, individual support, high-level academics and top-achieving athletics. We are able to do all of this while watching our students grow spiritually as well as growing in all aspects of their young adult lives. We encourage you to reach out to your friends and family to apply for Christ-centered education, top-notch academics and championship-level athletics for the upcoming school year.  

Freshman Placement Test

Saturday, January 28th

Our last placement test date is this Saturday, January 28th. If you have not registered yet, please click on the button below. Our first test date was January 21st and we had 113 Future Rams come to campus and take the exam. After the exam, they went to the gym and met the coaches from our various athletic programs along with information on tuition assistance and our all-school retreats. We are looking forward to welcoming our next group of Future Rams this Saturday, January 28th. After the exam, all of our test takers will be escorted to the gym to meet our coaches and hear more about all we offer at Garces.

Hear Garces senior and ASB Vice President, Lindsay Valdez '23, talk about how her Garces experience has allowed her to really grow in her faith. In addition to being active in ASB, Lindsay is a member of the Girls Tennis Team, the Helping Hands Club, the National Honor Society, and an Honor Roll Student. Registration is now open for the Class of 2027. Please go online at garces.org and begin the application process.

Click on the video below.

BVarsity, the prep sports section of The Bakersfield Californian, has been unveiling their 2022 Fall Sports All-Area Teams this week, and it’s been a big week for Garces Athletics.

The first team revealed was the girls golf team where Hailey Shaw, Malia Giumarra and Bella Burks were named first-team and head coach Armando Robles was named co-coach of the year for the third consecutive season.

Also honored on second team were Ashlee Kresha and Abbigail Rogers while Kaylynn Killion was named third team and Ivana Escobar named honorable mention.

On Wednesday, the continuing dominance of the Garces Memorial water polo programs continued with Peter Gonzalez and Abby Schechter named players of the year and coaches Spencer Kerwin and Greg Enloe both name co-coaches of the year on the boys and girls side.

In total, 17 Rams were named All-Area in water polo. Levi McKay, Johnny Mendiburu and Johnny Starr named boys first team while Christian Giumarra named second team. Aydaan Carballo and Isaiah Chrisco named third team and Josh Braun named honorable mention.

On the girls side, Gianna Garcia, Evie McCarthy, Katie McCarthy and Sara Santa Cruz were named first team. Stella Holland and Marie Zaninovich named second team. Cindy King named third team and Olivia Galanski named honorable mention for the 2022 Central Section Division II champions.

The girls tennis team went undefeated against Central Section opponents and captured a second consecutive section D-I title in November, and the number of All-Area honorees is evident.

On Thursday, Kesley Abraham was named All-Area girls tennis player of the year for the second consecutive season while Kylee Limpias and Jocie Sala were named doubles team of the year after Abraham won her first section singles title and Limpias and Sala won their third consecutive doubles section title.

Also on first team are Taylor Crider and Gemma Eddy while head coach Marc Gomez named co-coach of the year now in his first two seasons at Garces.

On second team are Gigi Antongiovanni, Jade Jamieson, Maddie Tobias and Olivia Tobias. Brooke Barnes, Julia Maristany, Lindsay Valdez and Olivia Antongiovanni all named honorable mention as an unprecedented 13 members of the Garces Memorial girls tennis team named All-Area.

The cross country team was revealed this morning and the volleyball team will be announced Saturday and will conclude Sunday with the football All-Area team, which likely will be well represented by our Garces football team that advanced to the D-I playoffs once again.



Stay up-to-date on all things Garces Athletics, including All-Area teams, by following on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @GarcesAthletics. 

Sports Update

Provided by Trevor Horn, Sports Information Director

Winter sports for Garces Memorial are now in the second half of River League action and things are heating up with the postseason beginning today for wrestling and in two weeks for soccer and basketball.

Also on Wednesday during lunch in the gym, we will celebrate three senior student-athletes signing National Letters of Intent to play college athletics with Gianna Garcia signing to play women’s water polo at Cal Lutheran, Quentin Lueck signing to play men’s soccer at Merchant Marines Academy and Davis May heading off to the Sacramento State football program.

Boys Basketball 

The River League has turned into one of the toughest in the Central Section this season, and despite a 1-4 record in league, the Rams are right in the mix. The Rams played Stockdale close throughout on Tuesday before a tough loss on the road last night at Liberty. The Rams will attempt to break a four-game losing streak on Tuesday at home against Frontier.

Girls Basketball 

The Rams are in sole possession of second place in league despite a 72-36 loss at home against Liberty last night. The Rams (7-14, 3-2) have only lost to Liberty in league and have won four of the last six games overall heading to a big week next week with a non-league game at Foothill on Monday and at Frontier on Tuesday before hosting BCHS on Thursday.

Boys Soccer 

Late game heroics on Thursday keeps the Rams in the hunt for another league title as Abram Villanueva assisted Jack Bordenave in the final moments at Liberty in a 2-1 victory. The Rmas are 7-2-1 over and 3-1 in league with the lone loss coming to league leader Stockdale (14-4-4, 4-0-1) at home on Tuesday. The varsity soccer teams will host San Joaquin Memorial tomorrow with the boys playing at 2:30 p.m.

Girls Soccer 

Thursday night was close to becoming one of the biggest games in recent memory for Garces girls soccer as the Rams were at Central Section No. 1 ranked and undefeated Liberty. Scoreless for 79 minutes, the Patriots scored in the final minute in a 1-0 loss for the Rams, who will be back at Sam Tobias Field tomorrow at 1 p.m. against SJM before hosting Frontier on Tuesday.

Wrestling

We celebrated our five Garces Memorial seniors on Wednesday night in a dual against Wasco that ended in a 42-42 tie that went the Tigers way in a tie-breaking criteria on an action-packed evening.

The Rams will now begin the postseason starting at 11 a.m. today in the River League championships at Frontier. Senior Kaydence Boyd, ranked in the top 5 in her weight class, will lead the way. The Rams will advance to the Central Section Division IV championships.

Sponsorships make a tremendous difference in the success of the Garces Gala. Thank you to the following businesses and individuals who have already made their commitment to support the event.

In Our Prayers

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.

May they rest in peace. Amen.

Barbara (Eagleson) Nickell '68

Sister of Lynn (Eagleson) Ward '61, Brooke (Eagleson) Trybul '66, the late Beverly (Eagleson) Champlin '71, Mary (Eagleson) Lewis '75, and John Eagleson '80.

Marjorie S. Holt '63

Grandmother of Garces faculty member Mrs. Caitlyn McKee