JFK PTO Update – November 19, 2017
Important Dates:
November 22 - Half Day
November 23-24 - Thanksgiving Break
December 5 - JFK PTO Meeting, 6-7:30 pm, JFK Library
December 7 - JFK Mall (Craft and Vendor Fair)
December 4-8 - Scholastic Book Fair at JFK
Make it Count 100% - Fall Fundraiser Update
We are halfway through our Make it Count 100% Fall Fundraiser and, so far, we’ve raised $6493! Thank you to all our JFK Families who have donated and we are very proud and grateful to our JFK community for your support. Over 45 families have made donations and we are now over halfway to our goal!
Here at the PTO we were a little nervous about this new model and we are very pleased to see it in action. The positive feedback from families, teachers and staff is that they so much prefer direct donation fundraising over selling merchandise. Both students and staff can now walk away from the downsides of magazine and cookie dough sales. Now 100% of your donations go directly to our students educational experience, instead of only 40% of magazine sales.
We set the goal of $12,000 because, typically, the magazine drive brought in around $11,000 and the PTO campaign raised about $4000. Now that we have partnered we set what we felt was a realistic goal of $12,000. We are very pleased to see such a high level of participation. People are giving what they can and every donation really does count. Together we can enhance the middle school experience for our students.
It’s not too late! You can donate now online at the link below.
Or, if you prefer to donate by check, you can send a check made out to “JFK PTO” in an envelope labeled JFK PTO with your student to give to their homeroom teacher. If you’d like to donate in cash please mail it to us at JFK PTO, 100 Bridge Rd, Florence, MA 01062. If you need a receipt for your tax records please contact us at jfkmspto@gmail.com.
Scholastic Book Fair
The book fair is right around the corner! It will be held the week of December 4, Monday through Friday, 8:30am to 3pm. Students can purchase books throughout the school day. The Book Fair will be held on the evening of the JFK Mall and Craft Vendor Fair. It’s a great place to do some holiday shopping and a portion of sales benefit the JFK After School program. Look for us on the cafeteria stage from 6pm to 8pm.
It’s not just our students who buy books at the Scholastic Book Fair, you can purchase books for teachers too! Select a title from a teacher’s wish list and your purchase will include a nameplate inside the book. It's a great way for teachers to get even more books into their classrooms.
The Book Fair needs two volunteers per shift to run the cash register. We also need some help with setup and breakdown on Thursday evening for the JFK Mall and Craft Vendor Fair event where the book sale will be open on the cafeteria stage. Working the book fair is a fun way to meet other parents and get a small glimpse into the mysterious and exciting world of middle school.
Please click on this link to sign up for a shift. We truly appreciate your help! Thanks for your support. Hope to see you at JFK Scholastic Book Fair.
NOTE: If you plan to volunteer please remember you need to have a current CORI, you can check the JFK front office or VINS if you need to apply. It last for 3 years, and is needed for any in school or field trip volunteering.
The Vendor/Craft show will be held on Thursday December 7 from 6pm till 8pm. This is a fun event and a great opportunity to get some holiday shopping it. The show has a wide variety of vendors. There will also be a raffle and bake sale (bakers needed, see below). To learn more about the show check out their facebook event page. Click the About tab to see the vendor list. This event is a big fundraiser for the JFK After School program.
Calling ALL Bakers to get your Bake on!
The JFK after School program needs talented and capable bakers to whip up some tasty treats and sweets to sell at the JFK Mall and Craft Vendor Fair on Thursday December 7.
One of the ways the After School program earns a lot of money is at their bake sale at the Mall. They need between 25 and 30 bakers. Festive treats would be great, things like decorated pretzels, fudge, candy, cookies, decorated brownies and cupcakes. Be creative and use your imagination! We also need some adults to run the table at the bake sale. For details about how / when to drop off baked goods or to volunteer at the night of the event please contact Peggy Clapp at pclapp@northampton-k12.us.
Join our next PTO meeting 12/5 (6 to 7:30 pm or less)
We welcome you to attend our next JFK PTO meeting on Tuesday, December 5 from 6-7:30 pm in the JFK Library. We promise never to ask you to volunteer at your first meeting. Just come to listen, meet new people and give your input if you’re so inclined. At the meeting you’ll learn more about upcoming events school events such as 6th & 7th grade dances, hear reports from JFK administration, discuss and vote on teacher grants to benefit our kids’ classroom experience. In general, JFK PTO Meetings are held the first Tuesday evening of every month. Upcoming dates are January 9 and February 6. Come late, leave early, whenever you can swing….we’d just love to see you there.
After School Ski Program -Registration Deadline is December 1st 2017
Northampton Parks & Recreation will once again be running our After School Ski program at Berkshire East for students in 6th, 7th, or 8th grade.. From beginners to experienced skiers or snowboarders, this convenient bus trip departing and arriving at JFK will be a great time! Feel free check out this link for more information or contact Rebecca Learnard at the Parks & Recreation office at rlearnard@northamptonma.gov or call (413) 587-1040. Registration has already started! And this program fills up quick!
Note: Our incredibly talented and articulate newsletter/blog editor, writer and JFK PTO Communications Director, Hillary Gardner, is out of the county this week. Therefore this newsletter was produced by the lesser talented writer editors among us. Please forgive us our poorly placed commas, typos and run on sentences. It’s a labored labor of love.
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Si desea recibir esta información en español, envíenos un mensaje a jfkmspto@gmail.com.
