JFK PTO Update – December 7, 2018
Important
Dates:
TODAY!
December 7 - JFKeys at Look Park
December 12 -
JFK Band Concert
December 13 - NPS School Committee
Meeting
December 17 -
PTO Dessert Buffet for Staff (Bakers Needed!)
December 24 -
January 1 - Winter Break
December 31 -
Deadline to vote for JFK PTO
January 2 -
Back to School
January 8 -
JFK PTO Meeting in JFK Library (6-7:30pm)
Our annual
November Make it Count fundraiser, where 100% of every dollar
donated by JFK families and friends directly benefits our JFK students, was a
big success. Last year we raised $12,000 and this year we reached $8,230.
If you have not had a chance to give, it is never too late to donate. Click on
our link to give online or send in a check to school
made out to JFK PTO. Many thanks to all our JFK families! We truly appreciate
your support. Every dollar helps.
Wondering how
the staff and students of JFK benefit from your tax-deductible donation? Here
is a list of some of the amazing projects the JFK PTO has been able to help
fund thanks to your generous contributions: Ancient Greece Interdisciplinary
Arts Program, Zoo on the Go, JFK Day of Service, Video Production Software,
Theater Workshop Visiting Artists, Visual Aids for GOALS Group, JFK Scrabble
Club, Discovering Beowulf Artist Grant, trips to Quebec and NYC… and
more!
Request for
Community Assistance
Friends of
Nancy Fanara Berrian, a single mom of two JFK students, have established a
GoFundMe campaign to help with hospice and expenses, and to help ease the
family's burden at this time. Unfortunately, her health is abruptly declining,
and her friends are stepping in to ask for support. To contribute to her family
and end of life expenses, visit this link: https://www.gofundme.com/6dshq00
Last Call
for the JFK Book Fair Online
A big thank
you as well to all our volunteers for this week’s annual Scholastic Book Fair
and JFK Mall to benefit JFK After School. There is still an online shopping
option: At this link, you can shop a wide selection of
books and other items from home. Proceeds from the book fair allow us to add to
the library and classroom libraries. This link will only be active through today.
Chorus
Today and Band Next Week
The JFKeys
will be leading Holiday Carols at Look Park's first evening of Santa's Train in
the Garden House today, Friday, December 7 at 4pm. Then on Wednesday, December
12, join us in the High School Auditorium for the JFK Band Concert at 6:30pm.
We Need
Desserts for the Annual Open House for Faculty and Staff on Monday, December 17
It’s a great
time to say thank you to the staff and teachers of JFK who make a difference in
our students’ lives. We need lots of desserts (just desserts!) to be served at
the annual open house for around 100 faculty and staff on Monday, December 17.
Just drop your dessert item in the office before lunchtime on Monday 12/17. If
refrigeration is needed, that’s not a problem. But, no desserts with nuts or
peanut butter, thanks!
You can
Shop and Support JFK!
You can
support JFK at Stop and Shop by clicking here. Big Y Express can be found at this
link: https://www.bigy.com/rs/educationexpress. Be sure to share your Boxtops for
Education with
us by having your student drop them off in the JFK office. And be sure to link
to JFK MS PTO through Amazon Smile. We appreciate your support.
Vote for
JFK PTO in Florence Savings Bank Customer Choice Awards by December 31
If you are a
Florence Bank customer, you can vote for the JFK Middle School PTO as your
favorite non-profit organization. Last year Florence Savings Bank donated $880
to JFK PTO, and we are grateful for this community support. Be sure to vote here before December 31st to make your vote
count: https://www.florencebank.com/vote
Engineering
the Future with Project Lead the Way
JFK 7th grade
students in the Technology Exploratory course with Mr. Dembkowski are newly
engaged in STEM education through Project Lead the Way. As part of the
Automation and Robotics unit, students trace the history, development, and
influence of automation and robotics as they learn about mechanical systems,
energy transfer, machine automation, and computer control systems. Students use
the VEX Robotics® platform to design, build, and program real-world objects
such as traffic lights, toll booths, and robotic arms. For more info, read the
JFK News here.
Calendar
Updates for School Council, Health Advisory Council, After School and January’s
Teacher Work Day
The Health
Advisory Council will meet on Wednesday, December 19 at 3:30pm. The School
Council meets the third school day Thursday of each month at 5pm in the JFK
Library. The next School Council meeting is December 20. The next After School
session starts January 15. Registration forms will be sent home after the first
of the year. And don’t forget to mark Friday, January 25 as a teacher work day
(no school). We’ll be sending out information about the teacher appreciation
lunch the PTO will host on this day and how to volunteer.
Our next
PTO Meeting is Tuesday, January 8 (6-7:30pm)
The JFK PTO
meets the first Tuesday of the month from 6-7:30pm in the JFK Library. Join us
to help plan for the new year, including upcoming 6th and 7th grade school
dances, teacher grants, and teacher appreciation events. All are welcome.
COMMUNITY
EVENTS
TONIGHT:
The NHS Improv Troupe Funktionlust at 7pm
On Friday,
December 7 at 7pm, the NHS Improv troupe Funktionlust will perform in
the NHS Black Box Theater. Proceeds from this show will benefit Jewish Family
Services of Western Massachusetts, a HIAS refugee resettlement affiliate
agency. Admission is $5 at the door and contributions to JFS are encouraged.
Doors open at 6:45. Seating is limited. Funktionlust is now in its 14th
year at NHS. The Funks have been entertaining their audiences at Northampton’s
First Night, Smith College, Lathrop Community, Historic Northampton, Click
Workspace, with UMass’ Mission IMPROVable and at NHS! They are spontaneous,
creative and funny. But they take the refugee issue seriously and want to help.
So they are using their humor to make a difference! Funktionlust
supports Jewish Family Services of Western Mass., a HIAS refugee resettlement
affiliate agency. Donations are welcome.
2018
Holiday Toy Exchange on Saturday, December 8 from 10-11am
Northampton
ReUse will be accepting donations of gently used toys, musical instruments,
today Friday, December 7 from 4-8pm at the Smith Vocational HS Cafeteria. This
is a great way to Pay It Forward and help support our neighbors and it's a
useful way for families to spread Holiday Cheer to their children. Please
consider taking some time to collect some items and then bring them over to Smith
Voc. More info on the event is here.
Registration
for 2018 Boys Youth LaCrosse Is Starting
Register
online at http://northamptonlacrosse.com/. For details, click this link to flyer. O en español aquí.
Cooley
Dickinson/Mass General Lecture: Young Adults and Marijuana
Now that
recreational marijuana is legal in Massachusetts, what does this mean for young
adults in our community? James Morrill, MD, a primary care provider from Mass
General's Charlestown Healthcare Center, will lead an informative discussion
about marijuana and its impact on adolescents, Thursday, December 13, from 6 to
7pm in the Dakin Conference Room at Cooley Dickinson Hospital. Dr. Morrill will
use case examples to address key questions about marijuana, including:
•
How serious is it for adolescents and young adults to use cannabis?
•
Cannabis is now legal in Massachusetts: Does this matter?
•
What should parents do?
•
Are there any treatments that can help?
This program,
which is part of the Cooley Dickinson/Mass General lecture series, is free and
open to all. Registration is required; seating is limited. To register, call
888-554-4234 (4CDH) or visit https://www.cooleydickinson.org/events/young-adults-and-marijuana/
Kid’s Fun
and Culture Retreat (December 26-28)
Kidsafrik is
providing a 3-day Cultural Retreat during the holiday school break this
December 26-28, 8:30am-3pm, with the support of Allsport Soccer Arena. Limit: 50 students (Register soon as it fills quickly!). Cost:
$165 (Scholarships are available for school lunch students). More info at: tinyurl.com/KACULSCH
Follow us on
our JFK PTO Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/jfkmspto/
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