Hello Wildwood Families, #ValleyGivingTuesday is Here!

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On or before Tuesday, November 27, please give to the Wildwood children and to the people that welcome them in school. Make out a check to the PGO and send it back to school in the BROWN ENVELOPE.

Or, click here to donate online!

The Giving Tuesday/Brown envelope fundraiser is the biggest single funder of the PGO budget. Just last year, it made $8,000, which was 40 percent of all revenue raised! By consolidating a series of smaller fundraisers into this one event, the PGO is making it more convenient for families to support us at a key, high profile time of the year.

As you know, the PGO achieve its aims of equity, enrichment, and curriculum-related support to Wildwood through a series of events and projects that bring education, joy, and a supportive community to the children. We hold Welcome Back breakfasts for staff, Coffees for parents, and maintain a strong Class Parent network to link parents with classroom teachers. We publish a School Directory and a Yearbook, and hold clothing swaps. And finally, we send our children on field trips, fund events at the Library, hold Movie Nights, and provide mini-grants for teachers.
None of these goals can be achieved without monetary support from parents. Click here to donate online.

Please give generously. Your donation can be used for:

$5 a child’s field trip
$25 extra supplies for a classroom
$50 books for the library
$100 toward a visiting artist
$200 for a teacher mini-grant
THANK YOU!

Happy Thanksgiving

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Just a reminder that there is no school Wednesday, Nov. 21- Friday, Nov. 23 in recognition of Thanksgiving.  The newsletter is going to take a break next week.

On behalf of the Wildwood PGO, the team would like to wish all readers a happy Thanksgiving, and safe travels if you are hitting the road, rails, or skies!

ARPS Warm Winter Coat and Clothing Share

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Help everyone stay warm this winter! The Amherst schoolparent & guardian organizations (PGOs) are collecting winter coats & other warm outerwear for students (preK through 12th grade) & families.

We are seeking donations of clean, gently-used winter outerwear:

in ALL sizes (especially student sizes)

* coats * snow pants * snow boots * hats

* jackets * gloves/mittens *scarves * snowsuits

 

CROCKER FARM ELEMENTARY 280 West Street, 413-362-1600

Collection: Now until November 26th in the lobby & at the preschool entrance

Distribution: November 27th & 28th (school hours), November 29th (morning)

FORT RIVER ELEMENTARY 70 South East Street, 413-362-1200

Collection: Now until November 30th in the lobby

Distribution: December 3rd, 4th, & 5th (school hours)

WILDWOOD ELEMENTARY 71 Strong Street, 413-362-1400

Collection: Now until December 17th in the lobby

Distribution: Now through December 20th (school hours)

 

AMHERST REGIONAL MIDDLE SCHOOL (ARMS)170 Chestnut Street, 413-362-1800

AMHERST REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL (ARHS) 21 Mattoon Street, 413-362-1700

Collection: Now through November 30th in the school lobbies

Distribution: Through the ARPS Family Center (170 Chestnut Street),

November 28th into December (on school days, as supplies last)

JONES LIBRARY 43 Amity Street
Collection: Now through November 28th in the Kids’ Room

MANY THANKS for your donations. THANK YOU too to the community partners who are helping with this effort, including the Jones Library, Evaluation Systems Group of Pearson, & the Amherst Education Foundation.

Any winter clothing that is not given out at the schools will be donated to the Amherst Survival Center.

If you have any questions, please contact:

Crocker Farm PGO: Tracy Zafian, tmz23@zafian.com

Fort River PGO: Rebecca Kennedy, rebecca.fortriver@gmail.com

Wildwood PGO: Julie HawkOwl, jhawkowl@comcast.net

ARMS PGO: Rie Traub, armspgo@gmail.commartinezm2@arps.org

ARHS PGO: Becky Demling, beckydemling@yahoo.com

ARPS Family Center: Mildred Martínez 413-362-1871

New Class for 4-5yr olds at Miss Leticia Music School

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Miss Leticia Music School
has started a new Ukulele/Movement and Music class for 4-5 year olds!  Bring your Wee One on Saturdays 10am-10:45am. $120 per month tuition.
Ukuleles to lend but it’s a good idea to have your own!  (The Toy Box in Amherst sells some lovely instruments in colors you can choose!)
Email: leticiadavies@comcast.net to reserve a spot!
Call: 413-246-7338
Come Strum and Sing with us!
Miss Leticia
Leticia Davies
Miss Leticia Music School & Music Summer Camp

Private individual and group instruction in Ukulele, Guitar, Voice, a Capella, Bass, Drums and Rock Band

Hot Chocolate Run for Safe Passage

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Sunday, December 2, 2018

9:00 walk           9:30 5K Fun Run           10:15 5K Road Race

Every day, Safe Passage helps families take steps to achieve safety, justice and a brighter future. Some steps are easy and some are really hard. Every step is important.

We’re asking YOU to honor these families’ path by stepping up and fundraising to support Safe Passage’s critical programs.

Register to run or walk in the Hot Chocolate Run, and then ask your friends and family members to sponsor your participation. The more money you help us raise, the more people we can help–it’s that simple. YOU can make brighter futures possible for more families. Join us!

https://hotchocolaterun.greatfeats.com/

No School November 12th

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Just a reminder that there is no school on Monday, November 12th  in observation of Veteran’s Day.  Please see below information about  Veteran’s Day programs at The Jones Library on November 10th and on the North Common in Amherst on November 11th.

Veterans Day Program: Remains of a War: Exploring WWI Battlefields

Amherst, MA – The Jones Library marks the 100th anniversary of Veterans Day with a special program presented by Libby and Ed Klekowski on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at 2:30 pm as they share their experiences in exploring some of the battlefields from World War I.

This Veterans Day marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. Originally called Armistice Day, this November holiday was created to mark the signing of the agreement that ended World War I at 11:00 A.M., November 11, 1918. It became a federal holiday in 1938 and was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.

Libby and Ed Klekowski have been researching World War I for over ten years and have spent many hours walking through the battlefields of Verdun, the Meuse Argonne, and St Mihiel. Their work has resulted in three books and they have produced two WWI documentaries for public television. This special lecture will take the audience for a walk “on the wild side”, where the dross of war still litters the woods.

Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Free and open to the public.  For more information about this event, please contact Janet Ryan at 413/259-3223.

Veterans Day Ceremony in Amherst on Sunday

Veterans Day 2018_News

The 100th Anniversary Of The WWI Armistice. Commemorate Veterans Day with a flag presentation with veterans from Amherst Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion posts. Steven J. Connor, the Director of Central Hampshire Veterans’ Services, will provide an update on veteran programs and events in Amherst and the Pioneer Valley. This event is free and the public is encouraged to attend. 

Date: Sunday November 11, 2018

Time: 11:00 AM

Location: North Common in front of Town Hall at the flag poles

Details: The ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. on the North Common in front of Town Hall. Speeches will be held inside a location TBA (likely Bangs or VFW), in the case of inclement weather.

Contact: 413-259-3001

Attention UMass Employees

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umassDo you work at UMass? Do you want an easy way to make a contribution to the ARHS PGO and help our schools?

The annual UMass-Amherst Community Campaign (UMACC) is now underway. The UMACC program lets UMass employees donate to charitable organizations via paycheck, as little as $1 per pay period.

The Amherst Regional Public Schools PGO (ARPS PGO), is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization consisting of the PGOs for Crocker Farm, Wildwood, the Amherst Middle School, & the Amherst High School. The APRS PGO’s UMACC number is 15250.

UMass employees can signup with their UMass NetID at http://www.umass.edu/umacc/login

Please consider signing up today & giving to the ARPS PGO. Every donation to the PGOs makes a big difference in helping our schools.
The UMACC program makes it very easy to give. Here are the top 10 reasons for giving through UMACC: https://www.umass.edu/umacc/why-give

Thank you for your support.

Support the ARPS PGO Through AmazonSmile

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amazon-smileDoing any online shopping through Amazon during the holidays? Did you know you can earn money for the ARPS PGO with each Amazon purchase. Enroll in this passive fundraising to earn money for the Amherst/Amherst Regional School PGOs while you shop!

AMAZON SMILE
Shop for everyone on your gift list this holiday at smile.amazon.com/ch/46-4510327 and Amazon donates to Amherst Regional Public Schools Parent Guardian Organization.

To select our as your permanent charity, go to https://smile.amazon.com/ Click Your Account -> Your Amazon Smile -> Change Charity button. Search for “Amherst Amherst Regional Public Schools Parent Guardian Organization” -> Click Select.

Try Hockey for Free

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Try Hockey for Free Day is Saturday, Nov. 10, from 2-4 p.m. at the UMass Mullins Center Community Rink. For all children ages 4+. No skating experience required; free skate rentals available. All skaters must have winter gloves and bicycle or hockey helmets. Save time at the door by registering in advance:https://tryhockeyforfree.com/9340. New hockey helmets will be available for purchase. A used gear sale will also be held. More information atwww.amhersthockey.org.

Film & Discussion series at the Jones Library

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Film & Discussion Series:

Eyes on the Prize:  Power!

AMHERST, MA – Join us on Tuesday, November 13, 2018 at 7:00 pm in the Woodbury Room for the next event in this ongoing film and discussion series that may educate, touch your heart, and inspire you to action to help dismantle racism.

This month’s screening delves back into history with an episode of “Eyes on the Prize”, the award-winning documentary, with the episode entitled “Power! (1966-1968)”.   A discussion follows.

Free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Janet Ryan at 413/259-3223.

This film series is co-sponsored by the Jones Library and Coming Together.  More information about Coming Together can be found athttp://www.coming-together.org/.

Please vote in the Florence Bank grant program for the ARPS PGO

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Each year, Florence Bank gives away $100,000 to community non-profits through its Community Choice grants program. Florence Bank customers vote for the non-profit of their choice & all non-profits getting at least 50 votes receive a grant.  The non-profits receiving the most votes get up to $5,000(!) through this program.

In 2017, the ARPS PGO received  almost 100 votes & $1,413. Yay!  The grant money went towards classroom support, special projects, field trips & more.

This year, the PGOs of the ARPS PGO (Crocker Farm, Wildwood, Amherst Middle School, & Amherst High School) are campaigning jointly again to maximize our votes.

** Each Florence Bank account holder is eligible to vote once for the community organization of their choice. **
** The ARPS PGO is urging people to vote (at least please consider voting for) for the “Amherst Regional Public Schools PGO”, the name of our joint non-profit. **

There are 2 easy ways that people can vote:
(1) Online – Visit https://www.florencebank.com/vote to view the online voting site & can cast a vote online for the “Amherst Regional Public Schools PGO”.
(2) Paper Ballot. Ballot for printing attached. Ballots are also available at any Florence Bank location.  Ballots should be submitted at the bank or turned into your PGO.

Voting is open until December 31st.
Thank you for your support!

School Garden Harvest Update: Get your Harvest Soup on November 1st!

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Hi, all!

The school garden harvests are complete! This week, students harvested 206 pounds of produce that we donated to ARPS Food Services this afternoon. Crops included potatoes, winter squash, turnips, beets, carrots, radish, Swiss chard, scallions, chives, and sage. The produce will be featured in a soup next Thursday, Nov. 1st on the school lunch menu. (No small feat! Thank you, Sasha, for helping this happen!)

None of this would be possible without garden educator Leila’s awesome and tireless garden work. We also benefitted greatly from the help of our fantastic UMass Stockbridge interns, Merav and Jordan, who co-led some of our harvest experiences.

And, all ten new garden beds are in place now, too. Sarah Berquist and her Ag Leadership students (UMass Stockbridge) were essential collaborators in getting those built in a timely manner (Sarah’s cool time lapse from the WW build is attached at the end of this message). Many hands make light work!

Thank you all for your support and enthusiasm as we continue to build this program, connect kids with the Earth, and establish new partnerships in our community.

Jennifer Reese, Elementary Science and School Garden Coordinator

Veterans Day Program: Remains of a War: Exploring WWI Battlefields

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Amherst, MA – The Jones Library marks the 100th anniversary of Veterans Day with a special program presented by Libby and Ed Klekowski on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at 2:30 pm as they share their experiences in exploring some of the battlefields from World War I.

This Veterans Day marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. Originally called Armistice Day, this November holiday was created to mark the signing of the agreement that ended World War I at 11:00 A.M., November 11, 1918. It became a federal holiday in 1938 and was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.

Libby and Ed Klekowski have been researching World War I for over ten years and have spent many hours walking through the battlefields of Verdun, the Meuse Argonne, and St Mihiel. Their work has resulted in three books and they have produced two WWI documentaries for public television. This special lecture will take the audience for a walk “on the wild side”, where the dross of war still litters the woods.

Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Free and open to the public.  For more information about this event, please contact Janet Ryan at 413/259-3223.

AEF Trivia Bee! October 25th

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aefbeeOn October 25, 2018, enjoy a fun evening that includes costumes, raffle prizes, refreshments, an audience trivia game, and prizes.

DOORS OPEN AT 5:30 PM

Admission is FREE but we encourage donations benefiting Amherst Education Foundation and our public schools.

THE YOUTH ROUND!
It’s back! We will have a youth-only Trivia Round before the main competition. Teams of players 14 years of age and younger will answer age-appropriate questions. Starts at 6 pm.

SPONSORSHIPS
We are looking for businesses to sponsor our teams. Many businesses send their own teams, but we can also match your business with a team. Youth and Adult team sponsorships are $300, sponsoring a round is $600 and Event Underwriter is $1200.

TEAMS
If you’d like to play and don’t have a sponsor, we can help you out. We can match your team to a sponsor and we can even build a team for you to compete with. Our teams have a lot of fun! Contact Ken and Meg below.

WHO SHOULD COME?
Everyone! Even if you’re not competing, it’s a lot of fun to come and watch and you can participate in the fun audience round! The Youth Round is a great way to start off the night! We hope to see you there!

Ken LeBlond, kenleblond7@gmail.com
Meg Rosa, megrosa78@gmail.com
Trivia Bee Co-Chairs

Feed the Spirit

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Feed-the-Spirit-webpage

Join us on Friday, October 26, 2018, for Feed the Spirit, an evening of community, delicious food, and entertainment to benefit the Amherst Survival Center.

The event will be held at the newly renovated Old Chapel on the UMass campus featuring globally-inspired food catered by award-winning UMass Dining. We’ll enjoy the music of jazz pianist Paul Arslanian during cocktail hour and the free-flowing fusion of jazz, world music, and spoken word by World Rhythm Ensemble following dinner.

Tony Vacca, Derrik Jordan and Jo Sallins, as World Rhythms Ensemble, blend the powerful sound of giant West-African balafons with the dreamy lyricism of electric violin and the funky magic of electric bass for a unique performance.

We are so excited to share this special evening with our supporters to benefit the Center’s important programs.

Baystate Textiles Recycling Program at all ARPS Schools

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Now you can drop your clothing and other textiles in any condition into collection bins located at each school. Convenient and easy! The collections are weighed weekly and each school’s PGO will receive a check based on the bulk weight. Help the Wildwood PGO earn FREE CASH while also helping our planet Earth by up-cycling your textiles. Thanks!

 

View Flyer

Warm Winter Coat & Clothing share at Amherst Public Schools

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To help everyone stay warm this winter, the Amherst School PGOs are collecting winter clothing for distribution to school and community families. We are seeking donations of clean, gently used winter clothing for students (pre-k through 12th grade) & families.

* coats * snow pants * snow boots * hats * mittens * gloves * scarves * snowsuits

For Wildwood Elementary:

Collection:  During school hours, Now thru Nov 17 in the lobby.

Distribution:   Nov 20th and December 20th (School days only).

More Information

ARPS PGO will hold its Fall Public Meeting – 10/24/2018

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The ARPS PGO will hold its Fall Public Meeting on October 24th from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. at The Works.  Following is the Agenda:
Introductions
Individual School Updates
Election of President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Officer

Taxes and State Filings (including new rep payee)

Group Fundraisers

  • UMACC (United Way)

  • Giving Tuesday

  • Florence Bank

  • Amazon Smile

Other Business not anticipated by the chair

Adjourn

Wildwood Student Directory Update

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The PGO volunteer Directory Team continues to work tirelessly on the much anticipated Wildwood Student Directory!
In recent years this 100% volunteer team has been able to bring the directory to us in record time, and this year the team hopes to have it to us by October 12 – earlier than ever!
If you are interested in helping with the directory next year, please contact the PGO at wildwoodelementarypgo@gmail.com
And remember – you’re already a PGO member just by having a kid at Wildwood!