Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update
Wednesday, February 1, 2023
~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Good morning, friends!

Our next PTSA meeting is next Friday, February 10th at 8:45 am in Room 102! These meetings include:

• FREE coffee!
• So many interesting tidbits of information about your kids’ school experience!
• Updates from our principal and students!
• Ways you can get involved and make things better!

Hope you will join us!

Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-Presidents

Volunteer Opportunities

Read-a-thon is returning to SES Feb 21 through March 9 and we need volunteers!

All of our kiddos LOVE this event! Five authors will be visiting or school and sharing the love of reading. We need loads of volunteers to help make this event a success! Jobs include but are not limited to:

• Call + email local businesses to ask for donations of reading prizes, gift cards, book bundles, etc!
• Create donations for the hallways and display case. This year’s theme is about book banning: Read, Rise, Resist
• Volunteer at SES to assist with Read-a-thon events, such as an author visit, dress-up day, etc.
• Help decorate the school with signs and decorations!
• More!

If you’d like to help out, you can fill out this leslielothamer

Fundraisers

The SES Spring Auction is coming back, and we’d love your involvement!

It’s only January, yes, but it’s time to think about the SES Spring gala — our biggest fundraising event of the year! Your collective generosity makes this happen — by contributing time, ideas, or resources; whatever you have access to. The gala is powered by SES PTSA’s all-volunteer Spring Gala Committee on behalf of Sunnyside Environmental School Foundation (SESF). The purpose of this event is to raise funds that support FTE school staffing for next year as well as our school’s required contribution to the Fund for PPS, which promotes funding equity across the district. This year’s gala will take place in early May at a TBD date and location. Super fun theme TBA soon! We are in need of the following:

• A venue for 150 to 200 people and food/beverage
• Donations for silent auction
• Party Board hosts – many!
• Class Creative Art Projects Coordinator
• Planning Committee Members

To learn more about each need, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

Fred Meyer Rewards

​As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update
Wednesday, January 25, 2023

~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Our beloved Sunnyside teachers are getting ready to go into contract negotiations next week. Please take a moment to talk to your kids’ teachers about what issues matter most to them and how you can support them. If there is one thing the Sunnyside community is great at (and there are many!) it’s rallying around a cause and working together to achieve positive change. Sunnyside teachers: we see you, we respect you and we want the very best for you.

Below you will find some good information on ways to get involved in upcoming fundraising efforts. Please know that there is room for every person and every schedule when it comes to getting involved! Can you spare 30 minutes per week to do a project from home? Great, we have something for you! Want to join a committee to get to know fellow SES parents? Awesome! We have that, too! And much more 😉

Hope to see many new and returning faces at our next PTSA meeting: February 10th at 8:45am in Room 102! Join us for coffee and conversation!

PTSA Co-presidents,
Auburn + Heather

Volunteer Opportunities

Read-a-thon is returning to SES Feb 21 through March 9 and we need volunteers!
All of our kiddos LOVE this event! Five authors will be visiting or school and sharing the love of reading. We need loads of volunteers to help make this event a success! Jobs include but are not limited to:

• Call + email local businesses to ask for donations of reading prizes, gift cards, book bundles, etc!
• Create donations for the hallways and display case. This year’s theme is about book banning: Read, Rise, Resist
• Volunteer at SES to assist with Read-a-thon events, such as an author visit, dress-up day, etc.
• Help decorate the school with signs and decorations!
• More!

If you’d like to help out, you can fill out this leslielothamer

Fundraisers

The SES Spring Auction is coming back, and we’d love your involvement!

It’s only January, yes, but it’s time to think about the SES Spring gala — our biggest fundraising event of the year! Your collective generosity makes this happen — by contributing time, ideas, or resources; whatever you have access to. The gala is powered by SES PTSA’s all-volunteer Spring Gala Committee on behalf of Sunnyside Environmental School Foundation (SESF). The purpose of this event is to raise funds that support FTE school staffing for next year as well as our school’s required contribution to the Fund for PPS, which promotes funding equity across the district. This year’s gala will take place in early May at a TBD date and location. Super fun theme TBA soon! We are in need of the following:

• A venue for 150 to 200 people and food/beverage
• Donations for silent auction
• Party Board hosts – many!
• Class Creative Art Projects Coordinator
• Planning Committee Members

To learn more about each need, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

NEW: Interested in learning more about all the volunteer opportunities surrounding the Spring Auction and Gala? Please join us for a MEETING on February 2nd in Room 102 at 8:45 am and see what might be a fit for you! The more the merrier! Need a virtual option? Reach out to Steph Barnhart (Stephbarnhart1) and she will hook you up! Want to be a part of this but can’t make that meeting time? Let us know!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update

Wednesday, January 18, 2023
~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

We had a great SES PTSA meeting last Friday and heard from a few amazing students who shared their appreciation for SES:

“It’s inclusive and cares for every gender.” – Finula, 5th grade

The students also shared some things they would like to improve at our school, including having better, cleaner bathrooms, removing playground graffiti, bringing the chickens back, removing rainwater from the slides, and most importantly:

“To make sure all people have what they need.” – Norah, 5th grade

Next meeting is set for Friday, February 10 at 8:45 am in the SES Maker’s Room!

Gratefully,
PTSA Co-presidents,
Auburn + Heather

Volunteer Opportunities

Read-a-thon is returning to SES Feb 21 through March 9 and we need volunteers!
All of our kiddos LOVE this event! Five authors will be visiting or school and sharing the love of reading. We need loads of volunteers to help make this event a success! Jobs include but are not limited to:

• Call + email local businesses to ask for donations of reading prizes, gift cards, book bundles, etc!
• Create donations for the hallways and display case. This year’s theme is about book banning: Read, Rise, Resist
• Volunteer at SES to assist with Read-a-thon events, such as an author visit, dress-up day, etc.
• Help decorate the school with signs and decorations!
• More!

If you’d like to help out, you can fill out this leslielothamer

Fundraisers

The SES Spring Auction is coming back, and we’d love your involvement!

It’s only January, yes, but it’s time to think about the SES Spring gala — our biggest fundraising event of the year! Your collective generosity makes this happen — by contributing time, ideas, or resources; whatever you have access to. The gala is powered by SES PTSA’s all-volunteer Spring Gala Committee on behalf of Sunnyside Environmental School Foundation (SESF). The purpose of this event is to raise funds that support FTE school staffing for next year as well as our school’s required contribution to the Fund for PPS, which promotes funding equity across the district. This year’s gala will take place in early May at a TBD date and location. Super fun theme TBA soon! We are in need of the following:

• A venue for 150 to 200 people and food/beverage
• Donations for silent auction
• Party Board hosts – many!
• Class Creative Art Projects Coordinator
• Planning Committee Members

To learn more about each need, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and Amazon Smile and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update Wednesday, February 22, 2023
~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Hello Sunnyside!

There are so many wonderful things blooming at Sunnyside right now and this newsletter is your key to all of them! How can you get involved with Read-A-Thon, the Spring Gala & Auction, the Feminist Book Club, and Pi Day? Just read on to unlock all the volunteer magic you could possibly ask for!

And we’ll dig in even deeper at our next PTSA meeting, coming up on Friday, March 17 at 8:45am – join us in person or virtually! These meetings are not just a way to learn more about our wonderful school community but are a great excuse to spend an hour in the company of the coolest parents this side of the Willamette. AND great coffee, an update from Dr. Berg, and highlights from 5th and 8th-grade students? Seriously, don’t miss this (or any!) PTSA meeting!

Gratefully,
Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-Presidents

Special Events + Celebrations

TOMORROW, February 23rd is the DAIRY HILL READ-A-THON FUNDRAISER!
Celebrate reading AND eat ice cream! Dairy Hill will donate Get a scoop, a cake, some pints, a shake – anything! 10% of all gross sales for the ENTIRE day to SES!

Our beloved, annual READ-A-THON has BEGUN!!!! Celebrate your f R E A Dom
Today Carson Eliis visited Sunnyside and spoke to our K-5th students!!! It was so wonderful and exciting. Ask your student about it!
Yesterday the beans & Read-A-Thon packets were handed out. The packet includes 2 tracking bookmarks, directions to register at mybooster.com and all the information you’ll need for a successful Read-A-Thon. You can also save this post to keep track of dates and events, 3 GUEST AUTHORS, throughout this and the next week, when to submit donations and prize information.

Here is what you can do THIS WEEK:

• GO TO THE READ-A-THON webpage to see the FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS and to download a new brochure.
• Go to MYBOOSTER.COM to sign your kid up to help raise money. It is really easy and once you do it will be crazy easy to share their page to help SES!
• Buy books from our guest authors: Carson Ellis, Emily Whitman, Alissa Sallah, & Amber Keyser

Email Leslie with any questions at leslielothamer

SES Pi (π) Day Celebration – Tuesday, MARCH 14
On Tuesday, March 14 at 6:00 p.m. , all are welcome to join us in the Auditorium for student-led Pi activities, a Pi digit memorization contest for kids, special guest speaker Traci Kiyama (math teacher at Catlin Gabel) and, of course – eating PIE! The event is free and open to all, with a focus on our 3-5 community.

LOOKING FOR: a few parents from 3rd and 4th grades to step forward and help students prepare activities, art, or another offering for the event! (5th grade roles already filled.) Pi-ku poems? S(PI)ri-doodle art work? Sky is the limit but our teachers need some parent support. Also, the more pies the merrier! Please sign up!

SIGN UP TO BRING PIE OR VOLUNTEER : bit.ly/SES- PiDay- Volunteers

Volunteer + Donation Opportunities
FEMINIST CLUB and COMIC BOOK DRAWING CLUB Need Parent Leaders!
We have some amazing student-led clubs at Sunnyside, but not always enough adults to make them happen. Currently, the Feminist Club is a group of enthusiastic fifth graders who meet on the playground during lunchtime. They’d love a designated adult volunteer and a space to meet regularly between 11:50 and 12:15 one time each week. The Comic Book Drawing Club would like to meet after school and is also looking for leadership and a meeting space. If there is an adult interested in helping with either club, propose a day and time that works for you! Contact leslielothamerto get connected.

Donations + Volunteers needed for Community Kitchen cleanup project!
Our wonderful partners at Campfire Columbia after-school program is cleaning up, organizing, painting and giving our community kitchen a new life! We are so grateful to them for taking this on as a community service project, and we’re hoping to supply them with everything they need. The team is in need of a few donations, if you are interested in contributing:

– new or gently used paint brushes
– paint (all one color preferably for cabinets)
– rollers, trays, and supplies for painting
– Home Depot gift card
– cabinet and drawer hardware

In addition, if you’d like to help with the project, we are seeking SES volunteers Mondays – Thursdays from 4-5 pm in the SES cafeteria between Feb 21 and March 6! If you’re interested in helping or have questions about how to donate or help, please email Cyric Willard at cwillard.

Fundraisers
The Spring Auction is Coming and WE NEED YOU!

Attend the Spring Gala & Auction Virtual Meeting
Monday, Feb 27 at 4:30pm
Google Meet Link

Only 10 weeks until our most important fundraiser of the year!! If you’ve been curious about this event and wondered how you can help, this meeting is for you! We will be discussing what is currently in the works and what the plan is moving forward. Here are the three main buckets we’ll be covering:

• Event support for May 6th gala at Revolution Hall
• Class creative arts project coordinators
• Silent auction contributions and item procurement

That last bullet point is a biggie: One way every parent can participate in the success of our Spring Gala is by donating to the online silent auction! Reflect on the community connections or resources/talents you could contribute and let us know! Some of the things that are most successful are often unique experiences or one-of-a-kind items. If you are unable to attend the meeting but want to learn more, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************

As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update Wednesday, February 8, 2023


~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Hello Sunnyside,

If you haven’t had a chance to join a PTSA meeting, we have one coming up in two days. Join us virtually or in person, this Friday, February 10 at 8:45 am in Room 102! We have loads of exciting items on the agenda, which you can preview here !

Also, if you have a topic you’d like to bring up to the PTSA, join us and you can always bring up your ideas during the New Business portion of our meeting. This is a great way to bring up concerns, questions, or discussions about things that are important to you! Have an idea for an after school club? Come chat with us! And if you can’t make it, not to worry — y ou will get pertinent updates in the weekly PTSA newsletter ! Hope you will join us!

Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-Presidents

Volunteer Opportunities
Our beloved, annual READ-A-THON begins in less than 2 weeks!
READ-A-THON is super important event for so many reasons:

– supports a love of reading and literacy
– creates opportunities for solidarity and camaraderie in classes and across grade levels
– provides structure where whole community reads together and shares ideas
– exposes our students to different forms of literature
– raises a significant amount of money for our school!

*The money raised through this event pays for place-based learning activities, field studies and other classroom trips! It also funds our sustainability staff (the garden program), our Spring Theater program, music at SES, and a variety of other PTSA funded programs.

READ-A-THON runs from Feb 21- March 9th! The theme this year is ” Celebrate your f R E A Dom “. This is going to be a really fun one with: 5 author visits, 3 dress-ups days, “House Cup,” Locker Library, Got Caught Reading, and more! There will also be prizes for reading, participation and fundraising. Get ready to read!

READ-A-THON – Calendar:

• Feb 15 Online registration for our fundraising platform opens. S ign your kid up to help raise money for our school with our, easy to use, online fundraising platform. The first class in each grade group to get 90% or higher sign-ups will get a prize! More info on how to sign up coming soon .
• Feb 21 READ-A-THON begins. Your student will come home with a packet. The packet has a reading map to keep track of reading and OFFLINE fundraising. This packet is what they will turn in at the end to get credit for reading units. They will also get a bookmark with a reading tracker to help keep track of reading as well. Start collecting pledges. Share your online page to collect funds from friends and family far and wide!
• Feb 22 Carson Ellis visits K-5. Buy a signed copy of Carson’s picture book This Story Is Not About a Kitten which will help raise additional funds for our school.
• Feb 23 Emily Whitman visits 3-8th. Buy a signed copy of Emily’s chapter book, winner of the Oregon Spirit Book Award, The Turning which will help raise additional funds for our school. Also, this is the same day as our Dairy Hill READ-A-THON kickoff fundraiser. Celebrate reading AND eat ice cream! Dairy Hill will donate 10% of all gross sales for the ENTIRE day to SES!
• Feb 24 DRESS UP DAY – Rainbow Day! Dress in as many colors as possible. Be a rainbow!
• Mar 1 Alissa Sallah visits 6-8th. Buy a signed copy of Alissa’s graphic novel Weeaboo which will help raise additional funds for our school.
• Mar 3 DRESS UP DAY – Pajama Day read-in event. Enjoy cozy read-in time during recess.
• Mar 7 Amber J. Keyser visits 6-8th. Buy a signed copy of Amber’s chapter book The Way Back From Broken which will help raise additional funds for our school.
• Mar 9 DRESS UP DAY + FINAL READING DAY – Dress as a Book Character Day
• Mar 13 to 24 TURN IN READING MAP SIGNED BY A PARENT (and any offline donations) to the office.

Thanks so much for your support of our students in their endeavors! Please reach out to Leslie Lothamer at leslielothamer with any questions.

Fundraisers
The SES Spring Auction is coming back, and we’d love your involvement!
Details for our Spring gala are coming together! More information to come at Friday’s PTSA meeting, including our exciting announcement regarding the wonderful venue and date we have locked in. It’s going to be an evening to remember!

So, how can you get involved? Well, the gala is our biggest fundraising event of the year–and it’s put on by SES PTSA’s all-volunteer Spring Gala Committee on behalf of Sunnyside Environmental School Foundation (SESF). The purpose of this event is to raise funds that support FTE school staffing for next year as well as our school’s required contribution to the Fund for PPS, which promotes funding equity across the district. This year’s gala will take place in early May. We are still in need of the following:

• Party Board hosts – many!
• Class Creative Art Projects Coordinator
• Planning Committee Members
• Silent auction donations!

That last bullet point is a biggie: One way every parent can participate in the success of our Spring Gala is by donating to the online silent auction! Reflect on what community connections or resources/talents you might have to contribute and let us know! Some of the things that are most successful are often unique experiences or one-of-a-kind items.

We are looking for things like vacation homes near or far, business vouchers or merchandise, themed gift baskets, local and handmade goods, professional services, and exclusive opportunities. Have an idea you’re not sure about? Ask us and we’ll see how we can make it work! To learn more about each need, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update Wednesday, February 15, 2023
~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Hello Sunnyside,

Wow, what an incredible PTSA meeting, chock full of smart feedback from your amazing kids! This week, Principal Eryn asked the 5th graders what they would buy if they had $2,000 to spend on anything they wanted for the school. Their answers were varied, but specific!

– a better playground
– more swings
– more school supplies (so many dried out highlighters!)
– lots more playground balls!

Thanks to all of the parents who have already contributed toward our school fundraising this year. We couldn’t do it without you! Next month, we’ll meet on March 10. Let us know in advance if you’re interested in speaking or being added to the agenda. Thanks again to the amazing Oblique Coffee Roasters team for keeping us caffeinated!

Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-Presidents

Special Events + Celebrations
SES Pi (π) Day Celebration – Tuesday, March 14
This fun SES tradition has been dormant for a few years, but the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades are bringing it back! On Tuesday, March 14 at 6:00 p.m. , all are welcome to join us in the Auditorium for student-led Pi activities, a Pi digit memorization contest for kids, special guest speaker Traci Kiyama (math teacher at Catlin Gabel) and, of course – eating PIE! The event is free and open to all, with a focus on our 3-5 community.
Questions or ideas? Steph Barnhart at stephbarnhart1.
SIGN UP TO BRING PIE OR VOLUNTEER AT THE EVENT: bit.ly/SES-PiDay- Volunteers

Volunteer + Donation Opportunities
Feminist Club and Comic Book Drawing Clubs Need Parent Leaders!
We have some amazing student-led clubs at Sunnyside, but not always enough adults to make them happen. Currently, the Feminist Club is a group of enthusiastic fifth graders who meet on the playground during lunch time. They’d love a designated adult volunteer and a space to meet regularly between 11:50 and 12:15 one time each week. The Comic Book Drawing Club would like to meet after school and is also looking for leadership and a meeting space. If there is an adult interested in helping with either club, propose a day and time that works for you! Contact leslielothamer to get connected.

Donations + Volunteers needed for Community Kitchen cleanup project!
Our wonderful partners at Campfire Columbia after school program is cleaning up, organizing, painting and giving our community kitchen a new life! We are so grateful to them for taking this on as a community service project, and we’re hoping to supply them with everything they need. The team is in need of a few donations, if you are interested in contributing:

– new or gently used paint brushes
– paint (all one color preferably for cabinets)
– rollers, trays, and supplies for painting
– Home Depot gift card
– cabinet and drawer hardware

In addition, if you’d like to help with the project, we are seeking SES volunteers Mondays – Thursdays from 4-5 pm in the SES cafeteria between Feb 21 and March 6! If you’re interested in helping or have questions about how to donate or help, please email Cyric Willard at cwillard.

Time to get registered for READ-A-THON!
READ-A-THON ru ns from Feb 21- March 9th! STARTING TODAY, you can go to MYBOOSTER.COM to sign your kid up to help raise funds during Read-a-thon. It is really easy! PLEASE sign up and share with at least one person.
The first five classes that get 90% or more registered students will get a treat!

See the graphic below or go here to see how to sign up.

READ-A-THON – Calendar:

• Feb 21 READ-A-THON begins. Your student will come home with a packet. The packet has a reading map to keep track of reading and OFFLINE fundraising. This packet is what they will turn in at the end to get credit for reading units. They will also get a bookmark with a reading tracker to help keep track of reading as well. Start collecting pledges. Share your online page to collect funds from friends and family far and wide!
• Feb 22 Carson Ellis visits K-5. Buy a signed copy of Carson’s picture book This Story Is Not About a Kitten which will help raise additional funds for our school.
• Feb 23 Emily Whitman visits 3-8th. Buy a signed copy of Emily’s chapter book, winner of the Oregon Spirit Book Award, The Turning which will help raise additional funds for our school. Also, this is the same day as our Dairy Hill READ-A-THON kickoff fundraiser. Celebrate reading AND eat ice cream! Dairy Hill will donate 10% of all gross sales for the ENTIRE day to SES!
• Feb 24 DRESS UP DAY – Rainbow Day! Dress in as many colors as possible. Be a rainbow!
• Mar 1 Alissa Sallah visits 6-8th. Buy a signed copy of Alissa’s graphic novel Weeaboo which will help raise additional funds for our school.
• Mar 3 DRESS UP DAY – Pajama Day read-in event. Enjoy cozy read-in time during recess.
• Mar 7 Amber J. Keyser visits 6-8th. Buy a signed copy of Amber’s chapter book The Way Back From Broken which will help raise additional funds for our school.
• Mar 9 DRESS UP DAY + FINAL READING DAY – Dress as a Book Character Day
• Mar 13 to 24 TURN IN READING MAP SIGNED BY A PARENT (and any offline donations) to the office.

Thanks so much for your support of our students in their endeavors! Please reach out to Leslie Lothamer at leslielothamer with any questions.

Fundraisers
The SES Spring Auction is coming back, and we’d love your involvement!
Details for our Spring gala are coming together! More information to come at Friday’s PTSA meeting, including our exciting announcement regarding the wonderful venue and date we have locked in. It’s going to be an evening to remember!

So, how can you get involved? Well, the gala is our biggest fundraising event of the year–and it’s put on by SES PTSA’s all-volunteer Spring Gala Committee on behalf of Sunnyside Environmental School Foundation (SESF). The purpose of this event is to raise funds that support FTE school staffing for next year as well as our school’s required contribution to the Fund for PPS, which promotes funding equity across the district. This year’s gala will take place in early May. We are still in need of the following:

• Party Board hosts – many!
• Class Creative Art Projects Coordinator
• Planning Committee Members
• Silent auction donations!

That last bullet point is a biggie: One way every parent can participate in the success of our Spring Gala is by donating to the online silent auction! Reflect on what community connections or resources/talents you might have to contribute and let us know! Some of the things that are most successful are often unique experiences or one-of-a-kind items.

We are looking for things like vacation homes near or far, business vouchers or merchandise, themed gift baskets, local and handmade goods, professional services, and exclusive opportunities. Have an idea you’re not sure about? Ask us and we’ll see how we can make it work! To learn more about each need, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Hello Sunnyside!
We are excited to be hosting our next PTSA meeting this ​​ Friday, March 17 in Room 102 at SES at 8:45 am! Join us in person or Virtually! We have soooooo much to talk about, including an exciting and much awaited announcement regarding our spring gala! Drumroll please, friends!

Save the Date!

“In Bloom” PTSA Spring Gala + Auction
Saturday, May 6, 2023
5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Revolution Hall’s Show Bar & Patio

EMCEE: Mo Phillips

FEATURING: Live Music by Kris DeeLane & The Hurt

TICKETS: On Sale April 3

Gratefully,
​​Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-President ​s

Special Events + Celebrations
Pi-Day on Tuesday Night was AMAZING!
SES, you really know how to show up for a Pi Day Party! Thanks to everyone who came, brought pie, wrote or recited Pi digits, and played or facilitated math games! Special thanks to our guest speaker Traci Kiyama, our many volunteers, and to Lauretta Jean’s for donating pies. We had about 120+ attendees, consumed 35+ pies, and celebrated the math hype of sooooo many students who got up there to recite numbers, told jokes, MCed, or played music. We hope you expanded your mind, ate a tasty slice, and enjoyed the community gathering.

Coffee with the Principal is back!
So excited to announce these: Coming next month, dedicated time with Principal Eryn, to hear all about the amazing things happening at SES? Yes please!
SAVE THE DATES!
April 21 and May 19, 8:45-9:45am at SES (Room TBD)

Let’s show Sunnyside TEACHERS our support!
In their contract negotiations, PPS t eachers are demanding smaller class sizes and other important changes that will only improve your child’s education.
This is a difficult battle that can use all the parent and student support it can possibly get! TUESDAYS are for wearing blue!!
Questions? Feel free to reach out to 4th-grade teacher Jeremy Thomas – ​ ​ jtinpdx1975.

Fundraisers
Read-a-thon – That’s a wrap (almost)! ​ ​
Thanks to all of the amazing SES families for being such strong supporters of our school community and for making the Read-A-Thon such a success each year! This year has been amazing as usual with so many amazing author visits, the locker library, dress up days, and soooo much reading! Currently our fundraising efforts for this have gone very well! Online, we are at an estimated profit of around $30,000! This is incredible and the credit all goes to the SES community! If you wanted to contribute, but didn’t get a chance, it’s not too late !! You can still collect pledges through March 24th online. Go to MYBOOSTER.COM or collect them by hand and turn them into the office with your Read-a-thon brochure next week! We also still have some copies of our signed guest author books:

• Amber Keyer’s book: The Way Back from Broken (an emotional journey of wilderness survival and healing)
• Emily Whitman’s book: The Turning (a coming-of-age tale about a selkie boy, winner of the Oregon Spirit Book Award)

Next, have your students turn in their reading map with their ​ TOTAL reading units, and physical pledges (cash or checks made out to the SES PTSA). EVERYONE who turns in their reading map and form to their teacher or the office will get a free ice cream card from Dairy Hill!! So, please make sure to turn it in. It helps us give our prizes for top readers and top reading classrooms too! Lost the brochure? No big deal. To get a new form you can go here: https://www.sesptsa.org/ wp-content/uploads/2023/02/ 2023_brochure_v4.pdf or ask in the library for an already printed one.

As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn a ​t auburnmarie3

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update Wednesday, March 8, 2023

~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Hello Sunnyside!

We want to give a huge shout-out to all the SES students reading their hearts out to raise money for Sunnyside right now! And how about these amazing author visits? Read-A-Thon is such a beautiful manifestation of all that makes Sunnyside so special and we are abundantly grateful to our fearless leader, Leslie, and the many parent volunteers who have stepped up to make this fundraiser a huge success!

Gratefully,
Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-Presidents

Special Events + Celebrations

Let’s show Sunnyside TEACHERS our support!
In their contract negotiations, PPS teachers are demanding smaller class sizes and other important changes that will only improve your child’s education.
This is a difficult battle that can use all the parent and student support it can possibly get! TUESDAYS are for wearing blue!!
Questions? Feel free to reach out to 4th-grade teacher Jeremy Thomas – jtinpdx1975.

READ-A-THON – THIS IS THE LAST WEEK of reading and events!

We’ve reached the final week of reading & events for our annual Read-A-Thon! Thursday the 9th is THE FINAL READING DAY! Don’t count any reading units beyond Thursday night, March 9th! Keep collecting pledges both online through mybooster.com and offline, though: You have until March 24th to collect pledges and turn in your forms.

• Collect pledges until March 24th!!! Sign up to do it online (it takes 3 minutes) by going to leslielothamer with any questions.

  SES Pi (π) Day Celebration – NEXT WEEK! Tuesday, MARCH 14

  On Tuesday, March 14 at 6:00 p.m. 3rd, 4th and 5th grade families are invited to join us in the Auditorium for student-led Pi activities, a Pi digit memorization contest for kids, special guest speaker Traci Kiyama (math teacher at Catlin Gabel) and, of course – eating PIE!

  PLEASE DONATE PIE(S) IF YOU CAN! SIGN UP: bit.ly/SES-PiDay-Volunteers

  Coffee with the Principal is back!
  SAVE THE DATES:
  April 21 and May 19, 8:45-9:45am, space TBD

  As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

  Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3
  

Sunnyside PTSA Weekly Update Wednesday, March 2, 2023

~ Find the latest Messenger newsletter from the SES office here. ~

Hello Sunnyside!

Happy full week back school after a fun, but chaotic couple of SNOW DAYS! We have loads of announcements and activities coming your way. Our next PTSA meeting is Friday, March 17 at 8:45am – join us in person or virtually to learn about all that we have going on!

Gratefully,
Auburn + Heather, PTSA Co-Presidents

Special Events + Celebrations

It’s not too late to sign up for Readathon, happening now!!!! Celebrate your f R E A Dom
Readathon is off to a great start! It’s not too late to sign up to collect pledges from family and friends to raise programs for all of our special SES programs! You’ve seen the Read-A-Thon packets that went home with your student. The packet includes 2 tracking bookmarks, directions to register at mybooster.com and all the information you’ll need for a successful Read-A-Thon. If your student didn’t bring one home you can get another one from the library or download one here. Wednesday Carson Eliis visited K-5 right before the big storm hit! She read her book Du Iz Talk? and spoke to the students about the process of making a book and about her own childhood. It was really special. There are only 2 signed copies of her book, Home, left to purchase. If you want to grab one go here before it’s gone.

Here is what you can do THIS WEEK:

• GO TO THE READ-A-THON webpage to see the FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS and to download a new brochure.
• Go to MYBOOSTER.COM to sign your kid up to help raise money. It is really easy and once you do it will be crazy easy to share their page to help SES!
• Buy books from our guest authors: Carson Ellis, Emily Whitman, Alissa Sallah, & Amber Keyser

Here is the Read-a-thon schedule for WEEK 2 with THREE RESCHEDULED EVENTS from last week:

• RESCHEDULED to Mar 2 – Dairy Hill READ-A-THON kickoff fundraiser. Celebrate reading AND eat ice cream! Dairy Hill will donate 10% of all gross sales for the ENTIRE day to SES!
• Mar 3 – DRESS UP DAY – Pajama Day read-in event. Enjoy cozy read-in time during recess.

GO TO THE READ-A-THON webpage to see the FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS and to download a new brochure.

Thanks so much for your support of our students in their endeavors! Please reach out to Leslie Lothamer at leslielothamer with any questions.

SES Pi (π) Day Celebration – Tuesday, MARCH 14

On Tuesday, March 14 at 6:00 p.m. all are welcome to join us in the Auditorium for student-led Pi activities, a Pi digit memorization contest for kids, special guest speaker Traci Kiyama (math teacher at Catlin Gabel) and, of course – eating PIE! The event is free and open to all, with a focus on our 3-5 community.

WE NEED MORE PIES & PIE SERVERS! SIGN UP: bit.ly/SES- PiDay-Volunteers

Volunteer + Donation Opportunities
FEMINIST CLUB and COMIC BOOK DRAWING CLUB Need Parent Leaders!
We have some amazing student-led clubs at Sunnyside, but not always enough adults to make them happen. Currently, the Feminist Club is a group of enthusiastic fifth graders who meet on the playground during lunchtime. They’d love a designated adult volunteer and a space to meet regularly between 11:50 and 12:15 one time each week. The Comic Book Drawing Club would like to meet after school and is also looking for leadership and a meeting space. If there is an adult interested in helping with either club, propose a day and time that works for you! Contact leslielothamerto get connected.

Donations + Volunteers needed for Community Kitchen cleanup project!
Our wonderful partners at Campfire Columbia after-school program is cleaning up, organizing, painting and giving our community kitchen a new life! We are so grateful to them for taking this on as a community service project, and we’re hoping to supply them with everything they need. The team is in need of a few donations, if you are interested in contributing:

– new or gently used paint brushes
– paint (all one color preferably for cabinets)
– rollers, trays, and supplies for painting
– Home Depot gift card
– cabinet and drawer hardware

In addition, if you’d like to help with the project, we are seeking SES volunteers Mondays – Thursdays from 4-5 pm in the SES cafeteria between Feb 21 and March 6! If you’re interested in helping or have questions about how to donate or help, please email Cyric Willard at cwillard.

Fundraisers
Dine out at Laughing Planet on Belmont on March 7!
Yay, our next restaurant fundraiser night is coming up on Tuesday, March 7! Head over to 3320 Belmont Street and eat out for for a great cause! 10% of all sales–including takeout and to-go orders–will go toward Sunnyside PTSA programming!

The Spring Auction is Coming and WE NEED YOU!
Only 10 weeks until our most important fundraiser of the year!! If you’ve been curious about this event and wondered how you can help, this meeting is for you! We will be discussing what is currently in the works and what the plan is moving forward. Here are the three main buckets we’ll be covering:

• Event support for May 6th gala at Revolution Hall
• Class creative arts project coordinators
• Silent auction contributions and item procurement

That last bullet point is a biggie: One way every parent can participate in the success of our Spring Gala is by donating to the online silent auction! Reflect on the community connections or resources/talents you could contribute and let us know! Some of the things that are most successful are often unique experiences or one-of-a-kind items. If you are unable to attend the meeting but want to learn more, sign up for a role, or give us your event ideas, please fill out our Spring Gala Donations Form.

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As always, consider donating to Fred Meyer Rewards and change your beneficiary to Sunnyside Environmental School!

Questions, ideas or submissions for future newsletters? Email Heather at tanky34 or Auburn at auburnmarie3