Weekly Blog 6/12: Last One!

Dear Wines Families.

Well, here we are at the last weekly message of the year.

End of Year Items
Friday is a half day of school. Dismissal is at 11:39. Students will be sent home with their report cards on Friday.

Please pick up any medication in the office by the end of the day Friday. We will need to dispose of any medication left after then.

Our school will "clap out" the 5th graders starting at approximately 11:30 on Friday.

Thank You!
I want to thank our community for another fantastic year. Thank for supporting your kids and our school all year--and every year. Not only could we not have so many successful and fun events without our community's support, we literally couldn't have our day to day successes without you! It continues to be a joy to be the principal of this school and I know well how lucky I am to be part of this wonderfully supportive community. I wish you all a wonderful summer and while I'm looking forward to a bit of downtime, I also look forward to next fall.

Warmly,

David

Weekly Blog 6/5

Dear Wines Families,

I hope this finds you well as we enter the final few days for the school year. Kids are a bit restless, but hard work is still happening!

Country Fair Thank You!

Our Country Fair was another smashing success last Friday evening. The weather was perfect and the kids had a great time. For those new to the Fair, I’m sure you now know what a large event it is and I can’t thank everyone enough who was able to help out in some way. I want to give special thanks to a few folks who worked countless hours throughout the year to make the event so special.

• Denise Cope who chaired the organizing committee this year.

• Melissa Rilko who organized the Raffle.

• Stacy Guldal organized our volunteers

• Lori Shirilla who put the cakewalk together

• Jaimie Sussman for organizing the food. 

• Sara Meyer as our games coordinator.

• Lisa Hutton and Amy Cannon for help with the classroom baskets

• Jen Hinesman, Tracie Clarke, and Michelle Chien for all the help with the raffle. 

• Laurie McClatchey for the accounting work.

• Our entire PTO executive board—particularly president Kelly Collins—for all the support for the Fair and all our events this year.

I sincerely apologize if I have missed someone who should be on this list.

Saying Goodbye

As we all know, we will be saying goodbye to Mrs. Hospadaruk at the end of next week. In addition, it is with bittersweet emotions that Mrs. Caruso will also be retiring at the end of the year. After 34 years as a teacher (33 of them at Wines), Paula is ready, as she said, some time in warm weather during the cold Michigan winters. We wish both Paula and Beth the best and thank them for their service to children.

Be Sure to Re-Enroll

Every family should have received an email recently from backtoschool@a2schools.org with instructions on re-enrolling for the 2019-20 school year. Thank you to everyone who has done this. It only takes a minute and is required for every student. If you haven't yet, please do so right away. If you need assistance, please contact the office. 

Lost and Found

Our Lost and Found will be emptied one week from today, Wednesday June 12.

You May Have Heard…

As I promised the kids for their efforts for March is Reading Month and their hard work all year, I will be spending an evening on the roof of Wines tomorrow evening. Look for my tent!

Half Day on the Last Day of School

Next Friday, June 14^th is the last day of school. It is a half day which is different from our Early Release days. School ends at 11:39. There is no PM childcare. Students will receive their final report cards that day.

Medication

If your child has medication at school, please pick up your child’s medication by the last day of school. By law, we cannot keep the medication stored over the summer.

Thank you!

David

Weekly Blog 5/22

Dear Wines Families,

As usual at this time of year, there is lots of information below about the Country Fair and Raffle. The event is just over a week away! I want to reiterate that this is our largest (and most fun) event of the year and we literally need everyone to help out to make it great. Volunteer opportunities are plentiful and easy so please help out and please help fill those classroom baskets and other raffle baskets. Ok, here is the news for the week.

Reminder: Early Release Today

Just a reminder that school dismisses at 1:29 today. There is no PM childcare.

Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast this Friday!

Calling all of our volunteers (which, in essence, is every Wines family member!). Please join us as we celebrate you Friday morning at 8:15 in the Library.

Country Fair and Raffle

The Wines Country Fair and Raffle needs your help to make this an awesome end-of-the-year celebration for our students! Please sign up to volunteer at the fair on Friday, May 31, or donate an item for the raffle.

Sign up to volunteer now! *Please note: If you are viewing the sign up on a mobile device there are multiple pages of volunteer slots, please click “More” at the bottom of the list!*

There is a long list of volunteer opportunities so you can find something that will be fun for you. Also, if you have a high school age student that needs volunteer hours or a middle school student who would like to get involved, we would love their help too! These opportunities are a great and fun way to get aunts/uncles or grandparents involved too! Volunteer questions? Email Stacy Guldal.

We need Raffle donations! View the wishlist now.

K-5 Classroom Raffle Basket donations are being accepted through Friday, May 24. Each year the classrooms from each grade create an amazing raffle basket. Below are classroom themes for your donations. Collection baskets are located in each classroom.

• Young Fives and Kindergarten - Arts & Crafts
• 1st Grade - Legos
• 2nd Grade - The Wonderful World of Science
• 3rd Grade - Camping, Swimming & Outdoor Fun
• 4th Grade - Sports & Outdoor Fun (Team regalia is great too!)
• 5th Grade - It’s A High Tech World

Raffle questions? Email Tracie Clarke and Melissa Rilko.

Get your wristbands and tickets at Wines starting Tuesday, May 28.

Purchase wristbands and tickets at the sales table outside the main school doors before and after school. If you purchase them online you can also pick up your order during this same time. Please allow for a 24-hour turnaround for online orders.

Purchase Online (Now – May 29): (Credit Card Only — An online minimum purchase of $10 is requested.)

Country Fair questions? Email Denise Cope.

That’s all for this week!

David

Weekly Blog 5/15

Dear Wines Families,

Dare I say it, spring is here…

Here is the news for the week. As I said last week, this is a busy time of year so the messages are longer, but also very important. I hope you take some time to read through everything. We’ll begin with the Country Fair information for the week.

Country Fair and Raffle Information

ONLINE WRISTBAND, FOOD, AND RAFFLE TICKET SALES ARE OPEN FOR THE WINES COUNTRY FAIR & RAFFLE!

This event takes place on May 31, from 6:00–8:30 p.m. at Wines Elementary (both inside and behind the school) and features:

• Raffle where students can enter to win themed prize baskets, fun events with Wines teachers, and items from the community
• Cake Walk (student entries due by 9:00 a.m. on June 1)
• Carnival-style games and prizes
• Farmer John’s petting zoo with two fun-filled shows
• Photo booth
• Lemonade
• Pizza
• Michigan Creamery Ice Cream
• Cotton Candy
• Illusionist Tyler Scott
• Flush Tank
• And more!

THREE WAYS TO PURCHASE:

• Online (May 8 – May 29): (Credit Card Only — An online minimum purchase of $10 is requested.)

Pick up wristbands and tickets at the sales table outside the main school doors during advance sales

or the night of the Fair. If ordering the week of the Fair, please allow for a 24-hour turnaround.

• In Advance at Wines (May 29 – June 1): (Cash, Check, or Credit Card)

Purchase tickets at the sales table outside the main school doors before and after school.

• At the Fair (June 1): (Cash, Check, or Credit Card)

Purchase tickets onsite at ticket tables outside the school.

Country Fair questions? Email Denise Cope.

THREE WAYS TO GET INVOLVED:

 RAFFLE:

We need donations! View the wishlist now.
K-5 Classroom Raffle Baskets: Each year the classrooms from each grade create an amazing raffle basket. Below are classroom themes for your donations. Collection baskets are located in each classroom. Classroom basket donations are being accepted through Friday, May 24.

• Kindergarten - Arts & Crafts
• 1st Grade - Legos
• 2nd Grade - The Wonderful World of Science
• 3rd Grade - Camping, Swimming & Outdoor Fun
• 4th Grade - Sports & Outdoor Fun (Team regalia is great too!)
• 5th Grade - It’s A High Tech World

Raffle questions? Email Tracie Clarke and Melissa Rilko.

VOLUNTEERS: *Please note: If you are viewing the sign up on a mobile device there are multiple pages of volunteer slots, please click “More” at the bottom of the list!*

Like most events at Wines, we rely heavily on parent volunteers to make this a wonderful celebration for our students. Signing up to help with a game is a great opportunity to volunteer if there are younger siblings that need to be kept close! Please sign up to help! Also, if you have a high school age student that needs volunteer hours or a middle school student who would like to get involved, we would love their help too!

Volunteer questions? Email Stacy Guldal.

CAKE WALK:

Calling All Student Bakers K-5 For The Country Fair Cake Walk! Bake a cake or cupcakes based on the theme "Music". Bring it in on Friday, June 1 by 9 a.m. to be eligible for the cake contest where teachers will judge cakes and award ribbons to the top three best-themed cakes in each grade. Entries will be used as prizes for the Cake Walk that evening and will be on display at the Country Fair! (Please note, we are not able to refrigerate items.)

We also appreciate any donations of cakes and cupcakes from Wines families for Cake Walk prizes.

Cake Walk questions? Email Lori Shirilla.

Now on to other news.

Art Night Tomorrow!

Join us beginning at 6:30 tomorrow evening for Art Night. In addition to great individual student projects, please also check out our newly completed murals around the building. Every Wines student participated in painting the murals and they are outstanding. Please note, the weather is looking nice tomorrow evening—that’s great! Over the past couple years, however, we’ve had great weather and somehow the event turned into an outdoor “recess” for kids and families. We ask that if your family is attending, that you come for the Art and not for outdoor activities. Mr. Wyse and the kids worked very hard!

Save the Date: Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast

Our staff cordially invites all of our volunteers to our annual breakfast on Friday, May 24^th at 8:15 in the Library. Every member of our community volunteers in our school in some way, so please stop by and let us show you our appreciation!

Final PTO Meeting: May 21^st

Our final PTO meeting takes place next Tuesday, May 21^st. The Executive Board meets at 6:00 (all are welcome) and the full meeting begins at 7:00.

Want to Volunteer at Lunch Recess?

Now that the weather has turned, perhaps we may have more interest in helping at lunch recess. We always welcome folks to come out. There are some parents who have set up a sign up sheet. Below is a link. If you sign up, please sign in at the front office and then go to the cafeteria. Gail Epstein, our coordinator, will tell you where to go.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f084cadaa2daafc1-lunch 

As we look ahead to next year, we are always looking for folks who want to be paid to be a supervisor. It’s great for folks with flexible schedules, retirees, etc. If you or someone you know would be a good candidate, please let me know.

David

Weekly Blog 5/8

Dear Wines Families,

As we enter May, the number of events and announcements at our school increase. Today begins our regular announcements about our largest event of the year, the Country Fair and Raffle. This event literally requires everyone to participate in some way in order for it to be a success. So please read the important information included today. Before that message, however, a couple of other reminders.

Art Night May 16

Join us for Art Night to celebrate our Wines student artists! 

Thursday, May 16th from 6:30-8PM.  

Bring a plate of cookies to share.  We will enjoy artwork created throughout the school year and the new PTO sponsored murals.  All students will have artwork in the exhibition.

Last Call on Parent Input for Class Placement

If you would like to provide input to help us in our class placement process, the link will stay live until Friday of this week. Below is the link.

https://forms.gle/JcbFJj4zjCJJp4DE6

Ok, now on to the important information about the Country Fair and Raffle.

GET READY FOR THE WINES COUNTRY FAIR & RAFFLE!

This event takes place on Friday, May 31, from 6:00–8:30 p.m. at Wines Elementary and features the ever-popular Cake Walk, carnival style games and prizes, Farmer John’s petting zoo, rock climbing wall, photo booth, Flush Tank, Illusionist Tyler Scott, and Raffle where students can enter to win themed prize baskets put together from items generously donated by Wines families, fun events with Wines teachers, and items from the community!

Want to help carry on this special tradition? This will be Denise’s last year managing this event so we need a shadow to take over the planning and coordination of the fair. It’s a great way to get involved and meet lots of fellow Wines families.

Country Fair questions? Email Denise Cope.

WE NEED YOU!

Events like this would not be possible without the efforts of devoted Wines parents like you. Please check out the following information on Raffle, Cake Walk, and Volunteers for more on how your family can help!

We’re also looking for two (or more) people to shadow Lisa Hutton and Amy Cannon this year. Lisa and Amy have the fun job of collecting the classroom basket donations and then arranging them into gift baskets for the school raffle. As this is Lisa's and Amy's last year it is a good time to learn what needs to be done by two experts!

WE APPRECIATE YOUR RAFFLE DONATIONS!

• View the Raffle Items wish list.
• K-5 Classroom Raffle Baskets: Each year the classrooms from each grade create an amazing raffle basket. Below are classroom themes for your donations. Collection baskets are located in each classroom. Classroom basket donations are being accepted through Friday, May 24.
• Kindergarten - Arts & Crafts
• 1st Grade - Legos
• 2nd Grade - The Wonderful World of Science
• 3rd Grade - Camping, Swimming & Outdoor Fun
• 4th Grade - Sports & Outdoor Fun (Team regalia is great too!)
• 5th Grade - It’s A High Tech World

Raffle questions? Email Tracie Clarke and Melissa Rilko.

CALLING ALL STUDENT BAKERS K-5 FOR THE COUNTRY FAIR CAKE WALK!

Bake a cake or cupcakes based on the theme "Music". Bring it in on Friday, May 31 by 9 a.m. to be eligible for the cake contest where teachers will judge cakes and award ribbons to the top three best-themed cakes in each grade. Entries will be used as prizes for the Cake Walk that evening and will be on display at the Country Fair! (Please note, we are not able to refrigerate items.) We also appreciate any donations of cakes and cupcakes from Wines families for Cake Walk prizes.

Cake Walk questions? Email Lori Shirilla.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

We rely heavily on parent volunteers to make this a wonderful end-of-the-year celebration for our students. Please sign up to help!

Also if you have a high school age student that needs volunteer hours or a middle school student who would like to get involved, we would love their help too!

Volunteer questions? Email Stacy Guldal.

That’s all for this week!

David