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Don't Renew Your Magazines Yet!!!
Starting to get renewal reminders? Don't do it! At least not yet!
The Westland PTA's Magazine Drive starts Oct. 20th. If you renew your subscriptions through the Magazine Drive, Westland gets 40% of the purchase price. And the renewal prices are good - usually at or better than what's offered through the individual magazines.
But really, the best part is that at the same time you're doing something you would do anyway, you help the PTA fund activities such as the cultural arts program, academic support projects, and the after-school activities program. We count on the Magazine Drive to raise almost 20% of our total annual budget.
Any questions, please contact Magazine Drive co-chairs Susan Buchanan or Alysa Emden.
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Calendar
9/29 Early Release Day. 12:10pm dismisal.
9/30 No School. Rosh Hashanah.
10/1 PTA Executive Committee Meeting. 7:30am 4701 Drummond Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD 20815.
10/2 8th Grade Parent Coffee. 8:30-9:30am. Cosi, Woodmont Ave., Bethesda, MD 20814.
10/2 Softball vs. Tilden. 3:15pm. Boys at Westland; girls at Tilden. X-County vs. Tilden at Westland.
10/3 7th Grade Zoo Field Trip. 9:15am - 2:30pm.
10/3 Interim Grades mailed home.
10/5 Community Service Day at Homestead Farm.
10/9 No School. Yom Kippur. |
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THANKS TO OUR WILDCAT SPONSORS!
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As always, there's never a slow news week at Westland! This week, and for several weeks past, one of the hot topics has been bus transportation. Under the leadership of Assistant Principal Maniya Desroches, the Westland staff has made enormous strides to get the basic information in hand - which students are supposed to be riding which buses, and when! It's quite a logistical challenge that is best appreciated at 2:40pm every afternoon when hundreds of kids stream out of the school and onto a fleet of identical-looking yellow school buses. A very exciting 10 minutes concludes with a dramatic convoy of buses rolling out of the parking lot! As Principal Danny Vogelman mentioned in his Sunday evening phone message, the need to ensure the safety of bus riders and to avoid overcrowding has necessitated some rethinking of bus policies. It's a work in progress, and we will be hearing more about this issue in upcoming weeks.
In other news, the PTA has some exciting events coming up. The new and improved Magazine Sale starts Oct. 22nd. See sidebar for details! The Election Day Bake Sale will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 4th. Chaired by Gwenn d'Anton, this is a new event for Westland. The PTA will be selling food & drink to citizens patiently waiting in line to vote at the school. Given the high level of interest in the election, we're expecting a great (and hungry!) turnout. It will also be a great opportunity for kids to observe the voting process first hand. So start thinking about those red, white & blue recipes now!
We're still plugging away towards our goal of 100% PTA membership. Please, if you haven't already done so, join the PTA today. Over 900 individuals receive this on-line newsletter. If you are one of those who hasn't yet joined the PTA, please consider doing so.
Many thanks for the great feedback regarding this on-line newsletter. We're working hard to make it, as well as the PTA website, a timely and effective means of communication. We're also working to make it available in Spanish, but must first overcome a few technological hurdles. By way of belated background, it's assembled by me (PTA President Alysa Emden) every Sunday night. Your comments and suggestions are welcome! |
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Pick a Peck (or two) of Produce!
WHO: All Westland families and staff.
WHAT: Please help us fight hunger in Montgomery County by joining us for a fun day of produce-picking (apples, squash, tomatoes) to help stock area food banks! Pumpkins will be available too! WHERE: Homestead Farm, near Poolesville, MD.  WHEN: Sunday, October 5th. (Rain date Sunday Oct. 12th) Please check in at our table near the pond between 10am and 2pm to purchase apple-picking bags. Homestead is offering us a very generous deal: for $10, you can buy a bag that holds 22 pounds of apples. Pick one bag for yourself and at least one more to donate! WHY: Earn SSL hours, do something positive for your community, have fun, meet other Westland families. Please let PTA Community Service Co-Chairs Carrie Hurd or Andrea McCarren know if you can make it! They need to have a rough estimate of the number of people who plan to come. Thanks and we look forward to seeing you for Westland's first, family-oriented community service event of the school year. | |
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Wondering What Your Kids are Really Eating???
 MylunchMoney.com is a new service being offered which allows parents to make prepayments to their child's cafeteria account with a credit/debit card using the Internet. Once your myLunchMoney account is established, you can check balances, view student purchases (i.e., see what your kids are really buying for lunch!), set up recurring payments, and receive low balance e-mail notification. Prepayments will generally be available at the school the next day. |
8th & 7th Grade Parents - Coffee & Conversation!
On Sept. 25th, 6th grade parents had a great time eating and greeting at La Madeleine in Bethesda. Thanks to Ari Antonelli & Pooh Shapiro for organizing, to all for the great turnout, and especially to Principal Danny Vogelman for stopping by to chat!
Next, it's the turn of 8th grade parents. PTA 8th Grade VPs Shelley Yeutter and Lorelei Bodie invite you for coffee and conversation Thursday, October 2nd from 8:30-9:30 at Cosi in Bethesda. The guest of honor will be Assistant Principal and 8th grade administrator, Ben Costa. Please come and share any concerns or interests you have regarding the year ahead. This is a great, informal opportunity to meet with other 8th grade parents and ask Mr. Costa any questions you may have.
Don't worry 7th grade parents, your turn will come! On Wednesday, Oct. 22nd from 7:30 a.m. - 9:30am, you are invited to join 7th grade PTA vice presidents Sally Boulter and Nancy Dana at the Red Dog Cafe, 8301 Grubb Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20910. |
90 people have enrolled in the Giant program! We  certainly appreciate that support, but it's not a very high percentage of the 700+ families at Westland! In this era of increased demand and decreased funding, the Westland community needs to take full advantage of funding sources such as these. Please take a moment and register your cards.
Click here to register for the Giant program. Westland's ID is 00660.
Any questions? Contact PTA program coordinator Pam Gibson. |
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