Westland PTA - Wildcat Wire

Not to start on a negative note, but I know many of you have moved on to different schools and no longer need to be kept up-to-date about Westland - all you have to do is click on the "Safe Unsubscribe" button at the bottom of this newsletter and it shall be done.

As for the rest of you, the first week of school was terrific! It's fun to be back and it is especially great to watch the new 6th & 7th graders settling in. Locker combinations clutched tightly, lots of asking for directions...but all with a smile.

The PTA's been hard at work as well. For those of you who've sent in your membership check or joined on-line, thank you! You'll receive an acknowledgement soon if you haven't already. As you will read below, the school store is gearing up, as is the After School @ Westland program. And we are continuing to gather ads and update student information for the Student Directory, and signing folks up for our community partnerships with Giant and Safeway...the list goes on and on!

But here's the rub. Technology makes it easy for one or two people to do the work of a committee. Or at least make it look that way. But the truth is that one or two people cannot run the PTA - there aren't enough hours in the day. Trust me on that one.

And that's not what the PTA should be in any event. We are a community of parents and teachers, working together to offer our children the best education possible. Being part of a community does not mean assuming that someone else will take care of everything; it means jumping in and contributing however you can.

As always, please contact me or Exec. Vice President Pattie Koh Friedman if you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or especially offers of help!

- Alysa Emden

PTA President

Open Water Swimmer Highlights United Nations Effort

On Wednesday, Sept. 1, Westland's 8th graders heard first hand from an open water swimmer who swam from continent to continent in an effort to raise awareness of the United Nations' Millenium Development Goals. Marcos Diaz of the Dominican Republic showed a video of his incredible undertaking and spoke with each of the 8th grade English classes. Click here to watch the video and find out more about this project. Many thanks to Westland parent Sarah Farnsworth (Ian Shepel 6th grade) for bringing Marcos to Westland!

School Store Getting Ready to Open!

One of the highlights of lunch at Westland is the opportunity to shop at the PTA-run School Store! With shelves stocked with goodies ranging from what's hot to what's required in math, there's guaranteed to be something for everyone. The store is open from 10:45am-1:00pm Monday, Wednesday & Friday for part of all three lunch periods.

We need volunteers to staff the store. If you want to find out what REALLY goes on at lunch, this is your chance! Please contact store manager Tiffany Leeson to select your time slot.

6th Graders Head Outdoors

Every year, 6th grade students at each Montgomery County middle school or elementary school spend three days/two nights at one of three outdoor education centers. Westland students will head to the great outdoors the week of October 4-8. For more information about the program, click here. Better yet, come to the meeting at Westland's Media Center on Tuesday, 9/7 at 6:30pm and get all your questions answered in person!

Join the PTA On-Line!

We are so excited to announce our new venture with http://www.pay4schoolstuffonline.com. Just click on this website and you can join the PTA, make a donation, enroll in our Giant and Safeway community partnerships, sign up for After School @ Westland...how cool is that???

Support Our Community Partnerships!

The PTA relies on the support of its community partners to help underwrite our many programs. But it takes two to make a partnership successful! Westland partners with the following organizations:

Giant A+ - Westland earned almost $4,000 from this program last year. HOWEVER, you have to re-register your card every year!!!! Click here to register your card! It takes two seconds. And remember, you can split your points among up to 3 schools, so it's not all or nothing.Westland's code is 00660.
Safeway E-scrip - Just click here! Designate Westland MS, Group # 6586159.
Wordex Corporation - Go green and save green with this great ink cartridge refill program. Just take your empty cartridges to Wordex (4808 Auburn Ave.). You'll get a refilled cartridge at a cost that's less than half of buying new and Westland will get $3 for every refilled cartridge!
Target "Take Charge of Education" - Register your red card today and earn money for Westland. Just click here!
Snider's Supermarket and Chevy Chase Supermarket - Westland earns 1% of everything you spend! All you have to do is SAVE YOUR RECEIPTS. Then, send them into school in an envelope marked "PTA - Grocery Receipts."