PTA February Update
This has been a year full of many challenges for all of us. The challenges faced by the Springer PTA are insignificant in comparison to the daily challenges faced by the rest of our community (parents, teachers, staff, and students) in coping with remote or hybrid education, and ensuring that our children continue to receive the best education available. But the Springer PTA has faced challenges nonetheless. As just one example, we have been unable to host many of our normal fundraisers this year, resulting in dramatic budget shortfalls. If there is a silver lining on this, it is that it has been mitigated somewhat by reduced spending demands in view of the various social distancing restrictions and limitations of hybrid and virtual school.
But more importantly, we have also experienced challenges in fulfilling our primary goal of nurturing the Springer community. Without our customary roster of events, and the many fantastic volunteers who help run them, we have had to be creative in trying new community focused things. We have been fortunate to have had great success with some these:
Our first completely virtual auction in April of last year;
Our first Springer Summer Scavenger Hunt that took place throughout last summer, and the continuation of miniature scavenger hunts in various classrooms using the same GooseChase software;
Our first virtual walk-a-thon that incorporated the whole Springer neighborhood;
The many Springer Strong signs that can be seen dotting front yards throughout the neighborhood;
Our first completely virtual book fair in the fall;
Our first Springer Gingerbread House Exhibition, in what we now expect will become a fantastic annual winter Springer tradition;
Our staff appreciation leads, Pamela Davies and Suzan Grisanti, have provided frequent and much appreciated support for our wonderful teachers;
The new Springer Spirit Wear Store;
This newly redesigned Springer PTA website;
and more!
We also hope to have a few more things on the horizon for the springer, so please stay tuned! Building and supporting this wonderful community continues to be our top priority at the Springer PTA. And we are thankful for all of your participation and patience during this most unusual year.
We have also begun looking toward the future, and are pleased to announce that we have found volunteers to fill all of our Board positions for next year. Many thanks to the nominating committee for their hard work in this regard:
Vanessa Hannan
Erica Wiltermuth
Grant Wang
Laura Jammal
Thank you all for your amazing work in helping us assemble an outstanding 2021/2022 Springer PTA Board. The nominees are:
President - Kimmi Tyler
Executive Vice President - Laura Jammal
Secretary - Erica Wiltermuth
Treasurer - Martina Whalen
Financial Secretary - Kelli Cullinane
Parliamentarian - Ria Shah
Historian - Barb Scanlon
VP Membership - Vanessa Hannan
VP Volunteering - Brittany Stevens
VP Community Engagement - Raelene Mcateer
VP Community Events - Apurva Oka & Satheesh Kolathur
VP Fundraising - Brandon Stroy
Auditor - Mark Blackman
We will hold a vote to confirm these nominees during our next association meeting on March 18, 2021. Also at that meeting, we plan to vote to enact revised bylaws. A draft of the proposed update is available for review here:
Please let us know of any comments or questions you may have.
Finally, we want to thank you all again for your hard work, perseverance, and dedication to Springer. The Springer community is what makes this a wonderful place for our kids to learn and grow, and we are eternally grateful for your participation and support.
Cheers!
The Springer PTA
