Agenda for December 7 Meeting

Gorman Fort Banks PTO

Meeting Agenda for December 7, 2011

Click here to download a copy

• Intro 2 minutes
• Agenda items must be submitted in writing to marcie.molinegmail.com at least 5 days prior
• Principal’s Report (Mrs. Pearson) 5 minutes,
• Treasurer Report (Carolyn Gagnon)  2 minutes
• Summary Report of Disbursements and Balance
• Jeffrey Turco, Town Council President
• Volunteer Update (Kelly Parker) 5 minutes
• Library and Book Fair, Dawn Hurley
• Cookie Dough Fundraiser (Shannon Girard)
• In-school Enrichment Activities
• Report on activities in November
• Report on activities scheduled for the future
• Vote: Allocation of 1/10 of fundraiser to playground fund?
• Vote: Allocation of funds for room gifts from PTO
• Teacher/room umbrellas
• Vote: Allocation for safety vests
• O2 monitor for nurse for $100 - $160
• Was it purchased?
• 2 indoor basketball stations requested by Mrs. Finn, $200/each
• Were they purchased?
• Cross-cultural council (Marcie Moline)
• Need volunteers who speak Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic, Russian
• Holiday Lighting Report of our table (Alicyn Thompson)
• Affiliate program reminder
• Box Tops
• Labels for Education
• Recycle Rewards rrewards.com
• Labels4kids.com
• Stop & Shop A+ Rewards
• Open Forum

Now that's a lot of cookie dough!

Once again, the Gorman Fort Banks families have shown their love for cookie dough (or their exemplary salesmanship) in our Cookie Dough Fundraiser. Thanks to you, the PTO will soon have over $11,000 to allocate towards enrichment programs, scholarships and activities for students.

Delivery will take place the week of December 12th. Room parents, please be ready to pitch in that week to help unload the truck and sort when it arrives. A firm date and details will be sent to us by the company soon. Stay tuned.

For those of you who are curious about what was the most popular flavor, it was chocolate chunk. All the others are distributed rather evenly:

PTO Meeting Minutes for October and November

Below are our meeting minutes for October and November 2011. 

October 2011 PTO Meeting Minutes

November 2011 PTO Meeting Minutes

Don't forget! Our next meeting is Wednesday, December 7th at 6:30. Please reply in the comments if you have any meeting agenda items.

Feeding your Family Fit

The PTO wishes all our Fort Banks families a Happy Thanksgiving. As we all relax after Thanksgiving with our tummies full, think about how we should feed our families the rest of the year. Feeding Your Family Fit is a talk hosted by Move Fitness.

Feeding Your Family Fit

Presentation by Jenine Wright,  M.A., Exercise Physiologist, Nutrition Educator Specialist

"Let food be thy medicine, thy medicine shall be thy food"

              ̶ Hippocrates

Changing a few products on your shopping list may be your prevention against illness/disease, neurological disorders and obesity.

		·    Are you providing healthy options for your family? ·    Are you a slave to marketing and purchase a product because it makes you feel that you are providing your family with good nutrition? ·   Are you concerned with health issues, disciplinary issues and diseases that could be affected by the food that you are eating?
	Come find out why products such as "NutriGrain" bars and “Gogurts” may not be providing your family with what you may think.
	Eating habits are learned behaviors, so what you teach your children to eat early in life sticks with them well into adulthood.  With the obesity epidemic in children, high rates of childhood diseases, allergies, disciplinary problems and developmental disorders it is time to educate yourself on what may help to prevent these serious issues.
	With a strong belief that "you are what you eat,"  Jenine will discuss what you should look for when reading labels of your favorite foods.  Learn the difference between buying organic and buying conventional and if there is a way to live a healthier lifestyle without going bankrupt. Tips on healthy snacks and lunch ideas and how to make even the not so good decisions a little better.
Thursday December 15th    at  7pm Refreshments will be served RSVP  617-207-9452  • info@move-fitness.com 1 Michaels Mall

Agenda for Wednesday, November 9th PTO Meeting

Gorman Fort Banks PTO

Meeting Agenda for November 9, 2011

• Intro
• Agenda items must be submitted in writing to marcie.moline@gmail.com at least 5 days prior
• Principal’s Report (Mrs. Pearson)
• Treasurer Report (Carolyn Gagnon)  
• Summary Report of Disbursements and Balance
• Volunteer Update (Kelly Parker)
• Library and Book Fair, Dawn Hurley
• Drop-off, Carolyn Gagnon
• Resource, Dawn Manning
• Absentee hotline, Linda Straccia
• Recess and lunch
• Cookie Dough Fundraiser (Shannon Girard)
• In-school Enrichment Activities
• The Bubble Guy, 3 shows for $1300
• Report on activities in October
• O2 monitor for nurse for $100 - $160
• Vote
• 2 indoor basketball stations requested by Mrs. Finn, $200/each
• Vote
• Tumblebooks renewal
• $399 for 1 year. Available to all to use through the school web site.
• Vote
• PTO needs small plastic bins for classrooms to collect Capri Sun packages.
• Vote
• 5-money for small plastic shoebox size bins for each class to have a capri sun recycle container
• Vote
• Playground is complete! Well...almost. (Dawn Manning)
• Gorman Fort Banks T-shirts Have Been Distributed (Alicyn Thompson)
• Clothes drive results (Dawn Manning)
• Spooky Bingo results (Dawn Manning)
• Affiliate program reminder
• Box Tops
• Labels for Education
• Recycle Rewards rrewards.com
• Labels4kids.com
• Stop & Shop A+ Rewards
• Open Forum

RSVP to the Duffy and Huberman Family Fundraiser

On Saturday, November 5th, 2011 at the Winthrop Yacht Club in Winthrop, MA, the community of Winthrop and their friends will come together to raise funds for the Duffy and Huberman families, victims of the devastating fire on Prospect Avenue during the early hours of Tuesday, October 25th. Tickets are $20 at the door with a Chinese auction for items donated by local merchants and residents. Doors open at 7:30pm and goes until 11pm. Come celebrate with music and friends.

Click here to RSVP to the event on Facebook


Click here to view the press release or go here to see the post.

Fire Fundraiser at WYC, November 5th

(C) 2011 Photo by Mark Moline

Entire Town Comes Together To Help Its Own After Devastating Fire

For Immediate Release

Contact: Marcie Moline
marcie.moline@gmail.com
fortbankspto.blogspot.com
617-620-1980

Winthrop, MA (October 30, 2011) - On Saturday, November 5th, 2011 at the Winthrop Yacht Club in Winthrop, MA, the community of Winthrop and their friends will come together to raise funds for the Duffy and Huberman families, victims of the devastating fire on Prospect Avenue during the early hours of Tuesday, October 25th. Tickets are $20 at the door with a Chinese auction for items donated by local merchants and residents. Doors open at 7:30pm and goes until 11pm.

Details of the fire are still being assembled. Just after midnight on Tuesday, October 25th, Cara Huberman heard a pop outside her window.  Seconds later her window gazed upon the terrifying inferno of her home in flames. Next door, at the same time,  the high school-aged son of the Duffy’s heard and saw the same thing. Miraculously, the Huberman and Duffy families made it out with their lives. Although the Huberman family cat did not escape the quick moving blaze on Prospect Avenue, no one else was injured.

The following day, on Wednesday, the Winthrop Schools PTOs hosted a debate for the candidates running for School Committee. After the debate, the PTO officers found themselves standing in a circle with Winthrop Schools Superintendent John Macero saying, “We should do something. I heard there was a cancellation at the Winthrop Yacht Club and they’re now open November 5th.” Within ten minutes, the small group of PTO board members had a plan on bringing an event together.

Boston Tae Kwon Do Academy sent out an email to its students list and quickly became the drop off point for clothes, gift cards and cash. The same e-mail was forwarded to Winthrop School of Performing Arts students. Facebook pages like the Winthrop Chamber of Commerce began posting information about donating to the funds set up for the families. “It’s truly amazing how this entire town is coming together for us,” said a teary-eyed Cara Huberman.

Donations are being collected at Boston Tae Kwon Do Academy, 7 Michaels Mall, Winthrop, MA and the Gorman Fort Banks PTO at the William P. Gorman Fort Banks Elementary School, 101 Kennedy Drive, Winthrop, MA 02152. Cash and check donations can be sent to:

The Duffy Family Fire Fund The Huberman Family Fire Fund
Winthrop Federal Credit Union East Boston Savings Bank
15 Woodside Avenue 15 Bartlett Road
Winthrop, MA 02152 Winthrop, MA 02152

###


Click here for the link to the print version of the press release.

Thank you all who came out to today's sold out Spooky Bingo. A special thanks goes to all the bakers, raffle donors and raffle buyers for adding a little extra sweet fun to our event. I don't know about you, but my kids were beaming when we left today.

Thank you,
Marcie Moline

Spooky Bingo

News flash! Sunday, October 30th's Spooky Bingo is sold out! If you were one of the unlucky ones to turn in your form and money late, they will be returned to you to let you know that we reached capacity. Our sincerest apologies that we can't accommodate everyone.

School Committee Candidate Debate

Playground!

Gorman Fort Banks Playground Expansion

All participants and town officials have agreed on details outlined in this memo for the expansions of the Gorman Fort Banks Playground, (GFBP). This will be a community build and will rely on professionals and volunteers to complete the project.  The Equipment is slated to arrive this Thursday and will be kept at the DPW until the Build, which will be Saturday October 15, 2011.  The day will begin at 7am and should finish around 5pm.  The equipment will be installed all in one day.  However we need volunteers before and after October 15, 2011 to complete the project.  Attached is a timetable with tasks and recommend number of volunteers.

Timetable

September 29, 2011, equipment delivered to DPW Yard and additional material ordered timbers, re-bar cement.

October 5, 2011 Dig safe will be called to mark excavation area.

October 8^th or 9^th volunteers needed for 1 to 3 hours in the am to prep wood for playground border

October 13, 2011 Playground Closed until 10-18 and temporary tape or fencing around area

October 13, 2011 DPW backhoe will be used to excavated area up to 12” need two additional bodies for policing area for safety, fence at end of day

October 14, 2011 Playground will be marked by company representative (Joe McMahon) in am for mid day start of digging footings- Rent a two man auger from Atlantic- need four person team to dig holes.  Need ply wood to cover holes overnight.  Begin wood border with Steve C and Mike B

October 15, 2011 need twenty volunteers to assembled playground with company representative, day begins at 7am and should end around 5pm.  Need volunteers for build and to run activities for school aged child while parents help with build volunteers participate.  DPW will have a hose, patio bricks, cement mixture and ample cement for build.  Steve Mike and other will continue to assemble boarder with re-bar.  Need a volunteer to take pictures notify paper and maintain volunteer list with contact info. 

October 16, 2011, Finish boarder and back fill playground area with wood chips 8 to10 volunteers, wheel barrels, rakes, weed whackers ect.  Fence Playground until October 18, 2011 to let cement dry and final inspection of play area.12 PM to 3 PM

This is a tentative schedule and is subject to change.  Please sign up with Dawn Manning to participate with this project.

Clothing Drive, October 12 - 17

Clothing Drive
Thursday, October 12th thru
Drop off-Monday, October 17th

Sponsored by the Fort Banks PTO
The U-Haul truck will be open for self service drop off daily from
9a.m. to 7:00 p.m. On Monday the 17th we will accept clothing at
morning drop off only

Recycling of textiles can help reduce our impact on the planet

What we accept:

All wearable clothing items plus paired shoes, pocketbooks, draperies, curtains, sheets, bed
spreads, throws, towels & pillowcases. Everything must be free of wetness, moisture, grease,
mold, solvents or food waste.

Used Toys

We accept Soft, Stuffed Animals--Small Hard Toys--No large bulky toys.

Used Shoes

No Junk, All shoes should be paired--No skates--No heels over 1.5” No winter boots --No
gummies or flip-flops.

Unacceptable Materials

Excluded are rugs, carpets, pillows, electric blankets, industrial uniforms, disposable clothing,
hospital or medical garments & diapers (of any type).

The Fort Banks PTO thanks you for your participation in
this fundraising effort!

Reduce--

Recycle--

Agenda for October 12, 2011 Meeting

The meeting agenda is now available. Click here to view. We will be meeting, Wednesday, October 12th, in the cafeteria at 6:30 PM.

Meeting Minutes for September 14

Click here to see the minutes from our September 14 meeting.

School Committee Candidate Forum October 26

The Winthrop PTOs are jointly hosting a School Committee candidate forum at the William P. Gorman Fort Banks Elementary School. Doors open at 6 and the forum begins at 6:30. The forum will also be carried on WCAT. Please send any questions via FaceBook, directly to Cindy Silva, or come down to the Fort Banks and hear what the candidates have to say. You may also ask your questions by commenting to this post.

Walk to School Day is Wednesday, October 5th

Join the Gorman, Fort Banks School community in celebrating International Walk to School Day, Wednesday, October 5th.

If you’ve ever considered walking to school with your child, now’s the time! Walking to school is a great way to start the day. Walking to school promotes health, improves air quality, and in our community, it may even take less time to walk to school than to drive. Walking your child to school is also a great opportunity to help your child learn and practice safe walking skills.

If you live too far from your child’s school to walk, here’s what you can do: Drive part of the distance, then park and walk the rest!

Here are 3 areas identified as potential sites to park your car and walk the remainder of the distance to school:

·        

Here are 3 areas identified as potential sites to park your car and walk the remainder of the distance to school:

• ·        Parking along Veterans Field on Franklin St. --- 0.40 miles to school
• ·        Public Lot on Crest Ave ---- 0.49 miles to school
• ·        Public parking lot at George St. and Winthrop St. ---0.59 miles

Wouldn’t it be great to walk together? There will be walk leaders at each location by 7:40, and students will start to walk by 7:50, allowing 15 minutes to get to school in time for the 8:05 start time. Parents should plan to accompany their child to the school.

To learn more about upcoming International Walk to School events, please contact Dawn Sullivan at des02152@comcast.net  or visit www.walktoschool.org.