Give the Snoqualmie Valley Schools Foundation an “A” for its Small Hands to Big Plans Annual Luncheon March 20 at the TPC Snoqualmie Ridge Clubhouse. The sold-out event was a fun way to get a glimpse of what’s happening in our schools and meet some of the terrific people who work with our children.
The luncheon featured a number of great things going on in the Snoqualmie Valley Schools.
Parents and community supporters enjoyed hearing the Mount Si High School Jazz Band. After listening to these talented young musicians directed by Matt Wenman, it was obvious why the band received the coveted invitation to the Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival.
Fascinating, too, was the foundation’s video, produced by Mount Si High School teacher Joe Dockery. The film showed activities that were funded by past donations such as reading, math, arts and music enrichment programs, and a project that helps non-English-speaking parents connect with the schools and their children’s teachers.
Awards were presented to Educators of the Year, the foundation’s way of honoring the hardworking folks in our district.
Winners were:
Danielle Bernardo, fourth-grade teacher at Cascade View Elementary
Carolyn Phelps, eighth-grade math teacher at Twin Falls Middle School
Nick Kurka, environmental science and horticulture teacher at Mount Si High School
Karen Lewis, transportation technician for the school district.
Kudos to Educator of the Year Committee Chair Cheryl Duncan. She went to the schools, walking into the classrooms and surprising the winners with flowers and balloons. Ray Lapine followed Duncan and caught the happy (and stunned) looks on teacher’s faces when they learned the news.
And if people at the luncheon needed more proof that our schools are on the right track, all they had to do was listen to the high school senior who helped emcee the program. Christina Fischer, a senior at Mount Si, was both poised and personable.
The ultimate goal, of course, was to raise funds to be distributed back into our classrooms. Like all school foundations around the state, the Snoqualmie Valley group will be underwriting enrichment programs.
And raise money this group did. As of March 24, the total had surpassed $96,000.
The Foundation gets an “A” for its work.