eScrip - It's Like Free Money!

No matter how honorable the cause, most parents don't enjoy fundraising. With three kids at three schools and in a multitude of activities, our friends and neighbors have been extremely generous over the years - whether it be purchasing car wash tickets, wrapping paper, or girl scout cookies. It's also the reason I never say "No" to a young person when ask to make a purchase.

Can't someone make fundraising easier? Someone did.

It was said, "nothing in life is free," but that was before Schnuck's eScrip program. Schnuck's will donate a percentage of your purchase to your designated organization(s) when you present your eScrip card at the register. How amazing is that - FREE money for school PTOs and student organizations using the eScrip program.

The best thing is it costs nothing to participate. Just pick up an eScrip card at the Customer Service desk at any Schnuck's, activate your card (on-line or by phone) by designating your preferred organization (you can designate up to three organizations on one card, and handing it to the check-out clerk when you make a purchase at Schnuck's. Free and easy.

It's so easy anyone who shops at Schnuck's can participate. So when you pick-up a card for yourself, don't forget grandma, aunts, uncles, neighbors, alumni - everyone can support our PTOs and student groups.

In fact, three of the U. City public schools were recently recognized for being in the Top Five eScrip money earners of the 75 organizations registered in the U. City area.

Flynn Park, Jackson Park, and UCHS were three of the
top five eScrip earners in U. City.

Start making money for a good cause today. Pick-up an eScrip card and remember to use it every time you shop.

A Jolly Good Time

Whether you call it JamBearee or Jamboree, the annual end-of-year Jackson Park carnival is a 25-year plus school tradition.

My daughter at JamBearee, circ. 2004
(yes, that is a real baby camel)

JamBearee has evolved over the years. What used to take place on the blacktop behind the school, now takes place on the front lawn and circle drive.

And thanks to current management (that would be PTO president extraordinaire, Joycelyn Barnes), it practically looks like a professional production.

This year, even rain couldn't delay the start of the carnival. After all, that is what umbrellas are for.

Then the sun came out and dancing ensued.

 

There was face painting and fire trucks, hamburgers and bounce houses.

 

 

 

 

Tons of fun with friends, and the prizes were pretty awesome too.

 

 

 

It may be her last year as an official Jackson Park student, but I have a feeling my daughter will be back to carry on the tradition next year.

 

My daughter's last JamBearee, circ. 2013
(My, how she has grown)

 

Shakespeare in the Gym

Shakespeare in the Park opens May 24 and runs through June 16, 2013. This year the festival is performing 12th Night, one of Shakespeare's most famous plays.

Thanks to the Shakespeare Festival and Jackson Park PTO, the students at JP didn't have to wait until opening night. The PTO brought 12th Night to them.

Shakespeare in Our Schools is the educational tour arm of the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival. The 50-minute touring shows features actors from the festival's award-winning Touring ensemble.

Annually, the touring program reaches over 25,000 students in 125+ schools in Missouri and Illinois and Jackson Park was lucky to be one of those schools. As a parent, I can tell you that seeing this performance provides the foundation for children to understand the full performance when seen in Forest Park.

For other schools that may be interested in future performances, the Shakespeare Festival offers four types of programming: Education Tour, Metro Youth Shakespeare, Camps & Classes and Workshops & Residencies.

For more information please contact:
Christopher Limber, Education
Director at 314.531.9800 x 109 or email climber@sfstl.com
 

      

 

A Spring Fling

In just a few short weeks fifth graders in U. City will walk through the doors of their elementary schools as students for the last time. When the school year begins in the fall they will be middle school students at Brittany Woods.

This is a bittersweet moment for parents, but an exciting time for those pre-teens. As I overheard my daughter say to her girlfriend, "I can't wait for sixth grade. I am sooo over fifth grade."

In the spirit of celebrating their elementary years and their promotion to middle school, Jackson Park hosted its first ever "Spring Fling" for the fifth grade class.

Fifth graders that attended the Spring Fling

Students arrived in festive attire (some which had been planning what to wear for weeks). One young gentleman arrived with flowers in hand for his favorite girl and the crowd erupted in screams of excitement.

 

All you can eat pizza, nachos, and sno cones and special cupcakes kept the group energized during the party.

In between snacking there were congo dances, line dances, limbo dancing, hula hooping, and even some break dancing face offs.

Dancing the night away!

Thank you to Bella Quintal and Stacie Foote for organizing the event. In the words of those that attended, it was "the best party ever!"

Bella Quintal and Stacie Foote

Girls on the Run

Yesterday morning our family rose at 5 a.m. to journey downtown and cheer on our "girl" while she ran a 5k with her Jackson Park Girls on the Run team and 8,000 other people.

Getting ready for the practice 5k on the high school track.

Girls on the Run St Louis is a non-profit prevention program that encourages preteen girls to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running.

The 20-lesson Girls on the Run curriculum combines training for a 5k (3.1 miles) running event with lessons that inspire girls to become independent thinkers, enhance their problem solving skills and make healthy decisions.  All of this is accomplished through an active collaboration with girls and their parents, schools, volunteers, staff and the community.

Head Coach Nancy Mozier

At Jackson Park we are fortunate to have Nancy Mozier and Peggy Stein as the teacher coaches and Vanessa Schrader and Amanda Elliott as our volunteer coaches. To their credit, there were a number of other teachers that assisted along the way.

JP "vogues" as they get ready to race.

 

Over ten weeks the girls improved their teamwork, respect for one another and self-esteem. I especially loved the day my daughter came home and told me how she and another girl had become friends through GOTR when previously they thought they had reasons to dislike one another.

 

But race day isn't just for the girls - it's a family affair. Mothers, brothers, dads, sisters, aunts, and uncles and grandparents too, all converge on downtown St. Louis to run, watch, and cheer on the runners to the finish line.

Brothers running to support their sisters, while others prefer to cheer on the runners...

 

 

What a sense of accomplishment for these girls to finish a 5k race with the excitement of 8,000 other runners. Our girl is moving to middle school next year. While she may miss some of her GOTR JP teammates, she'll be joining others at Girls on Track at Brittany Woods Middle School.

 

A well-earned rest after the race.