Dear Valley Forge Middle School community,
As most of you will undoubtedly have heard, we lost our beloved crossing guard, Mr. Edwin Butler. He was the epitome of a gentleman, always smiling, always gracious and always looking out for our children and ensuring their welfare and safety. Principal Matt Gibson is in discussion with the teachers about an appropriate way to show appreciation for Mr. Ed’s life within the student body, and the VFMS PTO is also involved in coming up with a lasting memorial to this special man. We will let you know more as soon as we can.
On lighter note, I have been asked several times recently,“How can I get involved with the school?” There really are lots of opportunities big AND small, ranging from serving on the PTO board, chairing or being part of a committee, acting as a school representative on various bodies (ARCH, FLITE, TEMPO to name but a few) to volunteering to bring in snacks during the recent PSSA’s or helping to scoop ice cream at our soon to be announced ice cream social. I am hosting an evening at my house this coming Thursday, 7th May, to show appreciation for our current PTO volunteers and to raise awareness of what we do, so if you are free, please come along any time from 7 pm.
There may not be quite as many hands on opportunities as there are in the elementary schools, but we still need your help and ideas just as much to raise funds, provide information and run events. For those of you who may not be as familiar with the schedule of events at VFMS, here is a quick run down of activities in which the PTO, i.e. YOU, play a pivotal role! This list is not exhaustive!
Late August New Family Breakfast
September Health Screenings
Sept/Oct Directories
Nov & May Barnes and Noble Book Fair
Nov & March Cultural Arts
December Winter Dance 7th and 8th Grades
Late Winter Wellness Week
April Snacks for PSSAs
June 8th Grade Graduation
Ongoing activities include fundraising through our Direct Donation program but also through Target, Amazon and other avenues like locker shelves and Hershey Park tickets, Spiritwear and beautification. Communication is key, especially when we are trying to limit the amount of paper we hand out, so I strongly encourage you to keep up with school and PTO news through our website and to read the weekly Blast which comes out on Sundays and highlights upcoming activities and events. As an experiment, I am trying a trick suggested to me by another PTO President. If you have gotten this far, please email me with the word “Sunshine” in the subject line, nothing more than that!
I thank you for reading this letter and wish you a great week. Together we really can achieve more!
Best regards,
Sarah
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