Originally delivered on 1/12/2025 1:01 pm

SUBJECT: January 2025 Newsletter

January 12, 2025

Welcome back! I hope you have had a wonderful and restful break and enjoyed our bonus snow days, too! 

Looking ahead, we have a super fun semester coming up.  One of the big things is our Trivia Night!  Each year, Trailwood hosts its primary fundraiser of the year and we are so excited for this year's event!  It is a vital resource for the Trailwood community-it helps fund more than 50 programs that enrich the educational experience of our students and support our dedicated staff.  Please see below for ticket sales as well as ways you can help!

Reach out if you have any questions. Here’s to a new year- let’s make it a great one! 

Lori Tritsch

nurseholcomb@hotmail.com

Upcoming Important Dates

January 10: Skate Party at Skate City 4-6

January 30: Science Night 5:30-7:30

February 13: General PTA Meeting

February 14: Valentine's Day Classroom Parties

February 22: Trivia Night 6-10 at Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center

Trivia Night!

Each winter Trailwood hosts its primary fundraiser of the year, and we are so excited for this year‘s event! We’d love to welcome parents and guardians to Happy Hour and Trivia Night on February 22nd at 6 PM at the Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center. This will be an evening full of fun and laughter with your fellow Trailwood parents and all for an amazing cause!

Happy hour will run from 6 to 7 PM, then guess will come together and compete in our TV themed trivia night. 

Leading up to and during the event, you will have the opportunity to purchase kid and adult party tickets, bid on select auction items like teacher experiences, classroom art work, and parking spots! Those in attendance will also be able to participate in a live auction!

You can purchase your tickets here: https://www.trailwoodpta.com/form/m/316533

We hope to see you there!


Grade Level Parties

Hi Thunderbirds!


One of the many ways in which we strive to foster a sense of community here at Trailwood is through our annual grade level kid parties. These parties are hosted by parents and guardians, usually in the spring and summer, with tickets being sold at our February 22nd trivia night. 

How it works: you can sign up with a couple families or go solo for your child's grade level. Parties in the past have included pool parties, backyard movies, backyard bouncy houses, but you can do whatever you’d like! We will put the parties for sale online to be purchased during trivia night.  You hosting the party would be your donation to the PTA and tickets sold would go towards the PTA's efforts in funding activities. 


Sign up to host using the link below! 


https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0445A8AA23A1F94-54120160-grade


Questions? Feel free to reach out to Jen Pontier:

jennipontier@gmail.com 

Trivia Night Volunteers Needed

Hello parents-Trivia night is coming up quickly and we need a volunteer or two from each grade level to put together a grade level basket

This doesn’t have to be a room parent. Last year we had themes such as Brunch in a Basket, Retro Coco-Cola and Coffee Lovers. Other past basket themes have included Chiefs swag, Kansas City Favorites, Legos, Mom's Favorite things amongst many other ideas. 

Please use this link to sign-up:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E054BA4AB22A5FD0-54253133-grade

We would really like to have volunteers by Tuesday January 14th and have the baskets done and ready by Monday February 3rd. Please reach out with questions! Thank you for your support!

 Best wishes, 

Cher Brownback and Sarah McGinnity 

Room Parent Coordinators

January Legislative Update

On Jan. 9th, Senator Cindy Holscher, Representatives Stephanie Clayton and Mari-Lynn Poskin and Kansas Board of Education Chair Melanie Haas joined us for a special PTA meeting at Trailwood. The elected officials identified key public education issues as vouchers, sunsetting of the current state education funding formula, attempts to change how Supreme Court judges are appointed in Kansas (because of the historical role of the Ks Supreme Court in requiring the legislature to fund public education) and children's mental health.  

Look for ways in which you can get involved and resources for advocating for public education issues next month.  And watch for legislative action alerts on our TW PTA Facebook page! 


District: SMSD Board of Education will be voting on a district policy on the " Restrictions on Possession and Use of Personal Electronic Devices" (i.e. cell phones, etc.) at their Monday Jan. 13th meeting.  See meeting recap from Dec. 9th for the proposed policy on which they will be voting on Monday. 

Purchase PTA Memberships, Yearbooks and Student Activity Fees

It's not too late to purchase a PTA membership, yearbook or student activity fee! By purchasing these items, you help ensure we have a strong and active PTA.

Becoming a member doesn't obligate you to attend meetings or volunteer, but your membership dues help fund so many fun Trailwood activities--the Popsicle Pop-In, Donuts With Grownups, staff appreciation events, the carnival and so much more. If it's a fun school event, chances are it's a PTA event!

Make your purchases here: https://www.trailwoodpta.com/form/m/297027

Can't remember if you already purchased? Log in to your account, and click "previous orders" under "my account."


Directory Reminder

If you choose not to become a member, please still remember to log in and update your information in the directory. Doing so allows us to communicate with you throughout the school year and gives you access to the online directory. *For others to be able to see your information, you must select that you want your information published in the directory.

Tip: Download the Membership Toolkit app to easily access the directory and make PTA purchases.


Questions? Contact PTA Membership Chair Jen McDonald at jenschmidt3@gmail.com

Be a Wingman!

Start the new year by being a Trailwood Wingman!


Trailwood dads and father figures,


Please consider taking a full-day or half-day out of your busy schedules and spending some time at Trailwood as a Wingman! Your schedule will include ALL grade levels assisting in math and reading groups, specials, recess and lunchroom assistance for the younger grades.


If interested, please review the available dates here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090944A8A82EA7FF2-50250760-trailwood. Feel free to select a date and time that works for you! In the notes section, please indicate whether you plan to stay for a full-day or a half-day (please specify AM or PM). You can volunteer as many times this year as you'd like!


If you have questions, please reach out to Leif Peterson at leifepeterson@yahoo.com. Thank you for your time and support of the Trailwood Wingman program!


We'd like to give a special shout-out to the following dads who volunteered as Wingmen during the month of December:


Adam Horner

Howie Erenberg

Hello Room parents! Thank you for all you have done planning parties and collecting for teacher gifts, you’ve all been doing an amazing job! Our next party is Valentine’s Day, Friday, February 14 from 2-3pm.  As a reminder this is the party food policy: Classroom teachers are responsible for knowing their students’ food allergies and can make the best decisions on party foods that are safe for their class. To assist teachers with this responsibility, we ask that you submit food ingredient labels at least two school days in advance of classroom parties. Any food that is not approved in advance by the teacher will be sent home with the student.  


Below is general guidance for classroom parties:                                                                            

- we encourage fruits and vegetables as much as possible                                                                                  

soda and energy drinks are not allowed        

- any non-fruit or vegetable food that is brought in must be prepackaged and include an ingredient label (no homemade goods)                          

classroom teachers need at least two days notice to review ingredient labels before party days

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