September 5, 2025

Hello! From the PTA President

Greetings from the PTA President!

Welcome Thunderbirds to the 2025-2026 school year! My name is Cher Brownback, and I am serving as this year’s PTA President.

A little about me: I have two kids at Trailwood, Ellie in 4^th grade and Kate in 2^nd grade. My oldest just graduated Trailwood and is now in 7^th grade at Indian Hills Middle School. I am a nurse and I work at The University of Kansas Medical Center as a healthcare simulation educator.

I hope you have enjoyed the first few Trailwood traditional events the PTA has hosted so far including Popsicle Pop-In, Welcome Back Coffee, and Pre-K/Kindergarten Coffee. I hope that you were also able to attend Back to School and learn about your child’s teacher and what to expect this year.

Looking ahead, we have a lot of exciting events coming up and many ways for you to be involved. The PTA would love to see you at T-Bird Trot Friday September 5^th 5-7pm and then Donuts with Grown Ups on the big playground before our first general PTA meeting on Tuesday September 9^th at 8:15am. Please join us and learn about ways to get involved, hear from Mr. Lawrence, and meet other families. Look for information in this newsletter, on our website (trailwoodpta.com) and on our Facebook and Instagram pages for all our upcoming events.

If you cannot attend meetings, but would like to get involved, please do not hesitate to reach out!

It's going to be a great year!

Go Thunderbirds!

Cher Brownback, PTA President

twelementary@gmail.com

PTA Memberships, Yearbooks on Sale Now!

The Trailwood PTA welcomes you to the 2025-26 school year! We hope it is off to a great start!

The parent/family community here at Trailwood is incredible, and your support and involvement are key to what makes this a truly special school!

We invite you to connect with us and each other, through these important beginning-of-year actions for all families:

Update Your School Directory Contact Info
Join the PTA for 2025-2026
Purchase Yearbooks and Student Activity Fees

Simply log in* to your PTA Membership Toolkit account, and follow the prompts to update your directory information and publishing preferences. You can make all of your purchases here.

* First time users- create an account today using the email address that receives school emails (this email address is already connected to your child in the PTA's system).

Becoming a member does not obligate you to attend meetings or volunteer (although, we’d love to have you!). Your support allows us to provide our students, staff and families with a variety of fun and educational opportunities that we love, like field trips, carnival, teacher appreciation events and much much more!

Please direct any questions to Emily Meissen-Sebelius.

Come See Lilo & Stitch at Trailwood!

Hello Thunderbird families!

Get ready! We will be showing Lilo & Stitch on Thursday, September 11th, in the Commons!

The doors will open at 6:00 pm, and the movie will begin at 6:30 pm. Kids are encouraged to bring blankets and pillows, and adults may bring folding chairs on which to sit in the back. Please remember that children must be accompanied by an adult.

The movie is FREE, but we will have concessions for sale, so feel free to bring some cash with you (small bills, if possible). Concession sales help us to cover the cost of our annual movie license, so please consider donating some store-bought, nut-free treats to the event! We also need some volunteers to help us run the concession stand. Please sign up to volunteer and/or bring a snack HERE

We hope to see you there!

Trailwood PTA

Chat and Chew

Hello Trailwood families! Bringing back Chat & Chew last year was a success and sign ups for this year are currently underway! We invite 2nd through 6th graders to join us, and parent volunteers as well. Forms have been sent home in student’s backpacks. Please have them signed and turned in to Mrs. Klein by Monday, September 8th and contact Danielle Vergara with any questions at (913)272-1829 or danielledenlinger@gmail.com. We’re looking forward to another fun year of Chat & Chew!

Spirit Wear

✨ NEW Trailwood Merch just dropped for the 2025–2026 school year! 💫 Rep your THUNDERBIRD SPIRIT and make this year one you’ll never forget. 💛🖤

Room Parents Update

Room Parents

Thank you to everyone who volunteered to be a room parent this year! We had an incredible response! Each class has at least two room parents, and many even have the maximum of three! The PTA and our larger school community appreciates your willingness to step up and support our classroom teachers and plan fun activities for our kids!

Please know if you were not able to commit to being a room parent, or signed up and your name wasn't drawn, that there will be many opportunities to contribute in different ways in your child's classroom throughout the year.

Thanks again! Room parent questions? Email Jen McDonald at jenschmidt3@gmail.com

Señoritas and Sangrias

We are excited to invite you to our annual Trailwood Señoritas and Sangrias* coming up on Saturday, September 13th, 2025!

Please join us for this casual get-together for moms/ladies. It's a fun chance to reconnect after the summer and to meet new, friendly faces! There will be appetizers and desserts along with sangrias, margaritas, as well as non-alcoholic drink options.

Check out the evite and RSVP by Thursday, September 11th.

*Please note: This was an auction item at the PTA trivia night last semester. If you already purchased this party, you should have received an evite, and all you need to do is RSVP.

If you have not purchased a ticket to this party yet, no problem! We'd still love to see you there! RSVP here and you can pay at the door by cash/Venmo or check to Trailwood PTA ($25/person; proceeds go to the Trailwood PTA).

Hosted by Trailwood moms: Terri Delimont, Emily Sebelius, Rebecca Keunen, Jessica Horner, Leah Krieger, and Sara Beier

Please feel free to call or text with any questions or dietary restrictions:

Terri Delimont 913-850-0227

Emily Sebelius 913-787-0354

We hope you can join us on Saturday, September 13th!

https://evite.me/pwWGxHPgCy

Reflections Contest

Hello Thunderbird parents and students!

This fall, we welcome the return of the annual PTA Reflections Contest—a nationally recognized program that celebrates student creativity and artistic expression both at school and at home. All Trailwood students, regardless of grade or ability, are invited to participate and bring this year’s theme to life:

✨ 2025–2026 Theme: “I Belong” ✨

Students may submit original works of art in one (or more) of six categories: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, and Visual Arts. Each entry should include an artist statement explaining how the work connects to the theme. A Special Artist Division is also available to ensure every student has the opportunity to participate.

📅 Entry Deadline: October 15th

Digital submissions & questions: Email Terri Delimont at tdelimont@gmail.com
Physical entries (visual art & photography) + signed entry forms: Deliver to Shereen North in the Trailwood Elementary office by October 15th

2025-2026 Reflections Contest Student Entry Form

2025-2026 Reflections Contest Flyer

Dining Partner

Support Trailwood on Wednesday, September 17th by mentioning this flyer at O'Neill's Restaurant and Bar for dinner 5pm - 7pm and 10% will go to Trailwood!

Fall Flight Time Registration Now Open

Thunderbirds, let's get ready for our fall session of Flight Time! For those new to Trailwood, Flight Time is an after school enrichment program run by PTA and taught by our own amazing staff! Trailwood staff members create and offer classes based on personal strengths and interests.

This session of Flight Time will run on six Thursdays from September 18th - October 30th; we will not hold classes on October 16th (due to parent/teacher conferences). We will have a make-up date of November 6th, in case a teacher needs to miss a scheduled class. Classes meet after school from 3:15 pm - 4:15 pm.

Cost is $60 per child, with $50 of the registration fee going directly to the teacher hosting the club! Scholarships are available; please notify Mrs. North if you are interested.

View options and descriptions here!

Registration is now open at www.trailwoodpta.com. The last day to register will be September 15th. Please note that once a club is full, you will no longer be able to sign up for it. In addition, if clubs do not meet their minimum enrollment numbers, they may be cancelled. Students will then be given the opportunity to enroll in another club, if interested.

Please check out the attachment for a complete listing of our fall class offerings! We can't wait to see your student in one of our awesome after school clubs this fall. Feel free to reach out to Cara Peterson if you have any questions.

Volunteer As A Wingman This Year!

Trailwood dads and father-figures, please consider taking a half-day or full-day out of your busy schedules and spending some time at Trailwood as a Wingman! This is a great opportunity to interact with the kids and see what they do every day! Your schedule will vary depending on the needs of the day and will include all grade levels, assisting with math and reading groups, specials, recess and lunchroom assistance for the younger grades.

The Wingman program will officially be open for volunteers starting September 22nd. Be on the look out for a Signup Genius coming soon so that you may secure your preferred volunteer slot(s)!

While you don't have to be certified as an MVP to volunteer as a Wingman, we do recommend it so that you will be able to work with students on your own. Trailwood will host an MVP training on September 16th from 8:30 - 9:00 am. If you are unable to attend on this date, you will find additional training dates and locations at https://www.smsd.org/families/volunteer-mvp.

Questions? Please contact Leif Peterson.

SUBJECT: September 2025 Newsletter