To the Sunnyside community,
I want to thank all of you for your generosity at last weekend’s auction. For me personally, I spent last Sunday with an authentic, “happiness hangover” (for lack of a better descriptor). So many community members, parents and guardians came together to organize, host and execute an event that, for me, affirmed the strength and solidarity of our SES community. THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. I left the auction feeling so thankful, so grateful and so proud.
As a reminder, funds raised from our auction directly pay for funding of staff members. Our goals were/are to fund 1) a part time book clerk to support our K-8 library program, 2) a part time administrative assistant to support our place-based day and overnight trips for K-8 students, and 3) .25 (¼) of a 3rd grade teacher so that students in this grade can be in right-sized classes for their entire week next year. We are hoping to earn enough to provide 3, full sections of 3rd grade so that class sizes can be smaller in this grade level.
This community is so, incredibly generous. The auction alone grossed over $54,000, with some unexpected, large, charitable cash donations from several people–one family gave $5,000, several families gave $1,000, $500, $250, $100 and so on. Thanks to our families, staff members and community, this auction grossed more than any other auction we have ever had. Relatively speaking, we are close to reaching our goal of fully funding all of the positions above!
The PPS foundation’s policies make sure that each school contributes to a collective “pot” in order to provide funds for schools who may not have the capacity to raise such a large amount of money for staffing. Mathematically, after our expenses for this event are paid, our net income from the auction is about $46,000. Based on PPS rules, for any dollar amount beyond $10,000, 33% of the remaining funds are given back to this communal account for other schools. This said, as of today we have about $35,000 net for Sunnyside. This is such a gift for our students, thank you!
In order to fully fund the positions described above, our goal is to raise $50,000 net. I’m writing today to ask that your family consider making a donation in the next week, especially if you were unable to attend Saturday’s event. I’ve provided links to make this easy for folks, and these links can also be sent to extended family, friends, SES alumni, etc. While we did receive some generous, large cash donations, it’s also true that every dollar counts as we face the budget cuts upon us for next year. If you’re able, please consider making a donation–large or small– so that we can continue to provide our students with the rich, robust school program that makes Sunnyside so special
There are two ways to donate at this time, and all donations are 100% tax deductible. Once a donation is made, our auction committee will immediately provide you with an invoice that includes our tax ID number for your records. Here are the ways you can help us reach our $50,000 net goal:
–We have many raffle tickets left for the Hawaii trip, and if we sell all of them we will earn an additional $3100 toward the staff positions listed above. Please see the link below to purchase raffle tickets with the potential to win a family trip to Hawaii!
https://sesauction.schoolauction.net/auction2019/catalog?id=2
–Much of the money raised on Saturday came in the form of cash donations. This was so unexpected, and so incredibly generous. Please consider adding to these funds by making a cash donation toward these important positions. The link below makes it easy to donate online.
https://sesauction.schoolauction.net/auction2019/give/index
Thank you again for all you do for this school. As principal and as a Sunnyside parent, I always feel grateful. I always feel lucky. I always feel proud. Seeing our community come together on Saturday on behalf of all of our children was truly one of the best Mother’s Day gifts I could have ever asked for. For me, while of course the money is important, the love, the solidarity and the sense of community I feel is a gift that no amount of money could ever buy. I was truly blown away by this, and I thank you all for your continued support and donations.
With so much gratitude,
Amy
