Volume 6, Issue 3 – December 2016

Astor PTSO Board Message

Website address: www.astorptso.org Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/astorptso HELP WANTED: volunteer@astorptso.org astor.ptomanager.com

Jan 19th

PTSO General Meeting 6:30 FREE PIZZA & CHILD CARE

Astor Parent Teacher Student Organization Mission Statement: Our mission is to build community and enrich the learning environment while empowering parents, teachers, and students at Astor School.

Astor PTSO Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Contact Information

Dec 3rd PTSO Craft Bazaar 9:00-2:00 in Astor gym

Feb 22nd

Bingo for Books

Jan 14th

Dec 13th

Portland Winterhawks Game 7:00 pm

Flying Pie Pizzeria Astor Night 4:00-8:00 pm

PTSO Board: President: Kamarin Ring Co-Vice Presidents: Kristen Carter & Jessi Thurston Treasurer: Jill Bartell Co-Membership Coordinators: Jeff and Samara Omundson Co-Events Coordinators: Miranda Roberston and Sofia Yrazabal Co-Volunteer Coordinators: Cassie Coster & Sarah Umberhandt

Co-Secretaries: Marla Doughty & Renee Espinoza

Dear Astor Families,

The rain has settled in and at all at once it feels like winter in Portland. There have been some big changes both nationally and from within our small community; there are challenges ahead, and through it all the days keep getting shorter and darker as we approach December. My hope is that we will all find a way to bring some light into each others lives and into the lives of our students and teachers. The contributions you make to this community DO make a difference. The day you spent volunteering in the classroom or the poinsettia you ordered to raise money for our school, the friendly and supportive comment in the hallway you made to a teacher, or the kind words you uttered to student on the playground after school who needed help--all make a difference. We are bound together by this school, and this neighborhood and the little ways you nurture those bonds matter. We'll get through this storm together.

Thank you for caring for our school. Thank you for spreading kindness and positivity. Thank you for supporting our teachers and students. We appreciate you.

Sincerely,

The Astor PTSO Board

December Event Details

Holiday Bazaar: Saturday, Dec. 3rd, 9:00-2:00 in Astor Gymnasium Come out and support your crafty community while marking some of that holiday shopping off your list! In addition to the goods being sold, the PTSO will be selling seasonal snack items. We hope to see you there! Astor Flying Pie Pizzeria Night! Tuesday, Dec. 13th, 4:00-8:00 pm. Come and eat pizza with our community and raise money for Astor at the new Flying Pie Pizzeria! Be sure to mention you are with Astor. Questions? Email us at board@astorptso.org The Astor PTSO is a not-for-profit parent, teacher and student organization whose primary purpose is to support the education and experiences of all students enrolled at Astor K-8 School. We also promote open communication and understanding between parents, staff, students and the Astor community in order to enhance and maximize the education of every child in order for them to achieve their highest potential.

Astor School Fundraising

The holiday season is now officially upon us, so here are some easy ways to raise money for Astor while shopping!

Amazon Smile Log on at smile.amazon.com and select Astor Parent Teacher Student Organization to receive 0.5% donations of the price from eligible purchases. Amazon will remember your selection, and then every eligible purchase you make at smile.amazon.com will result in a donation.

Fred Meyer Card Program Please remember to link you Fred Meyer rewards card to the Astor PTSO. This is the easiest way for our school to receive a quarterly donation and it doesn't cost you a thing! Go to fredmeyer.com and click on the "community" link at the bottom of the page. Our school is listed as "Astor PTSO".

Target RedCard Take Charge of Education®. Since 1997, Target has donated millions of dollars to schools. By registering your Target REDcard and selecting Astor, Target will donate 1% of your purchases directly to Astor! So register your card at http://www.target.com/redcard.

Box Tops for Education All you need is a pair of scissors to help us to earn more in this school year:

1 Find Boxtops on hundreds of packages. 2 Clip off the coupon. 3 Send them to class with your child!

Each boxtop is worth $.10! Go to http://www.boxtops4education.com/ for additional ways to save money and earn even more money for Astor’s PTSO programs.

eLabels for Education Shop, swipe and earn. The Campbell’s e-Labels for Education offers Astor an additional opportunity to earn points on top of clipped Labels for Education coupons! All the Astor community needs to do is register their Safeway Club Card or Fred Meyer Rewards card at www.elabelsforeducation.com. Then every time you purchase a participating product at one of these grocery retailers, Astor receives 1 point, which can be redeemed for FREE educational merchandise.

Terracycle/Colgate Oral Brigade/Recycling Astor will continue to partner with Terracycle and send off products to be “upcycled” and earn money for the PTSO. We also do our part and help get harder to recycle items to a place where they can be recycled. See the front hallway for items that can be recycled.

Someone is organizing, counting, and delivering these items to the various places they need to go. If you think recycling and fundraising is fun, please let us know! We love to team up for success! Contact us at volunteer@astorptso.org.

How Can You Help? Looking for a good way to help your school? It doesn’t matter whether you have a few minutes or a few days to spare – there is always something you can do to get involved in your child’s school!

Donate your Used Books!

Are you cleaning out closets and going through bookshelves? Instead of donating or throwing out those books, bring them to Astor for redistribution in our own community!

We will take books for our annual Used Book Sale – you can leave them near the recycling center in the main hall any time.

Buy Scrip!

The SCRIP program has been a successful and simple fundraiser for us in the past, and we now have people to facilitate this program! Read the attached flier for more information.

Come to our Meetings!

We are working hard to be a relevant, engaging, and useful organization for our community, but we can’t do that without knowing what our community needs and wants. Please come and share your concerns, interests, thoughts, and feedback – or if you can’t come to a meeting, email us at board@astorptso.org anytime with suggestions or ideas of how we can strengthen our community.

Astor Night at Flying Pie Pizzeria

TakethenightofffromcookingandtreatyourfamilytopizzaanddrinkstosupportAstor!

ComeinorcallinanordertoFlyingPieonTuesday,Dec.13from4-8p.m.TellthemyouareorderingtosupportAstorandtheywilldonate15%ofproceedstotheschool!

Avoidthewait!Call503-206-4432forcarryoutordersorpre-orderfordine-in.Youcanfindthemenuonlineatwww.flying-pie.comundertheNPortlandlocation.

When: Tuesday,Dec.13,4-8p.m.

Where: FlyingPie,5324N.Lombard

Seeyouthere!