Spartan Fundraiser!

Our Parent Support Organization came up with a fun, innovative way to help raise funds for our 2017-2018 school year.  The Spartan Warrior Race (our Fall Fundraiser) was exciting for our students and proved to be a very successful event for our school.  Because of the additional money raised, thanks to our supportive families, we are going to be able to purchase some additional items for our school.
 
At our Open House, Director of Development, Ellen Baggenstoss, explained the significance of our three different fundraisers (Fall Fundraiser, the Annual Fund, and our Auction) and the purpose they serve for our school.They all have a very specific focus, with the end goal always being to provide programming, brick and mortar projects, or capital improvements that directly benefit our students. 

Originally, we were hoping to raise enough money to make some program enhancements to our STEM lab by adding a few 3D printers. We didn't really know what to expect as far as how much money the fundraiser would raise. Because of this, we were being very conservative in what we were telling our students. I didn't want to put myself in a position where we promised our students something amazing to later have to come back and say, "Sorry kids, we didn't raise enough money to do those cool things I promised you."  I am very happy to report to you that we FAR exceeded our original goal!  We are in the process of ordering the printers for the STEM lab and can't wait to see all the outstanding things our students will be able to create.  

When we embarked upon our playground renovation a couple of years ago, we spent considerable time and resources saving three large trees on the playground. There are 2 large pines in the K3/K4 area, and a large oak tree on the other end of our playground in between the athletic field and the swings. In addition to their natural beauty, these trees provide a significant amount of shade. The landscape architect told us that there was a 50% chance the trees may not survive because of the amount of dirt we had to move around the base of the trees. Over the last two years,  the oak tree has shown signs that it was not doing well. On two different occasions we had a tree company come out and work on it in an attempt to save it. Sadly, this summer, the tree began to look like it was almost completely dead. This created a safety issue for us. The last thing we would ever want is for a child to be injured by a falling branch. Over fall break we had a company come in and take the tree down. This means that side of the playground no longer has shade! This is where the Spartan Warrior comes in! Because our families so eagerly supported this event, we are now going to purchase a shade structure (like in the picture), as well as a large picnic table! Students and teachers will have a place to rest when things get too hot. The bench that is now in this area will be moved near the tree that STUCO purchased in honor of Todd Wood.  
This is possible because of YOU! Thank you so much for supporting our school and students. They will benefit from your generosity.