It is with great gratitude that I find myself writing my final “President Letter.” It has been a wonderful and fulfilling two years for me in this role, and I’m very grateful to have had this opportunity. As I think back over the two years, I am, yet again, reminded of what an amazing community we have in our staff, parents, and students at Cascade Ridge. It is a community that truly cares for our kids that is at the very core of everything we do. Without such a deep level of caring and commitment, we could not accomplish all that we have every year since Cascade Ridge first opened in 2001.

For this year, our PTSA has filled the year with many amazing accomplishments and impacts for our school and children, and we have much for which we can be proud. This year, some of our accomplishments included:

Continued direct support to vital student needs through financial and volunteer support - About $70K in total (90% of our total budget) was budgeted for the following: $17K to Staff Grants, $9K to Arts & Science Enrichment, $7K to Reading Support, $12K to K-4 Drama and 5th Grade Enhancement Programs, $4K to Art & Science Docent, Science Fair, and Fine Arts Night, $5K to various education and safety support programs (i.e. Eager Reader, Reflections, Math Club, Safety Patrol, Parent and Child Education, Foreign Language, Spelling & Geography Bees, Field Day), $6K for Community Events (i.e. Caring through Sharing, Dad’s Day, Great Kids, Birthday Celebrations, Festival of Cultures, Winterfest, 5th Grade End-of-Year Celebrations, Staff Appreciation),

Implementing our first ever online Membership sign-up - This included bringing as much as possible from our previous and voluminous “First Day Packet” online. It minimized the amount of paperwork our kids brought home during those first few days of school and provided the opportunity for everyone to do many things online instead of through tiresome paperwork: sign up for PTSA membership, review and sign-up for volunteer opportunities, complete preferences for receiving information throughout the year, order Coyote Wear online, and to pay for it all at one time and with one form of payment. Each year, this process will become easier and efficient for us all,

PTSA Website revamp and revitalization – Need we say more? Just check it out and you’ll see how packed the site is with usable and easy-to-find information! www.cascaderidgeptsa.org,

Increased online signup for ongoing events including the Walkathon, Winterfest, Fine Arts Night, the Spelling Bee, Science Fair and others. We received wonderful feedback throughout the year regarding these changes, and we will continue to strive to make things easier for everyone,

Successful Fundraising that met and beat our goals which enabled us to fulfill all of our budgeted expenses in support of our kids for the year,

Appropriate (based on General Membership vote and approval) Spending of Excess/Accumulated Funds: $16+K for our school to develop a Guided Reading Room similar to those that several other elementary schools in the district have developed, $12K for a Reader Board, something that our school has needed for years to provide quick and timely communications to the whole community, and $10K to the very important “Got Science?” initiative which will help ensure our district has appropriate funding to implement the new Science Curriculum at our elementary schools,

Implementation of new and desired programs at the school: Foreign Language, Spelling Bee, Geography Bee, Great Kids,

Continued Parent Education Offerings that provide parents with current and important information for raising our kids and ever-changing societal pressures and challenges,

Purchase of important equipment for the school: $4K spent for new radios for safety use, during typical days and during emergencies and ~25 new digital cameras for use at all grade levels in developing new ways to teach our kids in this highly technically-advanced world.

Wow!! How lucky are our kids to have so many amazing opportunities, particularly during these economic times where state and district budgets are suffering? Our district has been hit very hard these past few years, and more than ever, it is important for families to recognize the value of giving, both financially and through volunteer efforts, to continue to provide these opportunities to our children. We are very fortunate to have a wonderful public school system, and we need to continue to support that system. PTSA is a vitally important component and means for providing that communal support.

Of course, these accomplishments are due to the continued and passionate involvement of the many dedicated families and staff of our school and I continue to value and appreciate everyone who contributes in so many ways to our success. Each and every one of you who has contributed in ANY way is appreciated. A special thank you goes out to everyone who chaired events or programs and those who served on the Board. These jobs are often time-consuming and exhausting (and many times “thankless”), and yet, they are so important to our kids. THANK YOU!!

As we move into the summer, our new Board will be planning for the upcoming year. I will be moving out of the President role and am confidently handing the reins to Deanne King, who I know will be an amazing President. She will lead the PTSA to ensure that the many ongoing and additional needs in the coming year will be met. As you probably noticed, we sent out our Spring Volunteer Form to solicit interest in the many areas of need to ensure another successful year for the PTSA. Thank you to everyone who is already thinking ahead as to where you can contribute and be a part of our upcoming successes. There will be more opportunities to sign up as we start the next year, and the online volunteer signups are always open as well!!

Here’s to a great and restful summer for all. We then look forward to seeing everyone in the Fall. Don’t forget that school will start BEFORE Labor Day on Tuesday, August 30th. This seems especially early and the week before we will start getting things rolling. Be sure to stay in touch through our August communications and via our website at www.cascaderidgeptsa.org. We are planning to continue our tradition of having a quick Popsicle Social the day before school starts and we hope to see you there.

Cheers and Happy Summer!
Tina Yerges, Outgoing PTSA President
tinayerges@msn.com