Archie T. Morrison PTO

November Newsletter

Nov 30, 2003

Box Tops for Education October 27th Deadline Update ?–
Congratulation to the October 27th Box Tops winners:
Family - Matthew Callahan with 271 Box Tops
Staff Member - Debbie McLoughlin with 150 Box Tops

Nicki Shaban, our Box Tops Coordinator, reports that over 70 families sent in box tops by the first deadline of the school year. Eleven families passed in over 100 box tops each. The grand total collected was 4,975 box tops. The Morrison school will receive a check in the amount of $497.50 on or about December 15th. At this time last year, we received a check for $145.00. We are well on our way to our goal of $1,000.00!
There is a new contest for the March 26, 2004 deadline. Again, there will be two handmade baskets with goodies - one for the Morrison family and one for the staff member that turns in the most Box Tops between October 28th, 2003 and March 26th, 2004. In addition, Nicki and the PTO will host an ice cream party for every Morrison child whose family passes in 100 box tops or more by Friday, March 26th.
Also, for every person that goes on-line to boxtops4education.com and joins the Booster Club (this takes approx. 5 minutes), the Morrison PTO will receive 50?¢ per person. In return, you will receive coupons for products, recipes, children's book reviews, family movie reviews etc. This can really add up!
Please remember it is very important that when you turn in your Box Tops to put your child's name and homeroom number directly in or on the bag of box tops. This is critical for Nicki so she can give credit to everyone who has turned in box tops. Thank you to all the families and staff that contributed! Please keep collecting!

Cultural Arts Programs - November was a busy month for Cultural Arts programs. "Bubblemania?” was presented on Thursday, November 6th for all grades. Third graders enjoyed ?“Laura Ingalls Wilder?” on Wednesday, November 12th. David Hobbs, ?“The Pilgrim?” entertained first graders on Thursday, November 20th. Ask your children about the shows!
The PTO Officers and Cultural Arts Committee would like to thank all of the Kindergarten, 3rd and 4th grade students for their drawings and letters of appreciation for ?“Bubblemania?” and all 3rd grade students for their thank you letters for the ?“Laura Ingalls Wilder?” program. The letters were very entertaining and informative. We?’re thrilled that you enjoyed the presentations! Look for your notes and drawings on the PTO bulletin board!
The PTO would not be able to bring these outstanding arts programs to our school if not for your participation in the fundraisers. Thanks to all of you for raising the funds needed to support these PTO sponsored events.

Fall Fundraiser ?– The Fall Fundraiser was delivered on Thursday, November 20th at noon. The majority of the orders were large and needed to be picked up at the school. All order overages and shortages needed to be reported to Lisa Heger no later than Tuesday, November 25th. Corrections to orders should be received in approximately two weeks. A huge thank you goes out to the team of volunteers, who helped break down the pallets, inventory the orders, distribute them to the classrooms and assisted with the pick-ups on Thursday and Friday evenings. We couldn?’t have done it with out you!

?“Teamwork divides the task and doubles the success.?” ~ Unknown ~

Fun Nights ?– The PTO sponsored an ice cream sundae party for kindergarten and 1st graders on Friday, November 21st in the cafetorium. More than 50 families attended (approximately 120 people). The children enjoyed making turkey crafts, coloring, having their faces painted and of course the ice cream sundaes. Mr. and Mrs. Wyatt, Mrs. Petrelli, Mrs. Fonataine and Mrs. Diamante attended as well. Admission was a non-perishable food item. More than 100 items were collected for the Braintree Food Pantry. The 4th and 5th graders that make up the newly formed Morrison Community Service Core (MCSC) will count and pack the items and arrange for their delivery to the food pantry. Thank you to everyone that attended! We hope you had fun! A special thank you goes to Amy Carnicelli for organizing the event. Thank you to all of the Hospitality Committee volunteers for making our first fun night a huge success!

Campbell?’s Labels for Education Program -This year the PTO has chosen to participate in the Labels for Education program to earn FREE merchandise for our school. Participating in the program is easy ?— simply save labels from Campbell products and send them to school in an envelope marked with your child?’s name and homeroom number.
If you have any questions, or would like to help with our Labels for Education collection drive, please contact one of our program coordinators, Janice Weitbrecht at
781-848-9870 or Kelly Marcinkowski at 781-356-6851. If you would like more information about this program and the items we can earn, please visit labelsforeducation.com.

Classroom Communication Network Update ?– More than 100 families have joined the Classroom Communication Network. Every classroom has at least one Communicator. Marie-Anne Baker will be contacting the Communicators shortly to discuss the guidelines. If you have any questions about the program please call Marie-Anne @ 781-843- 1118.


Upcoming Events:

Student Holiday Shopping Fair Update ?– A meeting was held on Wednesday, November 12th to get an update on the Holiday Fair preparations. The Holiday Fair is scheduled for Friday December 5th during school hours. Each classroom will have approximately 15 minutes to shop for the holidays. A schedule will be published by the end of November. Parents are encouraged to come and shop with their children. The Holiday Fair is a fun shopping experience for the children and a great way to support their school. All proceeds will go right back to the children. Most items will be priced less than $2.00 each. The PTO will also sponsor a raffle. If you would like to volunteer please contact Mary Russo @ 781-356-8359.



PTO Meeting ?– The attendance at the PTO meetings in both October and November has been incredible. We have had more than sixty parents in attendance both months. This is more than three times our average attendance in recent years. We appreciate so many of you making time in your busy schedules to be present at these meetings. We welcome everyone?’s participation by sharing your ideas and supporting our organization in a positive way.
The PTO By-Laws have been added to the website this month. We also post meeting agendas and minutes to the website. Please let us know what additional features and information you would like to see on the site. Please e-mail Lisa Heger @ lmh36@beld.net. The website URL is www.neighborhoodlink.com/org/morrisonpto. Updates are posted weekly typically on Sunday evenings.

Please Note: There is no PTO meeting scheduled in the month of December.

Things the PTO Presidents are thankful for?…

Receiving more than 200 drawings and letters of appreciation from the students for their Cultural Arts programs!
The tremendous attendance at the PTO meetings!
Our teachers, staff and administrators who consistently strive to do their best educating our children!
All of the amazing volunteers that have given their time and their hearts!
All of our members who have taken the initiative to share their ideas and put them into action!
All of our fellow PTO officers and committee chairs that have worked relentlessly to get this school year off to a great start!
The overwhelming support we?’ve received from the Morrison families and staff this year!

?“Volunteers are not paid because they are worthless, but because they are priceless.?” ~ Unknown ~

We hope you have a wonderful holiday season filled with many special moments surrounded by family and friends making treasured memories!

Yours Truly,
Lisa, Mary and Marie-Anne