Last night I attended the Zachary Lane Elementary "Parents Night Out". This is an excellent opportunity for parents and school employees to get together in a social setting and have fun. This year it was held at the West Medicine Lake Community Center, which is a great site for such events. The activities included a silent auction, party games, a DJ, food/drink, a live auction and a lot of mingling.
As I sat there selling drink tickets, I pondered the group that was present and noticed that almost all of them were very familiar. First, they were the same core volunteers that make sure things happen at the school. Second, most of them had older kids. (9 yr ZLE veterans like myself) I then wondered what can we do to engage a larger group, and the newer parents as core volunteers. Hopefully someone is their to takeover for the veteran volunteers when they retire to middle school.
The interesting thing is that we can still find volunteers to help out at school events, in the classroom or to fill two hour shifts. The challenge is finding the core organizers who are willing to step up, make the time, and lead the PTO and its necessary fundraising events. These are the jobs that take 100+ hrs per year and are critical to organizing and funding the programs that make the school special. (ie playgrounds, academic offerings, computer equipment, library supplies, etc)
Next year we will lose the "most recent" incredibly dedicated and energetic fund raising coordinator. Hopefully, as the veterans move on the new players come up to the plate to carry on the tradition.
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Sounds like a great event! I can't seem to find many upsides to this mess that district created by closing PLE, SH and SB. But, ZLE can look forward to gaining some of the most involved and highly committed to volunteering parents that PLE had. Hopefully we'll be able to fill in some of your empty blanks with our enthusiasm!
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