PONY EXPRESS

NEWS FROM THE MME PTA

Fall is in the air and with that brings fun school activities that bring us together like the Mustang Fun Run (please sign up to take pledges and volunteer) and the NEW Autumn Dance Party!

IMPORTANT PTA DATES

Fri Oct 4: Mustang Fun Run (Volunteers Needed)

Fri Oct 18: Autumn Dance Party, 6:30pm @ MPR

Wed Oct 30: Davis Parent University Lecture Series: An Evening With Ned Johnson, 7-9pm Brunelle Theater

Nov 16th – 22nd: Fall Book Fair

Sat Feb 8: MME Annual Auction & Dinner

IN THIS ISSUE OF THE PONY EXPRESS

• Mustang Fun Run – Time To Register Your Student

• NEW: Autumn Dance Party

• NEW: Committee Meeting for MME Annual Auction & Dinner

• Volunteers Needed – Círculo de Lectura

• Kona Ice Fundraiser for 6th Grade

• Active4Me Program Info

• Volunteers Needed – Pioneer Elementary Auction

• Regal Movie Fundraiser

• Davis Parent University Lecture Series Info

Only 2 Weeks Away: Mustang Fun Run

Friday, October 4, 2024 8am – 1pm

Get your running shoes ready, the Mustang Fun Run is on its way! This year our entire school is fundraising to keep and expand the enriching programs at MME such as Baile Folklorico, field trips, SEAL and more. Our goal is to raise $20,000 and we invite you to help us! Our 99Pledges website is up and this week information packets went home with students. You can register your student with our online platform by either signing up directly on 99Pledges (just scroll down and click on the red button that says “add participant”) or by returning the orange permission slip to the office. Registering for online donations allows friends and family to easily donate and support our school.

Please visit and share our fundraising site at 99Pledges with family and friends!

We would love for parents to participate in our fun run day to hand out water, cheer/help the kids and pass out Otter Pops at the end of the run. To sign up for a volunteer shift, please go to:

Sign Up Genius for Preparing for the Event

Sign Up Genius for the Day of the Event

If you have any questions please contact Stephanie Hockman at mmemustangrun@gmail.com.

MME Auction Planning Committee Meeting: Sept. 26

Mark your calendar for the MME Auction on Saturday, Feb. 8! Not only do we rely on the auction to raise about 70% of our PTA funds each year, but it’s a fun event to meet and mingle with the MME parent community.

If anyone is interested in helping support our auction planning process this year, we’re holding our first formal meeting on Sept. 26 from noon-1:30. It’s open to all, so please reach out for further details if you’d like to join.

If the timing doesn’t work for your schedule but you have an interest in learning more, below are just a few of the ways you can help support the auction:

Donation Solicitations: local businesses you frequent, youth activities your kids are engaged in, gyms you belong to, etc. are all fantastic opportunities to secure donations.

Live Auction Donations: any connections to large packages (timeshares, major event tickets, “fun jobs” that can accommodate a student shadow, wineries, professional service packages (landscaping, tax filing, etc.), monthly services/goods (golf lessons for a year, etc.)

Graphic design needs

Event games planning

Decor planning

Organizing class art projects/teacher outings

Please contact Marissa Zschoche at marissandoug@gmail.com or 303-506-2497 for further details on how you can help.

Volunteers Needed – Círculo de Lectura

Círculo is MME’s 100% volunteer powered, take-home reading program for all students in grades K-3.  Thank you to everyone who signed up to volunteer this school year!  We appreciate your commitment to MME students.

We still have three volunteer shifts to fill.  Can you help?  Do you have 30 to 60 minutes once a week to exchange books? The work is easy, can be completed anytime during the school day and training is provided.  We cannot provide books to our students every school day without volunteers for all classes.

For 1st – 3rd grades, we still have the following shifts to fill:

Manzanedo:  Mondays & Wednesdays

Nava: Mondays

Contact your child’s teacher or program coordinators Amitha Reddy (amithasmith@gmail.com) or Nina Cossy (ninacossy@me.com) to let us know when you can volunteer!

Support the 6th Grade Field Trip

Come Support our 6th Graders by grabbing an after-school treat at the Kona Ice truck. All proceeds will go towards 6th grade field trips, t-shirts, and the end-of-year promotion ceremony. Kona Ice will be on campus, in the parking lot next to Catalyst, Monday, September 23rd, and Thursday, October 3rd at 2:30pm.

Active4.Me Bike & Walk to School Program

Active4.Me is a program at MME (and other Davis schools) brought to you by the PTA that encourages students to bike or walk to school. Students carry a barcode tag on a keychain that is scanned by volunteers once they arrive at school, and caregivers are automatically notified via text or email.

To sign up, please collect a registration form and barcode tag from the MME office, or ask a volunteer scanner who will be by the bike racks in the morning. Once you have completed the form, please return it to the office or a volunteer, and make sure to attach the barcode tag to a backpack or other item that your student will bring to school every day.

The form will ask you to supply a username. Please choose a name that your child will like and remember. The username can be used if the barcode is accidentally left at home or temporarily goes missing. If the tag is permanently lost, a volunteer can arrange for a replacement.

One more thing: some experienced volunteers have scanned for long enough that they remember many of the usernames. But every year brings new students, and most likely some new scanners. So please remind your student to come up to the scanner in the morning to show their tag or tell them their username to make sure they get scanned and you get a message to confirm that they have arrived at school.

Many thanks to Stefan Uhlig, our volunteer Active4Me coordinator and all the volunteers who help our students scan in each day!

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: PIONEER AUCTION SWAP – OCT. 11

We’re in need of volunteers to help with Pioneer’s auction on Oct. 11 at 5:30 p.m. Our schools organize a volunteer swap for our auctions, and we strongly rely on the pool of volunteers that Pioneer brings to our MME Auction each year. Pioneer is asking for volunteers to help only during the event itself, until about 10 p.m. – no setup or cleanup support needed!

And believe it or not, we’re already hard at work planning MME’s next Annual Auction & Dinner! Please save the date for Saturday, Feb. 8. We promise it will be an event you won’t want to miss!

Regal Movie Bundle to Support MME

Enjoy movies with a purpose!

Until November 14, 25% of each Regal Movie Ticket Bundle you purchase will be donated back to MME PTA, when you buy via our fundraising sales page. Treat yourself, your friends, and family to an unforgettable movie night in support of a great cause! Grab your tickets here: grouprai.se/regalcinemas45136s

Davis Parent University Lecture Series

October 30, 2024 Brunelle Hall, 7 – 9 pm PDT

Ned Johnson

National bestselling author, speaker, and educator

With research-backed guidance, relatable scenarios, and instructive dialogues, Ned will discuss:

• How to communicate with our kids to deepen the parent-child connection and build skills, resilience, and motivation

• How and why to be a non-anxious presence in your family

• How to navigate hard conversations about homework, bedtime, screen time, and more

• How to help kids conquer their fears and anxieties and pursue activities that bring joy and happiness

• How to become trusted allies to our kids and promote their autonomy

More Ways to Support the PTA

• Buy some MME spirit wear or car magnets on our Square Site.

• Watch this newsletter for volunteer opportunities

• Become a member of the 2023-2024 MME PTA by filling out a quick google form and paying the $12 Annual Membership fee.

• Attend monthly PTA meetings (in person or on Zoom)

• Participate in PTA fundraisers

• Do you shop at Nugget? If so, you can support MME while you shop at no cost via Nugget’s Community Scrip Program. Pick up a Nugget Scrip card at the MME office. All you do is hand your scrip card to the cashier to scan and a portion of your grocery transaction will go directly to the MME PTA.

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 mmeparents-leave@mailman.dcn.org.