School Announcements:

Summer Learning Program Award Assemblies – Thank you to all the families who participated in the Summer Learning Program! We have 181 medals to award to students for completing 50% or more of their workbooks. The first and second grade assembly will be Friday, October 10 from 9:00 – 9:15 am; the third, fourth and fifth grade assembly will be Tuesday, October 7 from 3:15 – 3:30 pm. Both assemblies will be in the auditorium – parents are welcome to attend. Questions? Helen Starman (hstarman at comcast dot net or 994-8553).

Burns Park Used Book Sale & Silent Auction – Saturday, October 18 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm. The sale will benefit the Burns Park Media Center and The Karen Thomas Memorial Fund (Karen’s son Jonathon is in 5th grade at Burns Park) which supports literacy programs for underprivileged students in the Ann Arbor Public Schools. The silent auction will feature many rare and first edition books, please visit our website for more details about these books. We need your help with the following:

• Donate gently used adult and children’s books; we are accepting all types including: fiction, non-fiction, cookbooks, travel, self help – whatever you would like to contribute. Please bring your books to school by Wednesday, October 15 and place them on the auditorium stage.
• Volunteer to help set up and price books on Friday, October 17 just after drop off OR to help the day of the sale. On Saturday there are three two-hour shifts to choose from: 8:00 am – 10:00 am, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm and 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm. To volunteer please contact Helen Starman (hstarman at comcast dot net or 994-8553)

• Pass the word – tell your friends, family and co-workers about the sale and encourage them to shop on Saturday!

Questions? Andy Thomas (athomas at med dot wayne dot edu)

Sally Foster Gift Wrap Sale – The first major fundraiser for the school will begin on September 29 with the Sally Foster Gift Wrap sale. Please look for the information to come home with your children on Monday, 9/29. With every gift wrap purchase, 50% of the proceeds go to Burns Park School. This is a great time of year to stock up on gift wrap, holiday items and magazine subscriptions. There is online ordering as well to provide easy access for extended family members. The sale will last through October 13. Please help us raise money to fund Golden Apple grants and field trips for the kids! Last year we raised over $7,000 and hope to match that again! Any questions, please contact Anne Steinhauer (acws1012 at hotmail dot com) or Jennifer Osterwisch (josterwi at gmail dot com).

Burn$ Park Buck$ – The Burns Park PTO’s scrip fundraiser, known as Burn$ Park Buck$, is starting its sixth year on Monday, September 29. Burns Park families who participated in this fundraiser last year earned over $8000 for our school without spending an extra dime; they simply changed the way they paid for their groceries and other retail items. Look for a detailed flyer in your child’s backpack mail at the end of the week.

Picture Day – We are seeking parent volunteers to help with Picture Day, Tuesday, October 7. Parents will assist the photographers with administrative tasks, including notifying classes when it’s time to come and helping organize students. The overall time is 8:50 am to 1:30 pm, and we would like to have 2 parents at a time. Depending on how many parents are available, we can have either 2 shifts (8:50-11:10 and 11:10-1:30) or 3 shifts (8:50-10:20, 10:20-11:50, and 11:50-1:30). If you’re able to help, please contact Janice Lieberman (liebermanjanice at yahoo dot com) and indicate what times work for you.

Lunches With Love – This program is still on hold for this week, but will hopefully start next week on Tuesday, October 7th. Please look for an update in next week’s Weekly PTO Notes.

Golden Apple Grant Applications – Golden Apple Grants are awarded by the PTO to parents and staff who seek funding for enrichment activities. There is generally a $500 maximum per application, but exceptions are occasionally made when applicants have no other funding sources. If you have an idea for an enrichment activity, please fill out a Golden Apple Grant Application (it can be downloaded from the PTO website) and turn it in by Friday, October 10th. Applications turned in by this deadline will be reviewed and approved by the October PTO meeting. After that, applications are accepted and granted on a “rolling basis”. Please contact Elizabeth DeRose (ederose at comcast dot net) if you have any questions.

Native Plant Garden Project – The grassy area next to the school near the A-wing entrance has been weeded in preparation for a beautiful garden. The garden will include only plants that are native to Michigan. This will make the garden hearty and easy to maintain. Details about the garden project and the donations needed can be found at: http://groups.google.com/group/burns-park-penguins-care-club/web/native-...
If you don’t have plants to donate, simple cash donations of $5 will purchase a typical native plant. Details for online cash donations for the garden can be found at the link above – or you can give a check made out to Jackie Dalton to the Daltons in person or by mail, or deliver to 1302 Henry St., 48104.

Lost and Found – There are many nice sweatshirts, jackets, boots, and lunch boxes in the Lost and Found. Many items are left from last year as well! Please check the Lost and Found this week!! Any items not claimed will be donated to the PTO thrift shop on Oct 1. For the future, please label your child’s outerwear with the child’s last name as this may help us return the item. After Oct. 1st, all items will be cleaned out on the last day of each month. Lost and Found is located on the 2nd floor, just outside the Media Center/Library.

Community Announcements:

Burns Park Players – Mark your calendars! Burns Park Players production of Annie Get Your Gun on February 5th,6th,7th,13th and 14th! Interested in getting involved? Email producers at burnsparkplayers dot org as soon as possible to find out more about cast and crew opportunities. Cast tryouts October 20th and 21st, callbacks October 23rd! Please visit our website for more information,

Farm Fresh Fridays – Fall 2008 Farm Fresh Friday Schedule:
Grape Tomatoes on 10/3, Beans on 10/10, Carrots on 10/17, Cabbage on 10/24, Acorn Squash on 10/31
The above items will be available on the fruit and veggie bar.

DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Elizabeth DeRose, President
ederose at comcast dot net or 677-0882
Lynda Norton, President-Elect
llnorton at okno dot com or 761-1478