
President
Andrea Kalvas
(440) 886-1371
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! I sat down at my dining room table with a cup of tea to write this message but instead got mesmerized by the scene outside my front window. The snow is already about a foot deep and right now is coming down in a beautiful soft flutter. It’s floating down and landing in silence on the existing blanket of snow. It’s so quiet and cozy in my house and so cold and snowy outside. These are the moments of life that somehow touch my soul with tranquility. I also love the snow because we ski, so snow has always been a positive thing to me, especially the powdery snow that fell yesterday and today. I love to bundle up the kids and watch them enjoy the snow. We have so much fun in the snow. If only we could find a way to have snow without the cold. I guess that’s what heaven is for.
We had our special budget meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 25th and it went very well. We’ll discuss all the details at our next meeting. For now I just want to let everyone know that it looks like we’ll be Okay if we can do well selling Tupperware and do one other fundraiser. Which brings me to the bake sale.
We’re planning a bake sale at Dentzler School on Election Day, March 7, 2000. We will need people to work at the bake sale and all members must bake. All bakery must be dropped off at Dentzler School between 6:45 P.M. and 7:45 P.M. on March 6th or before 9:00 A.M. on March 7th. We will send out a reminder message through the calling committee. Thanks to Denise Petek for coming up with the idea of the bake sale and for setting it up with the Principal of Dentzler.
Our next meeting is our "Mom’s Night Out" at 6:30 on February 8, 2000. It will be held at Marco Polo’s on Brecksville Road. If you haven’t signed up yet, and would like to attend, please call Joyce Hinkle to let her know you’re coming. We will have a short meeting after dinner since we have some important matters to discuss. It’s going to be a nice evening; I hope you’ll be there.
Keep selling that Tupperware! Don’t forget orders
are due in by February 8, 2000. If you are not going
to "Mom’s Night Out" make sure you drop off your orders at Laura Ponikvar’s house or my house by Feb. 8th. We need all members to turn in an order.
Once again I would like to congratulate Cheryl Meriwether for her great job on our web site. Cleveland.com chose our web site as site of the week! Our name appears in two places:
www.cleveland.com/community and also www.cleveland.com/cc/schools . Way to go Cheryl ! We really do have a great group this year!Say "Yes2Kids" by creating a special Valentine memory for them. Let them know they’re your special valentines.
1st Vice
Joyce Hinkle
(216) 524-2627
Hopefully most of you will read this after a delicious dinner, fun conversation, and a brief meeting at Marco Polo’s. If any of you receive this before the Mom’s night out and don’t want to come for dinner, the owners have no problem with members coming after we eat. (between 7:30-8:00). Please come for a drink and bring those Tupperware sales!
In March we will be meeting at Seven Hills City Hall (thanks to Donna Santabarbara for arranging this!) and after the meeting we will make a spring craft. Linda Goodwin (a former Preschool PTA member) has agreed to do this for a small fee ($5.00 or so). So please come and let your creative side shine!
Council Delegate
Cheryl Meriwether
216-328-9723
The following is from the January 12, 2000 Executive Board Meeting of the Parma Council of PTAs:
For those of you on-line who like to send e-cards go to
www.e-cards.com . A donation will be made to either World Wildlife Fund or The Nature Conservancy every time a card is sent."There’s only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it."
Chesire Proverb
Attention: Meeting Place for March and
April Meetings
Our group was granted the use of the multi-purpose room at the City Hall building in Seven Hills for the March and April meetings. The address is 7325 Summit View Drive which is off of Hillside Rd. in Seven Hills. The room that we will use is in the back of the building so upon driving up the drive, turn right when you get to the building and go around to the parking lot in the back. There is one main entrance which faces west where you will enter. The room is straight through the foyer. For those unfamiliar with Seven Hills, if you pass Green Valley school heading east on Pleasant Valley Rd. continue until Broadview Rd. Turn left, heading north, until Hillside Rd. (just past the Seven Hills Bowling Alley). Turn right on Hillside Rd. and go to the first blinking light which will be Summit View Dr. Your drive will be about 3 minutes longer if you live west of Green Valley.
Sherri Spagnola
Sunshine
(440) 888-2528
Anyone hearing of news regarding major family events about members and their families, please contact me.
Nutrition
Joyce Hinkle
(216) 524-2627
Consider the following advice before jumping to conclusions about any nutrition reports or diet recommendations. A combination of these signs should send up a red flag of suspicion.
1. Recommendations that promise a quick fix
2. Dire warnings of danger from a single product or regimen
3. Claims that sound to good to be true
4. Simplistic conclusions drawn from a complex study
5. Recommendations based on a single study.
6. Dramatic statements that are refuted by reputable scientific organizations
7. Lists 0f "good" and "bad" foods
8. Recommendations made to help sell a product
9. Recommendations based on studies published without peer review10.Recommendations from studies that ignore differences among or groups
Source:Food and Nutrition Science Alliance
Nominating Committee News
I want to thank everyone who has agreed to serve on the Nominating Committee including Mary Herrmann, Cheryl Meriwether and Sherri Spagnola. The goal of our committee is to nominate candidates for the dynamic executive board for 2000-2001. The offices include:
President: presides over meetings
1st Vice: arranges speakers, sets program for each meeting, makes booklet
2nd Vice: organizes fundraisers
3rd Vice: plans outings for children
Treasurer: keeps all financial records
Secretary: takes meeting minutes, reports volunteer hours, writes thank you notes
Council delegate (2 + 1 alternate) attends Parma Council meetings
The five of us are working hard to make the upcoming year great and it all starts here. Eight people are needed so please consider accepting a nomination to one of these positions. Working together, everyone's job will be easy and we will all have fun. Remember, our kids are counting on us.
Donna Santabarbara
Special Education
Cindy McGuire
(440) 845-9676
Vision Tips for Children
Routine vision care is every bit as important for children as routine medical care. Eye doctors urge parents to be sure their children receive eye exams at several key points: shortly after birth, by six months of age, before entering school (4 or 5 years old) and periodically throughout school years.
Children should be checked first by their pediatrician or general practitioner as part of their pre-school evaluation. If problems are found, the child should be referred to an eye specialist.
There are often clues to tip you off that a child deserves a special eye test. One such clue is a family history of eye-focusing problems. There may be possible eye trouble if a child:
If your child exhibits one or more of these signs, seek professional eye care. Untreated eye problems can worsen, which may affect areas such as learning ability, personality and adjustment in school.
A routine eye exam pinpoints vision problems and helps children with vision difficulties, increasing their learning potential.
School Readiness
Cindy McGuire
(440) 845-9676
Did you know that the U.S. Government offers more than 200 free or low-cost publications of general interest, including many on child-related topics? An updated U.S. Consumer Information Catalog is issued four times a year. Two interesting entries listed in the most recent catalog were Helping Your Child Succeed in School. (50 cents) and Helping Your Child Learn to Read (50 cents). To order pamphlets or get on a mailing list, send your name and address to Consumer Information Catalog, Pueblo, CO 81009.