Thank You for a Successful Community Celebration and Auction

Versión en español

Hello Sacajawea families- 

Thank you all for joining us at school last Friday, April 28th, for our community dinner and online auction kick-off. It was a fantastic event with delicious food, fun games, dancing, and being together. In addition, we gathered our families to celebrate each other and our shared love of our school and community. It was a delight. 

Pulling together a dinner to feed the whole community was no small feat, and several people worked very hard to pull off this event.

• Genevive Richmond and Rosario Alexander served and took care of the fantastic food.

• Heather Platisha beautifully decorated our cafeteria.

• Bill Richmond staffed the gymnasium's epic dance party.

• Chrystol White greeted and helped answer attendees' questions.

• Lara Sim ran the delicious dessert auction.

• A vast collection of folks brought cookies to share and unforgettable desserts.

• Laura Riley, Jenny Waller, and Emeline Meneken enthusiastically and energetically ran the punch cup tables.

• Mr. Reddecliffe shared his beautiful photos

• And, of course, David, our kind, selfless evening janitor, helped us restore everything to its proper state.

Without volunteers like you, there was no way we could have this event. THANK YOU all so very much!

Our online auction was also a success, which is because of this community and the generosity given with your time, donations, and support! Thanks to you, we raised nearly $15,000. Your giving will help the PTA fund many of our initiatives at Sacajawea in the upcoming school year.

Also, thank you to our incredible room parents who pulled together awesome gift bundles and coordinated with big-hearted families in their classes. To everyone who handmade, crafted, asked a business, nudged a friend, or volunteered their time to donate items, thank you!

Thank you to Ryan Schmidt, Chad Pfarr, and Karen Murphy for working with our students on the beautiful art projects! They came out wonderfully.

To everyone who participated in our auction and bid on items, you have our gratitude. 

And finally, to Jessi Friedrichs, the mastermind of this entire event, thank you. Our community is lucky to have you, and thank you for creating this experience for us all to enjoy. 

We hope you all enjoyed your experience as much as we enjoyed putting this on. 

If you have a moment, please give us your feedback on this form. Your input will help us plan our future events. Thanks in advance for providing kind, constructive feedback. 

We hope to see you all at some of our other events this spring!

Versión en español

Gracias a todos por acompañarnos el pasado viernes 28 de abril en la escuela para nuestra cena comunitaria y el inicio de la subasta en línea. Fue un evento increíble, con comida deliciosa, juegos divertidos, baile y estar juntos. Reunimos a nuestras familias para celebrar el uno al otro y nuestro amor compartido por nuestra escuela y comunidad; fue un placer.

Organizar una cena para alimentar a toda la comunidad no fue poca cosa, varias personas trabajaron muy duro para llevar a cabo este evento, Genevive Richmond y Rosario Alexander sirvieron y se encargaron de la comida increíble, Heather Platisha decoró hermosamente nuestra cafetería, Bill Richmond estuvo a cargo de la épica fiesta de baile del gimnasio, Chrystol White saludó y ayudó a responder las preguntas de los asistentes, Lara Sim realizó la subasta de deliciosos postres y para todos los que trajeron galletas para compartir y postres inolvidables, Laura Riley, Jenny Waller y Emeline Meneken, con entusiasmo y energía, dieron el golpe tazas, el Sr. Reddecliffe, quien compartió sus maravillosas fotos, preparó el equipo, limpió el equipo y, por supuesto, David, nuestro amable y desinteresado conserje nocturno. Sin voluntarios como usted no habría forma de que pudiéramos tener este evento. ¡¡Muchas gracias a todos!!

¡Nuestra subasta en línea también fue un éxito y gran parte de eso se debe a esta comunidad y la generosidad brindada con su tiempo, donaciones y apoyo! Gracias a ustedes recaudamos casi $15,000. Gracias a nuestros increíbles padres de salón que reunieron increíbles paquetes de regalos y se coordinaron con familias de gran corazón en sus clases, a todos los que hicieron a mano, hicieron manualidades, pidieron un negocio, empujaron a un amigo, ofrecieron su tiempo para donar artículos, Chad Pfarr, Karen Murphy , y Ryan Schmidt por trabajar en los hermosos proyectos de arte y a todos los que pujaron por los artículos. Y a Jessi Friedrichs, autor intelectual de todo el evento, somos muy afortunados de tenerte, gracias por crear esta experiencia para todos nosotros.

Esperamos que hayas disfrutado tu experiencia tanto como nosotros disfrutamos poniéndolo. Si tiene un momento, envíenos sus comentarios en este formulario. Esto nos ayudará con nuestros eventos futuros. Gracias de antemano por brindar comentarios amables y constructivos.

BLM at School: Loving Engagement and Empathy, and Intergenerational Revolutionary Black Arts

Hello Sacajawea Community,
 
Vesión en Español

National Library Week is April 23-29. One of the first places to start following our own interests, libraries can introduce us to stories, art, history and more. We are centering the contributions of Black writers and artists who embody the March and April guiding principles of Black Lives Matter at School: Loving Engagement, Empathy, and Intergenerational. We highlight three creatives—James Haskins, Jasmine Mans and Bisa Butler—whose work has focused on highlighting a facet the Black American experience that has been ignored by the broader culture. How are the themes and radical vision that they brought to their art reflected in your classrooms and communities? 

James (Jim) Haskins

Growing up in the 1940s in Alabama during segregation, Jim Haskins wasn’t allowed to check out books from the public library. A determined reader, Jim read all the 200 books in his school library and a set of encyclopedias. As a college student, he joined the student civil rights protests. Later, when Jim began teaching in Harlem, he had a difficult time finding books that interested his Black students. Jim decided to write his own, culminating in over 100 books about Black Americans who shaped American culture. "I knew exactly what I wanted to write -- books about current events, black history and important black people so that students could understand the larger world around them.”

Jasmine Mans

An American poet and performance artist, Jasmine Mans published her first book of poetry, Chalk Outlines of Snow Angels, in 2012. Her recent book of poems, Black Girl, Call Home, explores the relationship between Black mothers and Black girls. “Tell me who my mother was before she was my mother,” writes Jasmine. Her book examines how Black girlhood intersects with culture, including homophobia and matrimony across generations. Jasmine uses language to rewrite the archetype of the strong Black woman by focusing on the nuances of the complex life lived by Black women, regardless of age.

Bisa Butler

Bisa Butler is a fabric artist who describes her quilts as a photo album of Black families living in the diaspora. Learning to sew from her mother and grandmother, she chooses a vibrant palette of fabrics for the quilts. Bisa’s first pieces depicted people that she saw in her grandmother’s photo albums. Later, she used photos of Black families she found in the National Archives. Often the only information with the photo was the location, resulting in the erasure of any individual identity. Bisa wanted the anonymous people in the photos.

What can you do to learn more?

• Read John Lewis In The Lead or Champion! by James Haskins

• If you have 3 minutes, listen to Jasmine Mans read from Black Girl, Call Home.

• If you have 5 minutes, watch Bisa Butler talk about her art and creative process. Bisa Butler: Portraits | Exhibition Stories

Dig Deeper

• Black Children’s Books and Authors website

• Faith Ringgold reads Tar Beach (Younger kids)

• Art exhibit at Wa Na Wari, a Black-led space for Black people, Black art, and Black stories located in Seattle’s Central District, through April 14th.

Volunteer with Us!

There are many ways to be involved with our Sacajawea Parent Equity Team. A few of the ways to join us are below. Please contact equity@sacpta.org. 

• Join a monthly virtual meeting. Meetings are the first Wednesday of the month, 7-8:00pm.

• Volunteer to write one of our bimonthly newsletters. It's a great way to learn and share, and you won't have to do it alone. 

• Event volunteer

With gratitude,
Sacajawea’s Parent Racial Equity Team
equity@sacpta.org

BLM at School: Audre Lorde and Toni Morrison - January/February #BlackLivesMatter

Dear Sacajawea Community,
 
Versión en español

Hello Sacajawea Community,

We are highlighting Audre Lorde and Toni Morrison in this newsletter. They share a February 18 birthday. Each author made significant contributions to literature and embodies the January and February guiding principles of Black Lives Matter at School: Queer Affirming and Unapologetically Black. Lorde and Morrison wrote about Black female experiences, facing opposition that sought to silence their voices. They remained true to themselves, despite the hostility they sometimes faced. Their legacies live on with the power of their words.
 
Audrey Lorde

Audre Lorde was a self-described "black, lesbian, feminist, socialist, mother, warrior, poet.” To be encompassing so many identities and face oppression on so many different levels, makes her strength and perseverance mind boggling at times. Her voice and her identity resonates strongly with the BLM at school principle of being Queer Affirming. Her words continue to ring true for many other oppressed people and remain relevant over twenty years after her death.

Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison used her voice to write honestly about the black experience, and even more specifically about the female black experience. She brought to life the people and places that had often been ignored throughout history. Her work is intense and beautiful and bold. Her work encompasses the BLM at School principle of Unapologetically Black through lifting up black lives. And the BLM at school principle of Black Women giving the space to be seen, heard, and valued. Toni Morrison became the first black woman to win the Nobel Peace prize for Literature.

What can you do to learn more?
Talk to your students about the info presented above. Ask them what they have been learning in class about the BLM Principals; use this website as a guide: BLM AT SCHOOL - Home (blacklivesmatteratschool.com)

If you have 3 minutes, read 5 Best Audre Lorde Books to Read Right Now
If you have 3 minutes, watch Toni Morrison - Writer & Playwright | Mini Bio
If you have 6 minutes, read Beyoncé and Lamar show what it means to be ‘unapologetically black’
If you have 6 minutes, watch At the intersection of LGBTQ pride and Black Lives Matter

Dig Deeper 
Black Lives Matter at School: Unapologetically Black Book List
The 5 Best Toni Morrison Children's Books
I am Perfectly Designed (Younger kids)
Julian at the Wedding (Younger Kids)
12 KID-FRIENDLY LGBTQ COMICS (Older Kids)
Graphic Novels by Black Authors and Illustrators (Older Kids)

Volunteer with Us!
There are many ways to be involved with our Sacajawea Parent Equity Team. A few of the ways to join us are below. Please contact equity@sacpta.org. 

• Join a monthly virtual meeting. Meetings are the first Wednesday of the month, 7 - 8pm.

• Volunteer to write one of our bimonthly newsletters. It's a great way to learn and share, and you won't have to do it alone. 

• Event volunteer

With gratitude,
Sacajawea’s Parent Racial Equity Team
equity@sacpta.org

BLM at School: Introduction to the 2022-2023 School Year

Dear Sacajawea Community,
 
Versión en Español

Hello Sacajawea Community,

The Parent Racial Equity Team is happy to share our first newsletter of the year with you. We hope that many people had the opportunity to learn more about the team and our work at the November 3 Heritage Potluck. It was great to share all the delicious food with many students and their families! The feedback we heard is that families would like to see more events that bring our Sacajawea community together. Please email the Equity Team at equity@sacpta.org with your ideas and let us know if you would like to help with a future event. 

The Equity Team is dedicated to helping uproot racism, understanding that the work is a long-term effort that requires reflection as well as action; and to celebrating our diverse community. Learn more about the Equity Team on our Sacajawea PTA page.

Black Lives Matter at School provides a Year of Purpose framework to move educators and parents beyond a Week of Action. This year, BLM at School is asking people to submit “testimonials (audio, video, image, text document) that answer" the Self Reflection Questions posed to introduce a year of purpose. You can find out more about this initiative and submit testimony at BLM at School YOP. 

Because we’ve missed a couple months of newsletters, we are sharing the Year of Purpose (YOP) focus for October and November.

October - Justice for George becomes Abolition Day
George Floyd’s birthday, October 14, has become “Justice for George” day, a day to reflect on the murders of Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade and many others in order to spark discussion and justice-oriented work to transform our communities. BLM at School has expanded this day to Abolition Day to pay tribute to the continuing legacy of Black-led abolitionist organizing. 

November - Black Trans Lives Matter

November 20 recognizes Transgender Day of Remembrance to honor Black Trans lives. The day marks a BLM principle to be Transgender Affirming. Transgender people and gender non-conforming people experience discrimination and higher rates of violence than other groups of people, particular transgender people of color. See Pacific Northwest Black Pride and Human Rights Campaign to find resources and learn how to be an ally.

National Indigenous Heritage Month

Many families have probably heard about what their students learned during our National Indigenous Heritage Month to celebrate the rich cultures of Washington state Indigenous History. Did you know that Washington’s first Indigenous poet laureate is Rena Priest? Appointed in 2021, her two-year term will run until March 31, 2023. KNKX has a great introduction to her work and her goals as the state’s poet laureate. 

Our school, of course, is named after an Indigenous woman whose history has often been misrepresented. Although there is much that remains unknown about her extraordinary life, you can read a brief history here: Sacajawea. 

What can you do to learn more?

If you have 3 minutes watch Martha Redbone's beautiful rendition of Sleep Sleep Beauty Bright.
If you have 4 minutes (or more!) read How to Explain Thanksgiving to Your Kids: 5 Tips to Center Native American Voices.
If you have 9 minutes read 4 Ways George Floyd’s Murder Has Changed How We Talk About Race and Education.

Dig Deeper with the resources 
Books
Telling the Thanksgiving Story from a Native American Perspective (book list)
We are Grateful
Sarah Rising
Breonna Marches Through Time

With gratitude,

Sacajawea’s Parent Racial Equity Team
equity@sacpta.org

Kindergarten Tours

Join an in-person tour or virtual Teams event, designed to introduce new families to our Sacajawea Community!

Virtual: Tuesday, January 31st at 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Click here to join the Sacajawea Teams meeting

In-Person: Monday, February 6th at 8:30-9:30 a.m.

School Day Campus Tour and Q&A. Please RSVP to Charlene Shanahan cyshanahan@seattleschools.org