Congratulations to our Nominees and Award Winners!

Congratulations to our PTA Award Nominees and Winners. We have many amazing people at Sacajawea, we truly appreciate all of you!

Our Golden Acorn Awards recognize exemplary and outstanding volunteerism and service to our PTA, school, and community.

• Robin King (Adri & Mieke’s Mom) –Robin has led the Parent Equity team this year, meeting the challenge with innovative, intentional thinking that matches her investment in forwarding racial equity. She spearheaded the Heritage Potluck which was a festive, fun heartwarming event!  

  Many people stated how much they appreciated this gathering. Robin’s spirit and commitment to equity are integral to her tremendous contributions to our school community. She’s a great collaborator and fun to work with.

  She has worked continuously to form connections between families to strengthen and build our school community, as well as find ways to keep everyone engaged and excited.

• Jessi Friedrichs (Jack’s Mom) – Jessi has pretty much single-handedly taken on all the fundraising events at Sac this year. She did an awesome job on the Move-a-thon and the Auction and Community dinner was fantastic because of her. She brought new ideas and activities to both events and no doubt spent countless hours planning, collecting, calling and organizing. Her cheerful attitude and friendly demeanor make it easy and fun to work with her! She's also taken on the huge role of Treasurer for our PTA. Total rock star!

• Karen Murphy (Leonie’s Mom) – So many of you recognized Karen’s hard work over some very challenging pandemic and post pandemic years.  As PTA Co-chair, her leadership has been essential to advancing the PTA’s mission of supporting the education, community, and health of the students and families of Sacajawea.  Karen is also Sac’s Family Support Coordinator and strong advocate for our students with the Packs for Kids Program, community partnerships and seeking out resources. She and her husband, Chad have been the driving force behind the Arts and Culture Committee for many years – helping to create the amazing student auction artwork every year and continental focus t-shirts.  Karen has been a Room Parent, set-up and cleans up at every event, chaperones field trips and helps in the classroom.  She is passionate about inclusivity and is always thinking about more equitable ways to improve our school and PTA.

Our Outstanding Educator Award recognizes a member of the staff who has made exceptional contributions at Sacajawea to enhance the educational outcomes of our students.

• Ryan Schmidt — Best Art Teacher Ever! Every kid at this school loves Mr. Ryan!  Here are just a few nice things said about him in the nominations:

  • He is kind and funny!  

  • He makes sure that all the kids have a place that they belong.

  • The art work for the auction was so cool.

  • I love the work he puts up in the halls and the towns and villages. It brightens our school!

  • Art has been such a wonderful outlet for my child this year. Mr Ryan is such an awesome teacher of art techniques and options that help kids learn while also being free to express themselves.  We're very lucky to have such a dedicated, kind and patient teacher. I wish any of my art teachers growing up were like him... maybe then I'd be able to draw! 😆

The Roy Norman SHINE Award is given in honor of Ms. Norman’s (our Admin Secretary of many years) late husband. Roy was an amazing man who fully embodied the SHINE principles at Sacajawea of being Safe, Helpful, Inclusive, Neighborly, and Engaged!

Congratulations to our three fantastic SHINE winners.

• Karla Sclater (Zack’s Mom) – 6 years at Sac - Karla has been such an important part of our PTA for the last several years. It's hard to imagine Sacajawea without her.  Karla was a critical part of our BLT - serving well beyond the two year term!  She is our PTA secretary, is a parent rep on many hiring committees, volunteers in the classroom, shows up for lunch and recess support and has always been willing to lend a hand when needed.  She was the driving force behind our Arts Festival before the pandemic and led the Arts and Science Fest this year.  Her commitment to the PTA equity team, safe roads to school, grants team, Packs for Kids and the new fund sharing alliance have made Sacajawea a better place and reflect her unwavering personal dedication to social justice and equity.

• Erica Cox – Fifth Grade Teacher – As a first year classroom teacher, Ms. Cox jumped into a huge class of fifth graders - with thirty-four individual personalities - and she did it with so much love, wisdom and grace. She has been an awesome role model for the students in her class, teaching them empathy, how to support one another and build confidence as well as holding them to high academic expectations. She has worked hard to be a mentor and guide and has taken very seriously her role in preparing her students for the challenges of middle school. Erica’s dedication to Sacajawea is impressive - she was the only Sacajawea staff chaperone at IslandWood this year; she shows up to all our PTA events and even went to Renton on an early weekend morning to support our Girls on the Run team; she is also an active member of our staff Racial Equity team. Her good humor and joy are a welcome addition to our community and we are grateful.  Erica, You rock! 

• Laura Riley (Kate’s Mom) – 9 years at Sac - Between Joey and Kate, The Rileys have been at Sacajawea for nine years and from day one, Laura has “shown up” with an unstoppable energy and enthusiasm! She has been a driving force in the PTA and has volunteered countless hours over the years. She has organized the Move-a-thon and Book Fair, streamlined PTA membership, coordinated the Directory, been a sought after Room Parent, served on the executive board as both PTA co-chair and Treasurer, chaperoned field trips, helped at lunch, volunteered in the classroom and pitched in at every event.  Laura is the go to person when you need an answer, she is welcoming to new families and old friends alike, she is a caring and passionate advocate for our kids and she exemplifies community.  

  One nomination says it perfectly…”Laura is a natural leader that the community and parents respect, appreciate, and will miss after this year.”

Upcoming Vote for 2023-2024 Executive Board and Budget

At our June PTA board meeting, we reviewed and voted to put forward our budget committee’s proposed budget to a membership vote in June. The budget is roughly $82K (equal to last year) and is fully funded through a combination of donations from this school year and roll forward from our current budget. The two biggest buckets of expenditure are Staff & Support ($44K) and Arts & Culture ($22K).

View the proposed budget.

Also, at our June board meeting, we reviewed the nominating committee’s slate of nominees for our executive board. Each position has one nominee, and our members will vote to approve these nominees at our June general membership meeting.

The slate of nominees is as follows:

• Co-chair: Justin Pritchett (2nd of 2-year term)

• Co-chair: Currently vacant

• Treasurer: Jessi Friedrichs (2nd of 2-year term)

• Secretary: Liz Meders

We’ll vote as a membership on these items during our June 21st, 2023 Ice Cream Social and Awards Ceremony. The event will be held at 5:00pm on the lower playground.

2023 Sacajawea PTA Award Nominations

Each spring, Sacajawea PTA seeks nominations for our Golden Acorn, Outstanding Educator and the Roy Norman S.H.I.N.E. Award.  These awards celebrate the people in our community who have gone above and beyond to make Sacajawea a wonderful place for our students and families.  Please submit your nomination by Friday, May 26th.  Awardees will be announced at the Ice Cream Social on June 21st.

Golden Acorn Awards
Every year three deserving volunteers receive a Golden Acorn Award.  The Golden Acorn is a Washington State PTA award given by local PTAs recognizing exemplary and outstanding volunteerism and service to the PTA. Golden Acorn nominees should be active volunteers in PTA, our school and/or our Sacajawea community.

Outstanding Educator
This award is given to an individual (teacher, instructional assistant, staff member, administrator -- anyone on staff at school!) who has made significant contributions to our school and community and has helped to enhance the educational, social-emotional outcomes and well-being of our students.

Roy Norman SHINE Award
We are proud to continue the tradition of presenting the Roy Norman SHINE Award. Roy Norman is the late husband of Doreen Norman, Sacajawea’s Admin Secretary for over 20 years who retired in 2022. Roy was a fixture at Sacajawea Events and exemplified the SHINE values that are at the heart of our Sacajawea community (Safe, Helpful, Inclusive, Neighborly, Engaged). Nominees for this award will also have demonstrated SHINE values in how they have supported our school and community.

Please Submit your nomination online by Friday, May 26th.

Thank you!

Sacajawea PTA Awards Committee
(Karen Murphy, Justin Pritchett & Charlene Shanahan)

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