Blake High School PTSA

The Montgomery County Coalition is looking for students to help with our meal program at our Home Builder’s Care Assessment Center (formerly known as the Men’s Emergency Shelter) located off of Gude Drive in Rockville. We are currently serving over 200 men, 3 meals a day, everyday. A great Spring Break project; SSL hours are available for this activity. Our meal program guidelines can be found on our website at: http://www.mcch.net/howtohelp/programneeds.html.

To learn more about how this program works, please view this inspirational article about students from Winston Churchill High School. The students themselves have coordinated and prepared several meals Read more »

Give A Little Time… Make A Big Difference

The George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy (The Saturday School) needs your help tutoring! They are a pre-approved service organization. Volunteer at any of the 12 centers on Saturday mornings from 8:15 to 11:45 and make a difference in the life of a child. Choose the center where you would like to volunteer and call today!

Centers are located at the following high schools: Montgomery Blair Albert Einstein Gaithersburg John F. Kennedy Northwest Magruder Paint Branch Rockville Sherwood Springbrook Watkins Mill Wheaton

Interested? Contact the GBTLA Offices at 301.320.6545

Sports Plus, a non-profit organization bringing sports programs to children with mild to moderate autism and other disabilities, needs volunteer coaches for our indoor sports classes at:

Homewood School 10914 Route 108, Ellicott City, MD 21042
SATURDAYS~February 20-March 20, 9:00-11:30 am (volunteers come 30 minutes prior, and stay 15 minutes after)

(Classes are canceled for weather if Howard County School activities are canceled.)

Experience with any sports presented is NOT necessary, but ENTHUSIASM is!! Volunteers can work all or some dates (but contact us soon, since we have a limited number of spots for volunteers each week).

For more information, go to www.playsportsplus.org or contact Diane Golden or Suzy Kennedy, Volunteer Coordinators.

Diane Golden golden4@comcast.net
Suzy Kennedy susan.Kennedy@jhuapl.edu
DIANE GOLDEN
ESOL TEACHER
ASHBURTON ES

We are gratefully accepting contributions of the following items for the Blake PTSA Used Book and Media Sale, which will be held on February 19-21, 2010, at 742 Cloverly St. in the Cloverly Shopping Center:

New or gently used books (hardcover and paperback)—fiction, nonfiction, mystery, science fiction, romance, young adult, children’s, cookbooks, history, politics, health, test prep, foreign language, other

Other media—CDs, DVDs, books on tape, videos, comics, manga

Donation opportunities
At the store: Donations may be brought directly to the store on drop-off days, the first of which is scheduled for this coming Saturday, January 30, from 10 to 1. People will be available to unload your car at the curb in front of the store in Cloverly and, on request, give you a donation receipt.

Donations may be carried into the store Thursday, January 28, 4-7 pm.

At school: Donations may be brought to the Blake High School main office (300 Norwood Drive, Silver Spring, MD 20905).

For more information, contact Orit at 301-384-3324, 240-460-1534, or oritilATyahooDOTcom.

Blake’s 2010 Used Book and Media Sale
Place: Cloverly Shopping Center (742 Cloverly St., Silver Spring, Md.)
Dates: February 19, 2-8 pm; February 20, 10-8 pm; February 21, 11-5

Other dates:
We will also be moving books from the school storage shed to the store on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 26 after school. Anyone who can help load or unload the truck would be greatly appreciated. Students too.

Our first book-sorting party will take place this Thursday, January 28, from 4 to 7 (and later, if anyone wants to keep going) at the store in Cloverly Shopping Center (742 Cloverly St.). If you have a folding table you could loan for that day or for the month, please bring it along–we should try to avoid having to bend over too much to sort the books. Please pass the word along to family, friends, people you see on the street, etc. We can use all the help we can get.

Also,  we’ll be collecting books, DVDs, CDs, and other media at the store on Saturday, January 30, from 10 to 1. All you need to do is pull up in your car, and someone will take your boxes and bags out for you.

Volunteer and SSL opportunities: This undertaking offers many SSL opportunities for students, particularly on drop-off days, during the sale, and immediately after the sale. Have your students contact Ms. Rigney at school or Orit Lowy Chicherio (oritilATyahooDOTcom) if they’d like to help out.

What is the Holiday Giving Project? 
                 
For over 30 years, the Holiday Giving Project has helped low income families in our community by collecting and distributing gifts and food during Thanksgiving and the December Holidays. A network of social workers, school counselors and other professionals qualify and refer those who need help. A coalition of nonprofit agencies divides the county’s zip codes and takes responsibility for meeting the needs of persons referred to the program within their zip code. The coalition includes additional partners such as the Marine Corps Toys for Tots and Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program to make sure information is shared so that more families are able to be served. With the help of hundreds of individuals, families, and corporate, civic, youth and faith groups, the coalition is able to provide holiday meals, holiday baskets, gift cards, toys, etc. Last year 9,000 families received assistance so they too could celebrate the holidays. Interfaith Works is the lead agency in managing the Holiday Giving Project.

If you have any questions or want to explore other ways you can help, please contact Susan Klavon at Interfaith Works, 301-315-1094, sklavon@iworksmcDOTorg.  
 

Documentation of service for which SSL hours are desired must be turned in to the school’s SSL Coordinator (Ms. Erinn Rigney).

2009-2010 Deadlines:

• Last Friday in September: Documentation of service performed in the summer is due. (Friday, Sept. 25, 2009)

• Friday before first semester exams begin: Documentation of service performed during the first semester is due. (Friday, January 8, 2010)

• Friday before second semester exams begin: Documentation of service performed during the second semester is due.(Friday, June 4, 2010)

The Montgomery County Department of Recreation’s KEEN (Kids Enjoy Exercise Now) Club is looking for high school students who would like to serve as teen coaches for kids with disabilities.

Interested teens must attend a Montgomery County public or private high school.  Sessions are held at Tilden Middle School in Rockville every other Sunday afternoon from 3:15 to 4:45 p.m., October through April.  Students will qualify for student service learning credits.

KEEN Club provides a safe and supportive environment for participants to learn appropriate behaviors while developing self-esteem and confidence through sports and recreational activities.Applications must be received by September 18. The KEEN program is sponsored by the Montgomery County Youth Advisory Committee and departments of Recreation and Health and Human Services. For more information, visit www.montgomerycountymd.gov/rec, or call 240-777-6985.

Young people who would like to make a difference in the lives of homeless children are invited to join the County’s Youth Advisory Committee’s “Big Buddy, Little Buddy” program.

Mentors must attend Montgomery County public or private high schools, provide their own transportation and commit to three hours a week at the Greentree Shelter in Bethesda .  Volunteers will qualify for student service learning credits.

Student mentors will assist their “buddies” with homework and arts and crafts projects, plus play games and participate in sports activities with them.  Group activities are planned once a month off the premises.

Applications must be received by September 18. The mentoring program is sponsored by the Montgomery County Youth Advisory Committee and departments of Recreation and Health and Human Services.

For more information and to print an application for the program, see http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/rec/teens/flyers/bigbuddy08final.pdf; or call 240-777-6985.