Help Send Kids to Science Camp by Eating Spaghetti
On Friday, November 19th, Tomales Elementary School (TES) will be holding a 5th Grade Spaghetti Feed as part of the fundraising needed to send the children to science camp next spring.
The dinner will be held in the Tomales Elementary School Gym from 6:00-8:30pm, but to-go orders are available between 3:00-5:00pm.
Adults – $10 and children under 12 – $7 will get a full meal of spaghetti, salad, bread, and drinks.
Mr. Nokes, the music teacher for both Bodega Bay Elementary and Tomales Elementary, will provide music.
A bake sale will follow the dinner, and a raffle will be held with gift baskets being donated by each class in school.
Half of the money raised by the raffle will go to the fifth graders and half to the other grades contributing.
“It is hoped that by conducting a raffle of this type each year going forward, each of the classes behind this year’s 5th grade class will start to create a fund to use to attend the Fifth Grade Walker Creek Camp.”
The above was part of the promise of school fundraising stated by the TES PTA within a grant application to the California State PTA asking for additional funds to help pay for the camp fees.
It costs $277 per child for lodging, meals, and classes for 4 days and 3 nights at the camp that was established years ago by the Marin County Office of Education in the hills of West Marin.
There are currently 22 5th graders at TES so over $6,000 needs to be raised.
Bodega Bay Elementary has three 5th graders at this time and funds are being raised by its PTA, according to TES’s PTA President Tammi Salas.
Both schools are in the Shoreline Unified School District which has just the one school in Sonoma County with the rest in Marin County.
Generally students from Bodega Bay go on to the combined elementary/middle school in Tomales that serves K-8th graders and then on to Tomales High.
The camp offers a learning experience with classes in science, art, and music that many of the students would not otherwise receive.
It is also meant to bring the children to a closer appreciation of nature
and strengthen their belief in themselves and their abilities even when away from home or the usual school classroom.
Being rural schools with small student bodies and a high percentage of low income families (who cannot afford to send their children to the camp) combined with budget cutbacks in programs involving art, music, and science, the need for a grant and support by the public is very necessary.
Salas said that this spaghetti feed will be just the first in a line of fundraisers for this school year with car washes and other events to follow.
Next May, when it is time to send the kids to camp, they may end up not going if not enough money has been raised.
For tickets for the November 19th Spaghetti Feed, contact TES at 707-878-2214 and ask for Debbie Royer or Meredith Leask.
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Good luck with your sale this week. I particularly like the convenience of your ‘food to go’ promotion. This should prove to be convenient for a lot of busy people out there!