PTO End of Year Newsletter - Monsignor Clarke

We are looking forward to summer… Just a few more PTO events…

Before we call it a wrap on the 2022-2023 school year:

Book Fair (Tue-Fri, May 30th-June 2nd): There is still time to volunteer for the Scholastic Book Fair – Tues & Wed 9am-12:30pm slots are open (button below). You can also set up your child(ren)’s eWallet at the Book Fair Website.

FAIR SCHEDULE:

Tue*: PreK (Angeli), K, 1, 7R and 8P
Wed: 2, 3, 4, 5, 8R
Thr*: PreK (Wray and Grundy), 6P, 6R, 7P
Fri: the fair will be open 12:30-2:30pm for ANY student who still wants to visit the fair

*the fair is staying open until 3:30pm if parents wish to purchase books in-person

Field Day (Friday, June 2nd): Team assignments and grilled lunch order confirmations are going / have gone home with students this week. Volunteers and Teachers can expect more information via email this week.

MCS Annual Golf Tournament (Mon, July 10th): Our golf committee has been hard at work planning an epic Golf Tournament at the beautiful and private Quidnessett Country Club. Don’t sleep on this opportunity to golf at this great course; registration includes both lunch and dinner with 18 holes of fun and spirited golf. There are several ways to families can be involved in this important fundraiser for the school:

Register to play!
Sponsor as a business or through a family tee sign!
Volunteer to help with the tournament on July 10th – full or half days
Donate an item for the raffle or silent auction. We are also looking for top shelf liquor or wine for the “Booze Raffle”

Let’s reflect upon what we’ve accomplished this school year:

all events coordinated with local businesses

We started off the year strong with our biggest ever Halloween Spooktacular – over 400 people attended!
PTO funded blessed bibles for Middle School Students (a long-standing tradition at MCS)
We held a comedy night for parents featuring 3 local comedians
We followed up with a fun weekend at Clark Farms where families had a chance to enjoy a nice Sunday together while Middle School students enjoyed a fun Saturday flashlight night in the corn maze
We moved into the holiday season with a Christmas Festival showcasing many locals artisans at MCS and (in the PTO’s humble opinion) the best pictures with Santa in Rhode Island!
We held the highest grossing book fair in MCS history this winter (coinciding with Christmas Festival week)!
We held a pre-Christmas Parent’s Night out at Whaler’s Brewery featuring food donated by Twisted Pizza
We held 4 parent/student events, another long-standing MCS tradition: inclusive of ALL MCS students
- Mother / Daughter Pottery Luncheon
- Father / Son Nerf Night featuring Pizza and snacks
- Father / Daughter Dance – A Night Under the Stars
- Mother / Son Bowling Dinner
We held a BONUS Middle School Night at Rock Spot Gym – a climbing pizza party (thank you chaperones!)
We held a second Parent’s Night Out at the Tilted Barn with live music and food truck
We held our first ever Color Run at the end of a Color-a-thon fundraiser, bringing smiles and prizes to so many MCS students and families. If you missed the video Mark Murphy created for the Color Run, catch it HERE
We held a Family Day at Adventureland which turned out to be a BEAUTIFUL day (after the rain date was implemented)
In addition to the events we advertise in the PTO section of the Friday email – the PTO Board also put on:
- A Welcome Back breakfast for MCS staff in September
- A Holiday breakfast for MCS staff in December
- A week of FUN for Teacher Appreciation Week in May.

What a FUN year it’s been!

Kids dressed as MCS Staff during Teacher Appreciation Week:

Families enjoying the Father / Daughter Dance (left) and Father / Son Nerf Night (right):

The best Santa photos offered in RI (we think) this past Christmas season:

Trunk or Treat at the Halloween Spooktacular (left) and First Annual Color Run (right):

Let’s Give Out Some Accolades:

FUNDRAISING: Together, we raised over $10,000 for the school this year!!! As a result, the elementary bathrooms are planned to be remodeled this summer.
Our goal is to double that ($20K) with the MCS Golf Tournament in July!
PARENT VOLUNTEERS: We cannot put all these fantastic, family-friendly and inclusive events without the amazing parent (and grandparent) volunteers at MCS. THANK YOU to everyone who volunteered for one (or more!) events this year and especially to our parent volunteers who stepped up to chair events, often for the first time.
MCS Staff: I’m sure you’ve noticed how many clubs, sports, events/activities, field trips, special guests and all around amazing enrichment activities the school as a whole puts on each year. This is all in addition to the school’s ‘day jobs’ as educators! The MCS staff juggle A LOT and we’re so appreciative that they’re always supportive of the PTO and our desire to try out new and fun things
MIDDLE SCHOOL VOLUNTEERS: We have so many amazing student volunteers that work HARD to help at each event. They’re often the first to show up and the last to leave. We appreciate our volunteers SO MUCH!

A heartfelt “thank you!” to those board members whose terms are up this year including:

Julie Johnson who has been a wonderful, dedicated and incredibly hard-working President
Lisa Stanelun who is our fundraising and golf tournament legend; raising $20k+/year for the school the last two years!
Jillian Woodworth who has been an awesome social chairperson for what was an unparalleled PTO year; more than a dozen social events to choose from!

We are truly indebted to them for their incredible work on the PTO for the past two years!

What will the 2023-2024 School Year Bring:

Looking ahead to 2023-2023, you will see:

some excellent and enthusiastic new faces on the PTO Board
An entertaining and strategic lineup of exciting FUNraising and FUNDraising events for student enrichment and building improvements
Updated parent communication and meeting strategies

Stay tuned for our new board announcements and more exciting 2023-2024 PTO event details!

We welcome feedback at any time!

Please email us with questions, comments and ideas!

What a FUN year it’s been!

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