Anne J. MacArthur Parent Council Newsletter
We hope everyone had a safe and fun
summer! The 2014/15 year was nothing short
of amazing and Parent Council is so proud of
all that was accomplished to support school
improvement and community initiatives
throughout the year.
2015 - 2016
Contact Us…
E-mail
ajmchair@hdsb.ca
Find us on the web
http://ajm.hdsb.ca
Visit our Facebook page –
Anne J MacArthur PS,
Parent Council
For those parents that are new to the AJM family, we welcome you and
encourage you to participate in Parent Council. Meetings are held on the
second Wednesday of each month from 7-8pm in the library and child care is
available free of charge. It’s a great opportunity to meet other parents, staff
members and hear first-hand about upcoming events and activities within the
school.
We all know about the ETFO job action and sanctions currently in place for
teachers, secretarial and custodial staff. Although we are limited in our ability
to organize fundraising events, we are very fortunate to have the support of
our Principal Kathy McArthur and Vice Principals Melissa McKenzie-Wells and
Cheryl Hayles. With their support, Parent Council is excited to share that we
will be sponsoring the following events over the next few months:

WHY DOES PARENT
COUNCIL EXIST?
Parent Council exists so that
parents can have a say in
their children’s future.
During the monthly
meetings school-related
issues such as safety, budget
allocations, fundraising
policies and more are
discussed, offering parents
an excellent opportunity to
contribute ideas or sit back
and listen.
Members of the parent
council know that decisions
made at these meetings
have a direct effect on their
children, and want to stay
informed. Have your voice
heard and join the parent
council or simply come out
to our monthly meetings.



PIZZA DAYS will be starting as of Fri Oct 30th. Since we are relying
entirely on parent volunteers to run the program at this time, we have
had to change the money and form collection procedure. We
encourage the use of Cashless payment to avoid having to drop off
forms and cash to the school. Thank you for your cooperation.
KIDSSENTIALS will be serving lunch at AJM every Wednesday starting
Oct 14th. Visit http://www.kidssentials.com/parents and create your
family account, to view the menu and place an order.
SPOOKY DANCE will be held on Fri Oct 23rd. Students are asked to
donate a toonie ($2) on that day for entry and a glow band.
HOLIDAY BAZAAR is tentatively scheduled for Sat Dec 5th, however
may be cancelled due to school sanctions
Many elementary schools do not have any events or fundraising activities
taking place while the job action is in effect, in fact some are not even holding
Parent Council meetings. Your AJM Parent Council is committed to making
the best of this situation by trying to maintain a fun and engaging school
environment for our students. A lot of extra time is being put in to make
these events happen. However, we cannot continue to support activities with
only a handful of people. Now more than ever, we are counting on parent
volunteers to help us carry out these events smoothly. Whether you can come
out to distribute pizza, count money, set up and work the doors at the Spooky
Dance, every little bit helps! Please send us an email at ajmchair@hdsb.com
Our fundraising efforts from last year continue to benefit the school with the
recent addition of a new staff member (who will be named very soon!) and
the purchase of “buddy benches” which will also be installed soon. With
school and classroom websites not being updated during job sanctions, please
visit our Facebook page – Anne J MacArthur PS, Parent Council for important
messages and updates.
1 of 2
1 of 2
Volunteering
Fundraising in Action…
Common Questions & Comments

“I’d like to volunteer but don’t know how to get
involved.”
We are always looking for volunteers. Getting in
contact with us is as easy as e-mailing
ajmchair@hdsb.ca We also have a parent
council mail box so feel free to leave us a note.

“English is my second language, can I still
volunteer?”
Yes please, we would be happy to have your
help! We need help in many areas, counting
money, distributing posters, putting baskets
together, setting up events etc.

“I don’t have time to volunteer.”
We understand that everyone leads busy lives
with work, family commitments, classes and
clubs. We usually only require about an hour of
your time for a particular event. We are always
sensitive to time restraints and appreciate any
amount of help offered.

I can’t volunteer during the day.”
No problem, we may need someone to make
calls to local business, hand out flyers or help set
up for an event. There are a variety of
opportunities during both the daytime and
evenings.

“Does my time really make a difference?”
Yes, yes yes!!! Without volunteers and parent
participation we would not be able to host the
amount of events that we do which would result
in fewer funds raised and fewer resources
available for our students.
Outdoor Electronic Sign
Basketball Nets
“New Staff Member”
Pizza Lunch Program
Buddy Benches
2 of 2
3 of 3