Have You Seen This?
The greatest endorsement ever: when one parent tells another how much they appreciate all that happens at Woodlawn School. Recently, Heather Ward (mother of first-grader Nate) wrote a heartfelt note to all first grade parents, explaining why her family supports Woodlawn School and the Woodlawn Annual Fund. We are grateful that she has revised it to reflect the whole school, and has permitted us to share it more widely. Many thanks, Heather — and many thanks to everyone who has supported the Woodlawn School Annual Fund.
(from Heather Ward, first grade parent):
I’m sure many of you saw the email after Spring Break from Annual Fund Co-Chairs Kary and Rush Watson, and Colleen and Hampton Hager, regarding our progress toward the Annual Fund goal this year.
Whether or not you have donated yet to the 2015-2016 Annual Fund, I know that all of you make regular contributions to our Woodlawn community — financially, as volunteers, as survey participants, and even just as supportive parents. For these we should all be very proud.
However, the Woodlawn Annual Fund is a significant part of Woodlawn School’s livelihood, as it is for all private schools, and also requires your participation. Just like any non-profit, Woodlawn relies on the generous donations of its participants to meet both annual budget needs (tuition currently covers only 83% of budgetary needs) and non-budgeted costs. Non-budgeted costs may include enrichment opportunities for teachers, programming for students, improvements to our physical plant, unanticipated hires, etc. All of these items have a direct and positive effect on our children’s school experience at Woodlawn, and on improving the quality of our community.
In a community, one gives and receives. Giving and receiving is a gift; relying on others when you need help, assisting others when they need help. This is how we connect with one another, how we exist beyond ourselves, how we create meaning in our lives.
This academic year, the Woodlawn Annual Fund, by way of donations from our community, was able to lend support to other community members in need. Woodlawn School witnessed nine current families encounter unforeseen crises: five families unexpectedly lost their primary income, and four families were struck with medical emergencies. With a small percentage of the Annual Fund, we helped provide these families some stability and hope — that their children could stay at our school, that they would be embraced during their time of hardship.
Giving and receiving reflects who we are at Woodlawn School. I choose to teach Nate this now; I want him to feel the spirit and reward of giving as a child. I want him to learn to give and to connect. Our family has donated to the Annual Fund this year, and I am proud to say that Nate has given his own personal donation.
Please see below to see where your class stands for participation — then, let’s do our best to increase these numbers. If you have not yet given, I ask you to join in support of this annual tradition, to demonstrate your support for the faculty, the staff, and the families who embrace your family.
With sincere thanks,
Heather Ward
Currently, we stand at 55% of our goal, with 50% of our families participating. Here’s how our classes compare, with regard to percentages of families contributing to the Annual Fund:
Like other nonprofits you support, Woodlawn’s program fees – in our case, tuition – cover only part of annual expenses. The remainder is covered by additional income, primarily gifts from donors like you. Our students and teachers benefit from your generosity. Click here to learn more.
Your annual fund parent leadership team
[widgetkit id=”163″ name=”AF 2015 Team Members”]
