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EMJS PAC Update
April 8, 2020
 
Upcoming events for your calendar
  • Apr 10-13: Neighbourhood Egg Hunt! (see details below)
  • Apr 14: Shannon Husk webinar on internet safety, 7:30pm
  • Apr 23: PAC Meeting via Zoom, 7:30pm
  • May 28: PAC Meeting via Zoom, 7:30pm
We're all in this together!
  • In these unprecedented times, EMJS PAC hopes that you and your family are safe and healthy at home. 

  • We would like to say a big THANK YOU to all the EMJS teachers and staff who are working so hard to re-imagine how learning for our children can happen outside the classroom! 

  • This is a challenging time for everyone, and we appreciate that PAC updates and meetings are probably not on your radar, but with this newsletter we wanted to highlight a few things on the calendar, and some virtual ways we can connect with EMJS families. 

  • We have heard of several online get togethers of EMJS families in the past few weeks, which is fantastic! If class parents want to organize a class party or other online social extracurricular get-together for their class families using a platform such as Zoom, but they aren't familiar with the technology or have questions on how to use it safely, please email us at comms@emjspac.ca
  • We have activated a Classified ads feature in the secure area of our hotlunches site for families to request or offer support to other EMJS families. See details below.

  • We encourage all our families to join us making noise every night at 7pm to show our support for all the essential workers during this global crisis.  We have shifted the start times of all our upcoming online events to accommodate this.
Neighbourhood Egg Hunt!
  • Speaking of essential workers, we have heard the Easter Bunny is considered an essential worker! However, because of the current situation the EB may not be able to get to all the homes they would normally visit, and so we want to invite all EMJS families to join us in putting on a community egg hunt this weekend April 10-13.

  • To participate, all you need to do is draw or paint a picture of a decorated egg and put it in your window. 

  • For those who are able to go for a neighbourhood walk with their families this weekend, see how many eggs you can find!
Webinar with Shannon Husk on internet safety
  • We are hosting our first webinar! Shannon Husk will present on internet safety and children's screen time on Tuesday, April 14th at 7:30pm.
    • Please register for the webinar here to get access (maximum of 100 registrants due to account limits):
      https://us04web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_R220LiLrSo6LkONeKFy0cQ
    • If you are unable to attend the webinar, we will provide a link to Shannon's presentation on the hotlunches website after her talk. 
    • Please note that if you already registered for Shannon's talk using the link we sent out last month, you will need to register again via the zoom link above. If you have any questions, please email us at comms@emjspac.ca

  • The Vancouver Island Parent Conference provided documents from two of their speakers.
Join our next PAC meeting via Zoom!
  • We hope you can join us for our next PAC meeting on Thursday, April 23rd at 7:30pm via Zoom.

  • Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, we planned for the April meeting to be our AGM. However, given the current situation, we will postpone the AGM elections until May 28.

  • We are still actively looking for new members for the PAC Executive for next year! If you are interested in putting your name forward for a position on the PAC Executive (Chair, co-Treasurer, co-Secretary, Member at large) please email us at exec@emjspac.ca. Or if you, or one of your friends, is interested in learning more about the Exec roles, please get in touch - exec@emjspac.ca or read about the roles here.
Hot lunches
  • We have 3 remaining hot lunches scheduled for this year. If we can reschedule any of them before the end of June (i.e., if our kids do return to school before summer and running a hot lunch can be done safely within health guidelines) then we will attempt to do so.

  • Please note that we cannot offer refunds for any lunches ordered that we are not able to reschedule. Instead, the funds collected for these lunches will be put toward programming for our kids next year. We anticipate that fundraising opportunities may be greatly reduced over the coming months and as noted above, we will discuss PAC budget implications of the COVID crisis at the next PAC meeting.

  • In lieu of our next hot lunch April 15, here are 50 great ideas for making pizza at home: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/articles/50-easy-pizzas  And if you can't make or buy a traditional pizza crust you can put pizza toppings on a slice of bread, bagel, tortilla, crackers, or invent something new! 
Grade 5 Fundraisers & Celebrations
  • Obviously, the Grade 5 board game night will not take place on April 9th. In these uncertain times, it isn't clear what year-end activities will look like for Grade 5s but we will be sure to keep you informed as we learn more and work with the school to ensure this important milestone is not missed for our students. 
Request/offer support for/to EMJS families
  • Many of you may be wondering if there is a way to request or offer support during this time. 

  • We activated a Classifieds feature within the secure area of our hotlunches website. After logging in you can go to the Classifieds section under the Information tab and post an ad to offer your help (e.g. if you are available to run errands for someone), or indicate that you need a service (e.g. if you are self-isolating and unable to leave home to buy groceries and need something picked up), have items for sale, for loan or free, or have items that you need for your family. 

  • While this may not be as slick as other sites such as Varagesale or Used Victoria, this may give you another option within the EMJS community of families so please check it out when you get a chance: https://emjs.hotlunches.net 

  • While logged in to hotlunches, remember you can also access your class list under the Information tab if you want to be able to call or email other families in your class to help your child stay connected.

  • Please continue to maintain physical distancing, hand washing and other health guidelines while working with us to care for, connect with, and support one another.
In our community
Support our Hot Lunch suppliers
On behalf of our regular hot lunch suppliers who have had their business affected by the pandemic... You can support these local businesses at this time:
  • The Milk Run - would you like to have Island Farms milk, eggs and other products regularly delivered to your home every week? The cost includes a markup to cover delivery but may help you reduce the number of trips you must make to the store and only needs to be set up once compared with online grocery shopping. They deliver all Island Farms products https://www.islandfarms.com/en/products plus eggs and iogo yogurt in a 16x100ml variety pack (strawberry, vanilla, cherry, raspberry). Call 250-658-0666 for information on booking if you are in Downtown, James Bay and Fairfield.  Contact Oak Bay Dairy 250-544-1875 if you are in Oak Bay or Fernwood.
  • White Spot - the Fort street location is open for takeout and delivery!  
  • Hot House Pizza - open for business every day from 11:30am to 8:00pm and provide pick-up, delivery, and pizza by the slice options. 
Online resources from the District and Ministry of Education
There are so many online resources for children and families, it is hard to keep track! Some that have already been advertised by the school or school district include:
Local online resources and shopping options If you know of any other great online programming or other resources for kids and families, please let us know at comms@emjspac.ca and we can include the link in our next newsletter. 
What are some easy ways you can help raise funds for the PAC during the COVID-19 crisis? 
  • Your EMJS Thrifty Foods Smile Card can be loaded every time you shop and Thrifty Foods generously donates 5% of what you load on the card back to our school to fund an infrastructure project of our school's choosing. We continue to fundraise for a gym projector that has been high on the school's wishlist ($6000). Every little bit helps!
  • Load up your EMJS Fairway Market Community Card and use it at Fairway Markets the same way as the Smile Card.
  • When buying bread at Cobs Bread on Oak Bay Avenue, tell them you have a “Dough Raiser” account under the name “Margaret Jenkins”.
  • Before your bottle returns are processed at any Return-It Bottle Depot location, let the attendant know you would like the payout to go to “École Margaret Jenkins PAC” (currently, only the Glanford Ave location is open)
  • More details about these programs: https://emjs.hotlunches.net/admin/view-doc.php?dnum=9694
About this newsletter
This newsletter is written by parents for parents to communicate information to interested members of the school community. Every parent/guardian at EMJS is automatically a member of the EMJS PAC; therefore, the views expressed in this newsletter may not represent the views of all, and while editors strive to ensure the information is correct, the school itself and school calendar shall be the trusted source for official school news and announcements.
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Ecole Margaret Jenkins School Parent Advisory Council · 1824 Fairfield Road · Victoria, Bc V8S 1G8 · Canada

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