AWS Newsletter
Staying connected through the seasons!
Autumn 2020
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Click on the above image for a video peek into Fall 2020 at AWS created by AWS Alumnae Drew Kemp with photos and videos taken by faculty and staff.
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Your Support Keeps AWS Going!
Dear Family and Friends of Aurora Waldorf School,
It’s so hard to stay still, isn’t it?
I don’t need to tell you how precious the summer months are to us here in Western New York. Our long winters mean we make the most of any warm weather, packing our days with travel or group sports or simply spending time with the people who love us.
The loss of those experiences can make it feel like time has stood still since March. But if you have young people in your life, you know that time never stands still. They will grow and learn this year just like any other. They deserve an education that recognizes what it means to meet them in this moment.
I was originally going to open this letter by saying 2020 is a year none of us could’ve prepared for. Then I went back and reread the letter I wrote last fall. It opened like this:
Preparing people for the future is a challenging task. [...] It starts by accepting that we can’t possibly know what the future holds for [our students]. It’s not enough to want children to succeed in the adult world. We must recognize that they will be the ones to shape and lead it. We’re preparing them not simply to make it in the future, but to actually make the future.
Right now we are all in a moment that is making the future. The 2020-2021 school year will not look like the year that came before, and neither will the year that comes after this one. We have prepared for this future as best we can.
We continue to prepare for it, every day, by bringing our classrooms outside in all kinds of weather, by building movement and screenless activities into our remote learning modules, by recreating communal events in virtual spaces. To learn more about how we are adapting ourselves to respond to this moment, read our recent front-page feature in The Buffalo News and article in the East Aurora Advertiser.
This year our students will learn, as we all are learning, the roles we have to play as members of a community and of a society. We are all reimagining what it means to care for ourselves and one another. Sometimes it means we see each other less often, or less closely, or perhaps only through a screen. Sometimes it means learning to stay still.
We have had to cap our enrollment to preserve safe and healthy classroom sizes and increase our tuition assistance for families experiencing financial uncertainty. This means we are receiving only $7,257.22 per student from tuition. Educating one of our students costs, on average over $12,000, plus the priceless resources that are our faculty and staff’s time and energy. We are still bringing the same education with the same values to our students, but we have had to rethink every aspect of how we are bringing it to them. We have reached an unprecedented level of “doing more with less,” and, as ever, we are relying on donations from people like you to help us make up the gap.
I hope you will join me in giving generously to the AWS Annual Fund. If you have already given, thank you! If this letter has you feeling inspired to give again, please know that it’s never too soon. Though we cannot be together as a community in the ways we’re used to, this is one action we’re able to take from a distance. It will make all the difference.
Sincerely,
Brooke McAdam
AWS Class of 2001
President, Board of Trustees
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Golden Thread Events
Keeping our community connected!
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Dear AWS Community Members,
We miss you! ❤️
While this year needs to look a little different, our need to connect, as a community, is as strong as ever. Please join us for the Golden Thread Events, starting in November. These (nearly) weekly virtual events are open to AWS community members of the past, present, and future. Do you know someone interested in learning more about AWS? Please share their info with Vicky Lucca at vlucca@auroraws.org, and she will send them an invite.
We are looking forward to seeing you and your children for guided, simple, nature crafts, storytelling, and a monthly community playdate/game time.
Registration is limited to 20 participants per session - a family registering with a single email is considered one participant. The events are free, with donations gratefully accepted to benefit our beloved school. To register, click below on the activities and dates you want to join. If you change your mind, please unregister to open up the space for someone else.
Craft Time, 4:30-5 pm, Wednesdays
Story Times, 4:30-5 pm, Thursdays
- 11/12 - A Childhood Tale told with American Sign Language by Maggie (Naughton) Warren
- 12/10 - TBD
Game Times - join us for a virtual community playdate,
4:30-5 pm, Wednesdays:
- 11/18 - led by Jaime Thompson
- 12/16 - led by TBD
Parent Times - A supportive discussion for parents in our community, 8:30-9:30 pm, Thursdays:
- 11/19 - led by Libby Kershner
- 12/17 - led by TBD
We hope to see you soon!
Jaime Thompson and Libby Kershner
The Golden Thread Weavers
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Holiday Fundraiser
Presented by Parent Council
Christmas Trees, Poinsettias, and Wreaths
Place your orders online for pick up from AWS on Saturday, December 5th. Pickup times and details to be announced.
- Sunday, November 8th - deadline for tree orders
- Tuesday, November 24th - deadline for wreath/poinsettia orders
We invite you to reach out to family, neighbors, and friends to purchase some holiday charm through our Fundraiser.
For more information or to volunteer, please contact Parent Council Chair Christina Walsh.
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AWS Book Fair 2020
Welcome one and all to AWS Annual Steiner Book Fair! This program offers us an excellent opportunity to buy quality books at a savings to you and to generate funds for our school. The school store will donate all of the profits from the book fair to the school. The more books we order, the larger the contribution to our school!
This year we will be utilizing an online catalog and ordering. Check out the AWS Online Book Fair site!
The site describes many of the available books – many, many more books than we can carry in the school store! We can also order any of the books listed on the Steiner Books’ website (SteinerBooks.org). If you are interested in ordering books from Steiner that are not on the School Store site, just send an email to store@auroraws.org with your list.
To ensure that the books arrive in time for the Holiday Season, we need your orders no later than November 20, 2020.
Please share the link to invite friends, relatives, and neighbors to participate.
As this is a special order program, the books we order cannot be returned or exchanged unless they are damaged when the store receives them.
Happy Reading!
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Winter Faire Alternative Activities
We are all disappointed that we cannot host the annual  AWS Winter Faire this year and have been brainstorming ways we can send small bits of Winter Faire magic to your homes. As many of you know, a significant aspect of our traditional Winter Faire has been the opportunity for children of all ages to craft and create. With that in mind, we will be selling a variety of craft kits through the AWS school store. If you place your order through the school store on or before Small Business Saturday, November 28th, your order will be ready to pick up on Saturday, December 5th (the same day as the tree, wreath, and poinsettia pickup).
These kits are made-to-order. Any orders after November 28 will take up to 1 week to process and can be mailed directly to your home or picked up curbside at AWS. See below for examples of the craft kits available.
We are also reaching out with elements typically found at Winter Faire through the Golden Thread Events. These virtual events offer opportunities to experience guided crafting, storytelling, and games with community members. Additionally, there is a special time set aside for parents looking to connect with one another.
Craft Kits Available
- Candle Decorating
- Six Panel Ball
- Folded Paper Box
- Transparency Star
- Hedgehog hand puppet (knitting)
- Little White Goose (knitting)
Available via the new online AWS store. We keep adding new items, so check back frequently!
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If you're ordering groceries online, you can now simply forward your e-mail receipt from stores like Target or Wegmans to get your box tops credited to our school. No clipping or scanning required! Please visit https://www.boxtops4education.com/emailgroceryreceipts for a list of participating retailers and email forwarding instructions. Thank you!
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AURORA WALDORF SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENT
Providing a place where children love to learn,
educating children for all aspects of life, and
fostering capacities within to become successful,
self-assured adults who contribute to a better world.
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