2021-2022 End-of-School Year Special Newsletter |
We wanted to take a moment to thank you for a great year! As our school year comes to a close we would like to thank all of our family volunteers who have helped organize and run PTA activities and events at Harrington this year. We are grateful and proud. The Harrington Parent Teacher Association is a vibrant organization of parent volunteers with a mission to promote the health and quality education of our children and foster collaboration between parents, the Harrington school staff and the community. We have a few important open positions for the Fall. Please let us know if you’d like to help! To volunteer – email HarringtonConnects@gmail.com
Karen Roses (co-president) Wei Ding (co-president) Keri Caron (outgoing co-president) Meg Tabela (incoming co-president) |
New Incoming Co-President Note Hello! My name is Meg Tabela, and I’m excited to be a part of the Harrington PTA Leadership Team for the 2022/23 school year. I have two daughters at Harrington, rising 4th and 2nd graders. My mission for the next school year is to focus on our community and to help cultivate new friendships and relationships inside and outside of the Harrington walls. I hope we can continue to build our parent volunteer group, and I especially want to work hard to embrace our younger student families, who have had two particularly challenging Covid years. I believe strongly in volunteering and community, and I feel so lucky to be at Harrington. Please email me directly if you have any ideas or questions. I can’t wait to get started in the fall! Have a great summer! Meg Megharringtonpta@gmail.com |
A Shout Out to the 5th Grade Graduation Committee The 5th graders celebrated their final year at Harrington in Hawk style! The celebration, yearbook (shout out to Kelley Garson!), pool party and ALL the planning would not have been possible without the AMAZING leadership of Rohit Bhargava and Lynne Sheeley. These two exceptional parent volunteers coordinated the many tasks that made the celebration so special for the 5th graders. Thanks also to the many committee members who helped along the way! The PTA is looking for two 4th grade parents to take the helm for next year's graduation. Yes, already! Please reach out to Emily Sayre (ebballard@gmail.com) if you are interested! |
| A Thank you Message from Safe Route to School Safe Routes to School would like to thank all of the Hawks parents and families for each and every day you chose biking, walking, scooting, carpooling, and bussing to school! Each day you encourage your child to choose a greener way to get to school, you are helping our school and local community and our global efforts to protect our green earth! Even parents who need to drive for specific reasons have been more mindful of not idling in the pick up line.Thank you! Every effort, no matter how small, helps. Walking & Biking or other forms of active transportation provide independence, socialization, and exercise, and are great for the environment! Not sure which routes are safest? Check out the Safe Routes to School maps. We also recommend seeing suggested routes for walking & biking in Google Maps. If you would like to be involved in helping with the creation of "walking school busses" or "bike trains" in the fall, or if you have ideas about how to encourage folks to choose greener routes to school, please reach out to Emily Sayre ebballard@gmail.com. |
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| A Special Thank You to All the Room Parents The PTA wishes to send a special thank you to all the room parents this year. Room Parents play a very special role in class celebrations and communications for special events, as well as acknowledging teachers for the work they do every day! Thank you to all the parents who have contributed to the class funds so that the Room Parents can make these special events and gifts happen! A big shout out to Bridget Koha for training and organizing these efforts as the Room Parent Coordinator. We couldn't have done it without you! |
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A Huge Shout Out to Meg Tabela for the Teacher Appreciation efforts The PTA would like to give a HUGE shout out to Meg Tabela for single handedly leading the Teacher Appreciation efforts this year. The teachers were showered all year long with special messages, treats, breakfasts, luncheons, and more! And aren't we lucky to have such fantastic teachers and administrators? This is one of the most rewarding jobs on the board and the PTA is looking for 2 parent volunteers to organize these efforts for next year. Please talk to a PTA board member to find out more! |
| A Very Special Thank You to the Green Team The PTA wishes to give a very special thank you to Jill Ward and Jill Weng, our Green Team Coordinators. Not only have they restarted the green team efforts during lunch time and at community events, but they have worked with some dedicated teachers to care for the raised bed gardens. How lucky we are to have a learning garden program? Our Green Team leads our volunteers in supporting school and Town-wide efforts for composting and recycling. The team works directly with our school, LPS, and DPW to reduce our school’s carbon footprint and enhance environmental education. Learn more here: https://www.lexingtongreenteams.org/ The Jills will need an army of volunteers in the fall to continue these programs. Volunteering during a lunch block once a week or once every other week is a great way to see children interact with their peers and for parents to get to know other classmates. Please be on the lookout for sign ups and ways to help. Lastly, Rising 5th Graders, get ready to be trained as Green Team Helpers! |
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| Do you believe in miracles?!? The PTA does! At the beginning of this school year (after a two year hiatus)we never could have imagined that we could pull off a town wide / flagship fundraiser and community event! But if Covid has taught us anything it is to never underestimate the power of a group of inspired teammates working together toward a common goal!! This fundraiser may have been one of the most successful that Harrington has ever had! Our community of parents came together and we had nearly 100 volunteers! A special shout out to Our PTA Presidents Karen Roses, Wei Ding, and Keri Caron. A GIGANTIC thank you to the HarryPalooza Chair, Myha Danner. And a special shout out goes to Megan Rogaris for putting together the amazing raffle table! Lexington companies and Harrington families really showed up for us and generously donated as Sponsors! We are so grateful —your generosity is truly impactful and we are so appreciative that you believed in us. We hope we made you proud! The 2022 HarryPalooza Team has already met to debrief and brainstorm ways to improve for next year! PLEASE consider joining next year’s team! Please email megharringtonpta@gmail.com if you would like us to add your name to our 2023 volunteer information list (no strings attached!)! We have a wide range of jobs from 1 hour day-of event to leadership rolls! This is a great way to meet parents while supporting our school and kids! |
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"The Kindness Rocks Project" Family Night, 4/28/2022 |
| "The Kindness Rocks Project" Family Night (April 28) was filled with lots of kindness and positivity! Thank you to all who joined us for our first first in person community event in 2 years! Music, pizza, and kindness rocks - it was so wonderful to see Harrington families connecting with one another with kindness. So many beautiful kindness rocks were created that night by children and adults! This event would not have been possible without help! A huge thank you goes to the many parent (and teacher!) volunteers who helped Mrs. Carpenter pre-paint rocks, set up, Mod Podge rocks throughout the event, and clean up!! The saying is true ... "Many hands make light work" ... YOU ROCK!! - Mrs. Angela Carpenter |
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🎈🎈🎈MA State PTA Awards🎈🎈🎈 |
| Principal Jackie Daley was named Outstanding Principal of the Year!
Mrs. Angela Carpenter received Outstanding Elementary School Teacher of the Year!
“They are incredible educators who pour their hearts and souls into our kids every day, and Lexington is a special place because of dedicated people like them,” Dr. Julie Hackett said. Jackie and Angela, we are all so proud of you!!! ðŸ‘ðŸ‘ðŸ‘ðŸ‘👠From the Nomination Team of the Harrington Elementary School PTA |
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The Harrington Fun Run, 9/26/2021 |
| A big thank you to all those who participated in the Fun Run! It was a wonderful first event of the school year filled with joy and school spirit. The event would not have been possible without Ms. Gerrior, Ms. Carpenter, Ms. Daley, Dr. O'Connor and all the other teachers who entertained and cheered us on from the sidelines. A special thanks to Harry (or Harrietta?) the Hawk who never ceases to make us all smile from ear to ear! And last but certainly not least, a HUGE shout out goes to Lynne Sheely and Jeannine Dickholtz for making it ALL come together for the best Fun Run yet! |
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Calling all Harrington Hawks! Prepare to lace up your sneakers this fall and save the date for Harrington’s Fun Run taking place Sunday, October 2, 2022. Mark your calendars! We can’t wait to run with you! |
Harrington Spirit Wear Sale, Fall 2021 and Spring 2022 |
| Harrington Spirit Wear Sale Thank you to all the families who supported the Harrington Spirit Wear program by making purchases at the sale! It was a great event that helped us raise funds for our school and community activities. Many thanks to Ms. Daley and Ms. Minasian who helped us get the word out! The sale would not have been so successful without their hard work and strong support. At last, let’s extend our most sincere gratitude and appreciation to Tricon Sports for managing the online store and delivering the spiritwear, as well as their generous donation! - Xiaohong Fu |
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The Fall Movie Night, 10/22/2021 |
| Thank you to all the volunteers that helped pull off an EPIC MOVIE NIGHT under the stars!! The weather was absolutely perfect—we really lucked out!! The kids and caregivers all had a blast especially when they were given the free glow-in-the-dark bracelet or sticker at check-in. The concession stand was a huge hit and most things sold out! We had a great turnout overall (Harry the Hawk even made an appearance!) and all of the money we raised will go directly to the PTA so we can do more cool things in the future! Please thank Lexington House of Pizza, Tricon Sports, and Stop & Shop Lexington the next time you visit for kindly sponsoring our school and this event. - Megan Rogaris & Meg Tabela |
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 The HAWK Quarterly - Back to School Issue The Hawk Quarterly showcases photos of our students so that we can stay connected as part of the Harrington community. On behalf of the PTA, we are delighted to welcome everyone back to Harrington! After a year of hybrid and remote learning, we are so happy to be all together again. Please click here for the "Welcome Back Issue" of The Hawk Quarterly. Hope you enjoy it! |
|  The HAWK Quarterly - Halloween Issue Hello, Harrington! We received so many incredible Halloween photos for the Back-to-School issue that we decided that they deserved an issue of their own: Halloween Issue. We hope that you will enjoy looking at your children's wonderful costumes. May these photos of Halloween distract you from the frenzy of the December holidays. - Jane Reynolds |
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Meadow Farm Fall Fundraiser, Fall 2021 |
Thank you to all the teachers, families, and friends who participated in the Meadow Farms Fall fundraiser! With your understanding and support, this year’s 100% online fund raiser was a success and we surpassed our fundraising goal. We hope that you are enjoying the specially designed holiday wrapping papers, the seasonal candle scents, the holiday treats, or the prizes, and would like to invite your participation again next year. - Yongting Wang |
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The METCO Program (Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunities) is a voluntary integration program that provides a suburban public school education for African-American, Hispanic and Asian students from Boston. It provides Lexington students, families and staff an opportunity to benefit from a culturally diverse learning environment. Lexington Public Schools have participated since 1968. The METCO Family/Friends program at Harrington connects Lexington and Boston children and their families to depend and broaden relationships through the sharing of family, cultural and social experiences in their respective communities. It's one way we live the Harrington value of "We All Belong!" On scheduled Friday half-days throughout the school year, Family/Friends gather for lunch and play time. Here are some photos of the fun things some families have done together for the first two play dates during the Fall semester: outdoor lunch, visiting LexFarm, Rindge Park, and Arlington Reservoir; and even meeting and walking a baby alpaca (18 months, named Luca) from Silk Fields Farm (with Harrington METCO alum parent Kim Goldinger)! If you're interested in learning more about the METCO Family/Friends program, please contact Sheila Lawrence at sheila.jason@gmail.com or 617-967-0070. - Sheila Lawrence |
The PTA is a volunteer organization that works with families, staff, and the administration to provide resources and programming that directly benefits the students of Harrington. By becoming a member, you can directly benefit your child and the learning community in which they are a part. You can join at this link: https://harringtonelem.membershiptoolkit.com Donations are always accepted! All donations go directly to support the programs and events Harrington Schools offers. No amount is too small - please consider making a donation today at https://harringtonpta.github.io/donation.html |
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