Co-Presidents’ Letter

Happy New Year! We hope you all had a fun filled and restful vacation. December was a busy month for everyone at Zervas, and we are so appreciative of the parents and students who took the time to organize our teacher appreciation events last month. Lisa DePalma put together a wonderful bagged lunch for the staff to celebrate Inclusive Schools Week and show our appreciation to the staff for all they do to make Zervas a caring and inclusive community. Thanks to the Roberts family for donating delicious sandwiches from Panera for the bagged lunches. Elisa D’Andrea puts a huge amount of effort into managing our teacher appreciation events and she once again put on a fantastic holiday luncheon for the staff. Stephanie Cogen is also tireless in her contributions to teacher appreciation, and she organized the amazing cookie swap for the teachers. Elisa and Stephanie were lucky to have help from Zervas students Ethan Kopf, Kyle Hooker, Charlie Weinstein and Nick Wang. Thanks guys! Thanks also to all the parents who contributed cookies–the cookie swap is always a great event and much appreciated by the staff. We also want to thank all the families who contributed to the Annual Appeal. Your contributions are much appreciated.
 
We have lots of events coming up. Please mark your calendars for Classroom Cleanup Day which takes place on January 26th. We have had such enthusiastic participation at this event in past years, and we hope many families can stop by and lend a hand this year. It’s a great way to spend time with other Zervas families, and it really helps brighten the building up in the dreary winter months. Planning is also underway for the Zervas Variety Shows which will take place in February. Please remember to get permission slips in by Friday, January 11th if your child plans to participate. Finally, the Auction Committee is hard at work organizing this year’s event which will be held on March 9th at the Windsor Club. This is always a fun evening and a great fundraiser. We really depend on your donations to make the evening a success so please think about contributing this year. There are lots of great suggestions for donations in the flyer which will be coming home in your child’s folder.
 
We are still having a number of problems with traffic and parking, particularly at pick-up time. We have especially had problems with people parking in the Blue Zone and leaving their cars to pick up students. If you want to get out and pick up your child, please do not park in the Blue Zone. In addition, please remember to move up with the cars in the Blue Zone so that others can pull in behind you. If there is no space in the Blue Zone when you arrive, please do not block traffic coming down Beethoven while you wait for a spot. We ask that you drive around the block and come back to look for an open space. If you are picking your child up in the Blue Zone, please let him/her know to wait for you until you arrive. We also continue to hear complaints that people are parking too close to our neighbors’ driveways and blocking their access. Please be considerate of our neighbors and leave plenty of space for them to get in and out, especially during the winter months. As always, if you have any questions or concerns we can help with, please feel free to contact us.
 
Best,
 
Joanne and Helen