IN THIS ISSUE
Reflections Art Contest Winners | MISF Art Contest | Family Bingo Night |
MI Parent Edge | Community-Building Activities
Volunteer Opportunities | Counselor's Corner | Advocacy Update | Thank You | Community Events | MI Activities for Kids |
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| February 17-21 | Mid-Winter Break - School closed
24 | Deadline for MISF "Spring for Schools" Art Contest
28 | Bingo Night March 3 | MI Parent Edge: The Upstanders
4 | New Family Coffee
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| Reflections Art Contest Winners 
We received over 30 fantastic entries into the Reflections Art Contest from Island Park students! This year we received entries in categories ranging from Visual Arts, Literature, Dance, Film, Music, and Photography! So wonderful! Congrats to all the students who received awards at the district-wide PTA celebration on Monday, February 10. Those included Honorable Mentions for Gabi Huynh, Thea Allen, Olivia Simpson, Nathan Trey Kile III, and Tristan Jay. Ganesan Subramaniam, Owen Nelson, and Suzette Gwertzman all received 2nd place awards. Congrats to our 1st place winners: Kavya Muralidhar, Toby Thomson, Owen Nelson, and Emma Moberg! Thank you to everyone who participated and helped out! |
"Spring for Schools" Art Contest Deadline: Monday, February 24 
Calling All Artists! The Mercer Island Schools Foundation invites all Mercer Island School District students to participate in the “Spring For Schools†Art Contest! The first-place artwork will appear on the front cover of the printed program at the annual Breakfast of Champions. The top three winners will all be featured at the Breakfast, which will be held on Tuesday, April 28 at MIHS. Over 600 community members will be attending the Breakfast to support our MI schools. Original artwork should be no larger than 8 1/2†x 11†and must be submitted to the MI Schools Foundation office at the MISD Admin building at 4160 86th Ave SE. Any questions can be directed to tammy@misf.com or (206) 275-2550. |
Family BINGO Night: Pizza, Bingo, Prizes, Fun Friday, February 28 | 6-8 pm | IP MPR 
Enjoy Pagliacci pizza followed by rounds of BINGO with your friends and family. Great for all ages! Lots of prizes, free popcorn, and other snacks available for purchase. We hope to see you there! Have questions? Please contact Island Park Community Building. Help us make Bingo Night a success! Click below if you're interested in volunteering. |
The Upstanders
Tuesday, March 3 | 6:30-8:30 pm | MIHS PAC
The Upstanders documentary explores cyber-bullying, bullying amongst friends, families, and co-workers, and the brain science behind it all. Learn about resilience and the power of peers to end bullying. Includes resource fair, film screening, and panel discussion. For adults, parents of children of all ages, and students grades 5-12. Click here for more information and to register.
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Community-Building Activities  Island Park PTA Community Building promotes events and activities designed to help IP parents and caregivers get to know each other better, have fun, and build a stronger school community. If you have suggestions for activities, please e-mail us!
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AmazonSmile  Did you know? Every time you shop at Amazon.com, you can also donate to Island Park PTA at the same time! Select "Island Park PTA" as your charity every time when you shop at smile.Amazon.com, and a percentage of your purchase comes back to the Island Park PTA!
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| Yearbook Lead
 At the end of every school year, students at Island Park are super excited to flip through the yearbook to look at photos from throughout the year and to have their friends sign and leave messages. Be a part of this annual tradition by taking over the lead in putting together Island Park's yearbook! If you're interested, contact Shelly Johnson, who can give you more details and walk you through the online software. |
Library Volunteers
 Interested in getting involved in your child's reading? The library relies on an amazing pool of library volunteers to help out in the library all year long. Many enjoy interacting with their child's class as they come to the library to check out books; others volunteer for special projects or the book fairs. Come enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and help promote reading. No experience necessary. Sign-ups for March available below. |
 Hello Island Park families,
In January, I started my new position as the Individual, Family and Geriatric Therapist and Elementary School Counselor Lead at Mercer Island Youth and Family Services. I have spent January and February working both at our offices at Luther Burbank and at Island Park. The new counselor, Polly DeBron, will start at Island Park on Monday, February 24, and I will spend some days that week introducing her to students and staff and helping her figure out the ropes. I want to thank you all for your love and support over the past almost 6 years of my time as the Mercer Island Youth and Family Services Counselor at Island Park. This has been an incredible place to work, and I have really loved being able to spend time with your families and your children in the classrooms, hallways, and community. After February 24, I can be reached at (206) 275-7742 or by e-mail.
Here is some information about our new Island Park counselor. Polly DeBron is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) and has over 6 years of experience providing counseling and mental health services to kids, adolescents, and families. She received her Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Maryland, Baltimore in 2013. She lived and worked in Baltimore for 6 years where she worked for a non-profit that provided mental health services in an elementary and middle school. She moved to Chicago in 2017 where she worked at a high school as a school-based therapist doing individual counseling with adolescents. Polly has enjoyed being a part of the school environment and collaborating with school staff and families to best help students work through challenges and improve their overall well-being.
In 2019, Polly moved to Seattle for her partner’s job and has enjoyed the Pacific Northwest outdoor life. She enjoys traveling, hiking, camping, and water activities. She likes to keep active by running and playing softball and is training for a half-marathon. She loves animals and has 2 cats, Mateo and Renzo. She is looking forward to being a part of the Island Park Elementary community and being a support to the students, staff, and families.
Thank you for joining with me to welcome Polly to the Island Park community. And thank you, families, for your ongoing and generous support of Mercer Island Youth and Family Services, which provides counselors in every school, as well as office-based counseling. Whether you support us through donations to the Mercer Island Thrift Shop, by coming to our annual Giving from the Heart breakfast, or in a myriad of other ways, we appreciate you so much!
Warmly, Ms. Liana MIYFS counselor at Island Park |
Call for Action: Prevent Gun Violence - Concerning High Capacity Magazines
 Please contact your legislators here and help advocate to support the Washington State PTA's Top 5 issue "Prevent Gun Violence." High-capacity magazines are used in the nation's deadliest shootings, and common-sense restrictions will keep our communities safer. Click here to view a message from National PTA President Leslie Boggs encouraging members to advocate on this issue. You can customize the message, especially if you have a personal message about gun violence and the impact it is having on your family, school, and/or community. |
Thank You, Thank You, Thank You |
Thank you to the following parents for their help and support to make it another successful Book Fair: Jennifer Rosenwald, Sung Choi, Jamie Savio Huynh, Melanie Goldstein, Tracy Hatt, Stacey Roehrs, Sandra Llorin, Susan Conrad-Wang, Naga Bhavana Mude, Kristina Mehas, Chris Patrick, Sonja Logan, and Andrea Grover.
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| Raise Your Game on Recycling!
Tuesday, February 18 | 7 pm | MI Congregational Church Do you still pause over the recycle bin and wonder if that aluminum foil or plastic lid is supposed to go in recycling or in the trash? Now that China no longer wants our recyclables, where do our collected recyclables really go? You will have an opportunity to hear it straight from the source and get answers to all those questions. A trainer from Recology, our new waste management service, will give a brief presentation, followed by Ridwell, an exciting new service that recycles lots of things Recology can’t take. Then we’ll turn it over to YOU for questions and answers. Bring along any cords, chargers, and printer cartridges you want to discard – that’s Ridwell’s February appeal.
Recommended by MISD Green Schools and the parent-led Action Committee for Environmental Sustainability. |
Disney & Dessert
Sunday, March 1 | 2 pm | MIHS Commons Fun event for the entire family and the only fundraiser for all MISD's orchestras (grades 5th through 12th). Come for the desserts and coffee, prize pendants that were a hit last year, and of course, an hour of the orchestra playing Disney music. Kids, please come in your favorite Disney costumes! Questions? Click here or contact TeamOWebmaster@gmail.com. |
Parenting with Courage and Connection - NEW!
Tuesday, March 10 | 6:30-8:30 pm | Northwood E.S. Parents are often challenged by power struggles and whining, arguments over chores, sibling fights, bedtime problems, clashes over homework and screen time, and other issues. This fun and interactive workshop provides an introduction to the skills and tools needed to get to the core of conflict and bring more peace and joy to your home. Space is limited in this FREE workshop. Please RSVP ASAP here. |
Wednesday Walks - NEW! Taking a walk in nature has amazing health benefits. Simple forest walks have been shown to reduce stress, control depression, boost immunity, lower blood pressure, and improve memory. It’s also a great way to build community! If you’d like to join other Island Park parents and caregivers on a walk around Pioneer Park, meet us on Wednesday mornings after drop-off (around 9:20 am), rain or shine, at 84th Ave. SE and SE 68th St. (southwest corner of the northwest quadrant of Pioneer Park, across from the South End Starbucks). Have questions? Concerns about accessibility? Please contact Linda Kercher. |
Tips Up! Mid-Week Skiing - NEW! Who wants to occasionally play hooky from adulting this winter? If the thought of dropping the kids off at school and heading to the mountains makes you say, “Aw, heck yeah!†then e-mail Linda Kercher. We’ll make a plan based on the snow and everyone’s availability! |
| MI Girls Lacrosse spring registration
Click here for more details for 1st-4th grades. Click here for more details for 5th-8th grades.
Mercer Island Eastside Dream Elite Dream Team - NEW! Tuesdays, February 25 - March 31 | 5:30-7 pm | MI Community & Event Center
Leaping into Art -NEW! Saturday, February 29 | 1-2:30 pm | MI Community & Event Center | $10 Open to artists grades K-5. Register here.
Mercer Island Boys Lacrosse -NEW! Spring Season (March-May). Click here for more information and to register or e-mail with questions.
SJCC Spring After-School Classes - NEW! Monday, March 30 - Friday, June 12 Click here for more information and to register.
Spring Break Recess Fun Camp -NEW! Monday-Thursday, April 6-9 | 9 am - noon | Island Crest Park | $195 Click here for more information and to register.
Junior Learn-to-Curl Clinic -NEW! Saturdays, April 11, 18, 25 | 9:30-11 am | Granite Curling Club | $60 | Ages 7-21 Click here for more information and to register. Click here for more information. Kids Corps tutoringClick here for the application for new tutees or e-mail for more information. Kidstown at the SJCCClick here for more information.
Mathnasium of Mercer Island Click here for more information.
Mercer Island Martial Arts Click here for more information.
MI Library Study Zone Contact Carrie or call the Library at (206) 236-3537 for more information.
Youth Theatre Northwest - After-School Classes Click here for more information and to register.
SUMMER CAMPS Click on the links below for more information and to register.
Island Park Elementary (IPE) PTA and the Mercer Island School District have neither reviewed nor approved the programs, personnel, activities, or organizations announced in these flyers or websites. The participants agree to protect, indemnify, and hold harmless the District and IPE PTA, including elected and appointed officials, employees, agents, staff, and volunteers, from any and all claims, liabilities, damages, expenses, or rights of action, directly or indirectly attributed to the activities. Permission to distribute this information and/or flyers should not be considered a recommendation of the programs by the school district or by the IPE PTA. These are neither school district nor IPE PTA-sponsored activities. |
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HUGE changes this year!!! Box Tops has gone digital! No more clipping. No more sending baggies of Box Tops to school!! It adds up! To learn more, visit the Box Top$ for Education page.
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