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PFA Meeting Minutes: March 9th 2015

Meeting called by: Leah Elzinga, Chair

1.       Opening 19:16pm

2.       Additions or amendments to the agenda

None

3.       Dragon Dash: quick update

Medals are in process of being ordered. Need to be ordered this week or they will not be in on time.

 Alicia asked about the status of volunteers. Nicole said she was going to Rotary to confirm, but getting 10 people to volunteer shouldn’t be an issue.

51 registrations to date with $905 in profit.

Having issues with Sobey’s with donating water and bananas, but we do have the pure protein bars.
Brandi suggested asking Costco. Sarah said that she has a contact with Costco and said she would ask.

Leah brought up that the general consensus with the medals was that it made more sense to have the nicer medals to entice the regular runners and make this a legit run.

4.       Sham-ROCK

a.       Locations for novelties, concessions, tattoos, photo booth

Concession and etc. worked best outside the gym, which keeps the less localized. The cash register has been purchased and pre-programmed and it makes keeping track of the financial aspect easier

Nadine asked for float costs. Leah gave it.

Kathy said that the leadership students are all over doing the tattoos. Letters are going to be sent home to get a number to how many are going to come.

Leah showed the lights that she purchased and talked about the pros and cons about the smaller lights vs the larger white lights that she couldn’t actually get. The lights were $85 each, which is in line with the $400 budget that we had for them. The only things that we need to worry about with these are extension cords

b.      Food and novelty totals (Dawn)

Dawn has picked up soda, but thinks we need more.

c.       Decorations

Dawn and Sarah got decorations that will be able to be used year after year, though they went a little over budget. Balloons for décor are still needed to add to have some on the floor too. Leah suggested 6 tables. Nadine suggested setting up the tables close to the door and concession while we push the dance floor farther to the back of the gym. Lights will go on the four corners of the gym.
Leah suggested using the lounge for the photo booth and making it DIY. Use one of the pie toss booths. The plan is to have it close to concession to be monitored.

d.      Set up time
Sarah said she would be here by 16:00. Everyone can come and help as they can.

5.       Carnival

a.       Website is under construction

It’s not listed on anything until it is actually up and running. The idea is to launch our site and the festival site at the same time, approx. May 1 when the media campaign launches.

b.      Leah has created a fact sheet that includes all information for sponsors, community groups and non-profits, and volunteers.

                                                               i.      The file has been uploaded to the PFA-specific page

                                                             ii.      If  you would like to request any updates please let Leah know

c.       Knights and Ladies will be $1000, possibly sponsored by Morinville News

Wonder Woman has been confirmed. She has a friend who cosplay’s Cinderella and has just finished the new Cinderella dress. Application has also been put in for Darth Vader and some Storm Troopers.

d.      A request has been in to Zoo2U but not response yet; estimated $1000-1400 for two days

e.      Approximately $2500 should cover all of our costs. Festival is already covering $2000

f.        PFA/SC members are welcome to start soliciting sponsors and community if they’d like.
A list of sponsors will be placed on the PFA Facebook page so that we are not doubling up on places that have said no. Please post who you have contacted when you have contacted them and what their response was.

g.       BBQ… Still going forward. Located outside the arena doors. Nadine possibly has access to an industrial sized BBQ. Leah asked to let them know that we would be happy to consider them a sponsor. Nicole has a large industrial BBQ and a tent. Talked to the town about getting their hotdog broiler.

BBQ done over both days, not just one. Kathy to find out about refrigeration on the grounds.

6.       Meeting Close 20:03

PFA Meeting Minutes: April 13th 2015

Meeting called by: Leah Elzinga, Chair

1.       Opening 18:54

2.       Additions or amendments to the agenda.

a.       Sarah adopts agenda, Leah seconds

3.       Reports

a.       Nadine is tasked with completed the society annual return. The bank balance should be available for the next meeting.

4.       New  Business

a.       Dragon Dash

122 officially registered. Sitting at just under $2600 raised (in total)

Medals cost $1047, should come in this week.

Jo mentioned that Amyottes also supplies medals. Suggested a tie in for next year with clothing orders.

Nicole confirmed 11, perhaps 14 volunteers for Race Day. Alysha asked that traffic volunteers be at least 16 or older.

Package pick up volunteers confirmed for Friday and Saturday at the Running Room in St Albert.

Concession at the run is a go. Stuff in

b.      Playground

New budget for playground is $130,000, which is $30,000 less than originally expected. Plan is to construct the playground the first couple weeks of July.

c.       Carnival

                                                               i.      Mrs. Walter will attend Carnival in Mr. Rufiange’s place

                                                             ii.      Sponsorship

Goal of $2400. We do have the money in the bank to run Carnival on our own, but every sponsorship helps. Nicole reported that Interact is willing to be involved.

                                                            iii.      Relationship with SJB

Two members part of Rotary said they didn’t know what was going on and that they’d never heard of it, making it sound like we weren’t legit. It did get sorted later as those members hadn’t been attending meetings.

Sparkle Tattoo Lady is out due to double booking with the farmer’s market.

Minor League Hockey is willing to let us use their concession. It’s not right next to Carnival, but they are willing to let us put up huge signs. Leah called a vote. Unanimous in favour of hosting a bbq using the arena’s kitchen.

                                                           iv.      Community Groups

Leah offered to open up a wider net on looking at community groups. They can join right up to Carnival, but in order to get into the ad campaign they need to be committed by May 1^st.

Cosplayers are in for both days: Wonder Woman, Spidergirl and Spiderman and Wolverine. They’re on board with being floaters and helping out wherever.

Art Club willing to donate a large poster to be coloured by kids while they wait in lines for different activities.

                                                             v.      Contracts

Medieval group on board. Dafoe paying $500. He’s also interested in being involved in the cosplay group as well. Leah needs to talk to Paul about the bouncy castles.

Zoo2U is $250 an hour. Leah asked if we wanted to pay for the whole shebang. Kathy suggested scheduling 2 hrs each day. It was agreed that was the best idea.

                                                           vi.      Volunteers

Best Buy is in. Looking forward to doing the WiiU booth again.

Kids have been asking Leah about volunteering. Agreed that it was a great way to get their volunteer hours and gets them out in the community.

Citie Ballet has committed and we suggested that they bring the bar and show them how to do the stretches and moves as well as having their shoes and costumes available to look at.

Rockband wants to perform. Leah asked about other things which can be planned using the stage. Sarah suggested a separate mini dance floor in front of the stage so kids can dance when there aren’t any acts on the stage.

                                                          vii.      Printing/Media

We’ll be doing postcards and handing them out to both elementary schools so they get out. The big Posters with have SJB with Carnival, we’ll only have a few just Carnival posters. Lawn signs and banners still needed to be ordered. Sarah said School Council is willing to pay for one of the banners.

d.      Little Ceasars

Unanimously onboard. Nadine volunteered to be in charge of ordering. Leah asked who is willing to contact them and sort info out. Kathy volunteered to assist.

5.       Sea-Can Vote

Offered to allocate $4500 to C-Can for MPS playground Equipment. Leah amended to a full $5000. Vote was unanimous.

6.       Chimes

Kathy asked about the hand chimes. Leah suggested that we commit to partnering with School Council to purchase the hand chimes by the end of June, pending the full financial information be presented at the next meeting. Leah called the vote. Vote was unanimous.

7.       Meeting Adjourned 19:52

PFA Meeting Minutes: January 5th 2015

Meeting called by: Leah Elzinga, Chair
1. Opening 7:22
2. Tupperware
a. MPS parent Kayla Feltham has offered to do a Tupperware fundraiser. The return would be 40%. PFA would be responsible for distributing forms, but Kayla would collect all funds, place and deliver orders.
b. There is currently a motion in place that prevents the PFA from participating in home-based business fundraisers, in order to avoid conflicts of interest.
c. Consensus is that while the details of the fundraiser are promising, it is still in the best interest of the PFA to uphold the previous motion.
3. Purdy’s Chocolates
a. Too short of a time frame. Next year, orders would be given approx. 3weeks, ideally, with orders being delivered to the school the first week of December.
b. There were no late orders and very little negative feedback from parents.
c. +$4k profit
d. $3500 in online orders alone
4. Snowflake Festival
a. Feedback
i. Bakesale was a huge success; $1200 profit
ii. Expenses were approx. $250 altogether, including decorations and tablecloths to be used year to year
iii. It is agreed that the PFA will continue with approx. the same budget each year, slowly building a collection of better quality, reusable decorations, etc.
iv. Parents seem to miss the fanfare of the silent auction/raffle
v. Coordinating next year’s features will depend largely on the way the concerts are developed by the school
5. Dragon Dash
a. Update
i. Date is confirmed as April 26th
ii. Numbers will be capped at 150 registrants
iii. Children under 10 are free, though ALL runners count as a registrant
iv. Protein bars have already been sponsored
v. Flyers are done and simply need to have confirmed sponsored added
vi. Potentially printed at Hunter’s, if a subsidy can be secured
vii. Rotary will be approached to provide volunteers; Sarah is looking at becoming a member soon, otherwise contact Nicole Boulanger’s father, who is a long term member
6. Set Dates
a. Movie Night
i. Jan 29th
ii. Tickets may be purchased at the door
iii. $2/ticket, $5 fun pack (ticket, popcorn, pop, candy bag)
iv. $3 plus and extra concession funds will go to PFA, ticket funds go directly to the school
v. Dawn will purchase popcorn bags
vi. Kathy and Nicole will make candy bags
vii. Forms will be sent home; Sarah will create flyers/forms
viii. Ticket money due Jan 22nd
ix. Guest List will be made up to keep track of those who pre-purchase tickets/snacks
b. Sham-ROCK Family Dance
i. 12th
ii. Kathy volunteers to purchase novelties
iii. Zumba
iv. Irish Dancing
v. Ask Sheldon Finglerwho his supplier is for industrial lighting
vi. If appropriate lighting can be found for purchase, PFA will approve it’s funding
7. Cabaret
a. Mid October
b. A sub-committee will be created
c. A venue will need to be booked ASAP
8. Meeting Adjourned

PFA Meeting Minutes: November 6th 2014

Meeting called by: Leah Elzinga, Chair

1.       Opening:6:57

2.       Additions or amendments to the agenda. (2 min)

a.       Adopt agenda: 1 Sarah, 2 Brandi

3.       Housekeeping (10 min)

a.       Priorities for PFA meetings

b.      Communicating with PFA (including social media and the blog)

                                                               i.      Communications for PFA exec will be done via email, however more casual conversations will be conducted through FB messages and open convos on the FB parents page

c.       Meeting agendas and minutes

                                                               i.      Agendas and minutes are posted online, emailed to the exec and posted to the PFA and Parents Pages

4.       14/15 Fundraisers (20 min)

a.       Parents were given the opportunity to bring forward any fundraisers they would like to vote on for either the winter or spring send-home fundraiser.  The options brought forward were:

                                                               i.      LaMontagne catalogue sales

                                                             ii.      Purdy’s chocolates:  Nadine & Sarah

                                                            iii.      Poinsettias

                                                           iv.      Little Ceasars pizza kits: Spring

                                                             v.      Millcreek Farms

                                                           vi.      Calahoo Meats: table until at least Dec

                                                          vii.      Poinsettias

b.      All parents in attendance were given the chance to vote for their top two each options for both the winter and spring fundraiser.  The fundraisers chosen were Purdy’s for winter, and Little Ceasar’s for spring, though Calahoo Meats was SUCH a close second, that an option of adding a third fundraiser will be strongly considered in the new year.

5.       Snowflakes and Stars Winter Market (10 min)

a.       Volunteer shifts were outlined and a signup sheet was passed around.  Volunteers will also be needed to purchase food and transport it either to Leah’s house or the hall.

b.      Last year’s menu will be duplicated HOWEVER we will plan on providing food for approximately 200 people as opposed to the 400 from the previous year.

c.       Storage room will be inventoried after the meeting regarding plates, bowls, napkins, etc.

6.       Meeting adjourned: 7:40

PFA Meeting Minutes: Dec 1st 2014

Meeting called by: Leah Elzinga, Chair

1.       Opening:6:57

2.       Additions or amendments to the agenda.

a.       Alicia Irving adds the Dragon Dash to #6

3.       Snowflakes and Stars Christmas Market

a.       Feedback: The concession was successful was again.  Though we only made a few hundred dollars. Approx. 20lbs of meat was purchased but could be scaled back to about 15 for next year.  We sold approximately 150 hotdogs.  Timmy’s provided the coffee again this year and “Free with donation” was a success.

4.       Purdy’s Chocolates

a.       Feedback

                                                               i.      600 catalogues were requested but only 450 were delivered so the youngest classes had to wait several days for their catalogues

                                                             ii.      Complaints re:the short time frame for the fundraiser

                                                            iii.      The fundraiser time line was short due to the decision being postponed, and the time needed by Purdy’s to ship, and their last available date for delivery being quite early

                                                           iv.      The orders came in on time, however several items were missing and volunteers had to pick them up from various retail locations.  Unfortunately, THOSE orders were also wrong, which necessitated extra trips

                                                             v.      Nearly $13000 worth of orders were placed, nearly $4k of which were online.  Nadine placed and filled all orders, and acted as the main contact between Purdy’s

                                                           vi.      Extra boxes were gifted to volunteers and used as thank yous for major PFA supporters

5.       Rotary Playground Presentation

a.       Leah presented to Rotary and it went very well.  Along with many local business owners were Simon Boersma, president of the Morinville Chamber of Commerce, Maureen Kubinec MLA, Minister of Tourism and Parks, and Councillor Gord Putnam

b.      Unfortunately our request was turned down.  It is suggested that we begin to foster a relationship with Rotary through volunteer requests in the future, as they would be a valuable long term partner for both PFA and the school.

6.       Snowflake Festival

a.       Donation Raffle

                                                               i.      A coat drive for Hope Mission and Food Bank drive will be organized.  Boxes will be wrapped in gift wrap and placed under the CCC tree.  For every donation, people will be given a ticket for a draw.  One draw per evening.  Prize provided by PFA from donations still in storage.

b.      50/50 Raffle

c.       Bakesale

                                                               i.      Organized by Dawn

d.      Volunteers

                                                               i.      Approximately 5 volunteers needed per night

e.      Decorations/Budget

                                                               i.      Approximately $200 budget

                                                             ii.      Dawn has already purchased decorations including fabric table cloths in black which can be washed and used from year to year

                                                            iii.      The plan is to slowly acquire more table cloths each year until we have enough to do large-scale events.  This is considerably less costly and wasteful in the longrun than the plastic/dollar store table cloths we had been using.

7.       Dragon Dash

a.       Alishia provides an update on the Dragon Dash

                                                               i.      Date has been confirmed as 10am, April 26^th

                                                             ii.      Sponsorship for the protein bars has been confirmed

                                                            iii.      The Running Room is officially onboard

1.       They will provide all necessary equipment, from AV to tents and barricades

                                                           iv.      Registration is entirely online through the Running Room

                                                             v.      Registration will be $25 for early bird, $30 afterwards. Children under 10: FREE

                                                           vi.      ALL participants MUST register, including children

                                                          vii.      Registration tentatively capped at 150

                                                        viii.      Leah will provide graphics for flyers, etc

                                                           ix.      PFA empower Alicia and any subcommittee of her choosing to make any additional decisions except financial

                                                             x.      Financial decisions MUST be brought to PFA, but a special meeting may be called of the executive to approve any necessary payments

8.       Calahoo Meats

a.       The PEP LAC is doing a Christmas Calahoo Meat Fundraiser.  It is the general concensus that there is not a conflict and that PFA could still organized their own later in the year.

9.       Role of PFA within the MPS community

a.       Leah brought up the subject of the many different groups doing fundraising in relation to MPS, and how the PFA should fit into the mix in the future.

b.      It was discussed that most parent enjoy participating in the PFA’s “event-based” fundraisers much more than the “send home” type.

c.       Currently the PFA hosts (or co-hosts) the Snowflake Festival, the Sham-ROCK Family Dance, and the Community Carnival and will also host the Dragon Dash this year.

d.      It is suggested that we include 50/50 raffles at almost any event in order to bring in easy, steady income.  This might even include a raffle at School Council’s upcoming Family Movie Night

e.      Leah mentions the idea of doing an adults-only cabaret.  The general reaction is extremely positive.  Kathy suggests planning the event to occur sometime in early October or November of 2015.  This would allow the PFA to plan throughout the summer and begin promoting the event as soon as school is back in session.  One idea would be to have a burlesque performance with a bar, and cocktail appetizers.

10.   Meeting adjourned 8:05pm

Last chance to submit 2014/2015 fundraising ideas!!!

*the November 3rd Parent Involvement meeting will be the last chance to submit and vote on fundraising ideas for the 2014/2015 school year. ANY parent can bring forward an idea, but those ideas that come with the following info are definitely easier for parents to judge: potential profit, quality of the products, delivery time, feedback from other groups (the more specific the better). To be fair, we can only consider those ideas on the agenda, so make sure to let me know if you've got an idea, no later than Sunday evening (the 2nd). As great as it would be to be able to brainstorm on each choice, we have about 30min from start to finish so I will ABSOLUTELY make sure that parents have whatever info rolls in ahead of time, so we can all be prepared. If you DO want to brainstorm about ideas, hash things out, etc why don't we start a thread on the Parents Group page? That way everyone has a chance to throw in their two cents and have their say, even if you can't come to the meeting.