(We think the photo above, from Spring Fling, captures the vibe well!)

The 2023/2024 school year was a standout one for Dovercourt SAC. We launched exciting new projects and events, and scaled up Spring Fling. (We missed you, bouncy castles!) We advocated against education cuts and launched a new Dovercourt Pride subcommittee.

We also focused our fundraising efforts and, as a result, enter the 2024/2025 school year with a balance of more than $23,000—in line with pre-COVID norms. This will help us support more initiatives that benefit our students. Hooray!

Fundraising highlights:
Thank you to all for your generous support!

• We raised more than $900 (net) from the school’s Fresh from the Farm produce fundraiser in the fall;
• We launched a new online Spirit Wear shop, which has raised nearly $400 in rebates already;
• The school’s annual school Dance-a-Thon in March raised more than $2,000; and
• We raised nearly $10,000 (net) for the school from Spring Fling tickets and silent auction purchases.
  
  

Investment highlights:
A sample of SAC-funded student activities:

• Mystic Drumz music program;
• Roots of Empathy in Ms. Smith’s 4/5 class
• Books for the school’s Book Clubs;
• Dovercourt’s Ukelele Club; and
• The Grade 8 graduation picnic lunch.
  
  

SAC community-building highlights:

• We hosted and funded a successful Welcome Back Open House during Curriculum Night in October;
• We supported the school’s Holiday Food Drive for to benefit the Oasis Dufferin Community Centre;
• We held a fun and popular School Movie Night to beat the winter blahs in February; and
• We convened after-school enrichment programs in the winter and spring.

Special thanks:

Major thanks to 2023/2024 co-chairs Ben Peto and Peggy Gibbons for leading our small-but-mighty council with such integrity and vision. And a special shout-out to departing SAC enrichment lead Melanie Kramer—we will all miss you!

Did you know? This year, SAC funded a Roots of Empathy program in Ms. Smith’s class. We asked Ms. Smith to share a bit about the experience. Here’s her report:

“This year, Ms. Smith's grade 4/5 class participated in the Roots of Empathy program, where a community member, ’Mama Kathryn’ brought her baby, ‘Baby Alex’ in for regular visits over the course of the year.

“With the help of Roots of Empathy facilitator, Ms. Passmore, students got to learn about empathy through watching Baby Alex grow over the course of the year. Students also learned about how to safely care for a baby, and connected this information to their own lived experiences, and what kind of care makes them feel safe and comfortable.

“Students were in awe every time that the baby visited, as she was always noticeably bigger and had gained a new and impressive skill. What a wonderful way to bond with our classmates!”

What a win-win! We hope to bring Roots of Empathy back to Dovercourt next year. In the meantime, please enjoy these photos of Baby Alex in the classroom with Grade 4/5 students!

Spring Fling 2024 was one for the history books! We ate, danced, played games, bounced, sang, made art, showed Pride, and took in a truly tremendous talent show—all while raising nearly $10,000 to support school enrichment activities and other initiatives. It was our biggest fundraiser, by far, since the pre-pandemic days.

Special, big, mega-thanks to:

• The dozens of parents, caregivers, teachers, and staff who set up, cleaned up, served food, cut freezies, baked cookies, sold tickets, monitored hallways, policed bouncy castles, supervised games, and made the day possible.
• The small-but-mighty Spring Fling organizing committee—Abigail Hernandez, Adam Boyle, Chris Antonik, Deborah Aarts, Deborah Walsh, Desiree Marshall, Elizabeth Liberty, Hilary Hall, Jordan Pettle, Kelly Weisz, Leah Gold, Lisa Clapperton, Lisa Kotsopolous, Peggy Gibbons, and Sarah Weaver—for logging countless hours since January to plan the event.

• Everyone who bought tickets and/or bid on silent auction items. Every ticket sale helps make Dovercourt a better place!
• The more than 60 local businesses, people and organizations that donated cash or silent auction items—our community stepped up!
  
  • Special shout-out to our sponsors—Almadev, APA Furniture Design, Bigelow Construction, FERN Home Organization, and LiUNA Local 183—whose generous financial support of at least $500 each helped us bring back the bouncy castles and make Spring Fling fun and successful for all!  ​​
• Our incredible Dovercourt students for sharing your talents, practicing patience (even in the freezie and bouncer lines), and filling the day with joyous energy.

We'll start planning next year's Spring Fling in the fall of 2024. Please email us at [email protected] if you'd like to get involved!