If you haven't already, please put out info to your school community.

Clickable links in the newsletter.

Can you believe October is already over? Has your PTA/PTSA had a Membership Challenge? How have you encouraged families, friends, staff, students, neighbors, etc. to join your PTA/PTSA? We'd love to hear about what you did, what worked, and how successful your unit was! If you haven't had a membership drive yet, it's not too late! With the holidays quickly approaching, now is a wonderful time to show your families what you're all about and why they should join your PTA/PTSA.

*Please remit your Michigan PTA dues by the 28th of every month for all new memberships. Also, if you have not submitted your Livonia PTSA Council annual dues yet, please do so as soon as possible as they were due October 28th.

Kindly,

Nicole Dant

Treasurer and Membership Chair

Livonia PTSA Council

Please keep uploading your documents and emailing me when you have earned some points!!

Please feel free to reach out with any questions and I will do my best to answer them or find the answer. You can email me at pep@livoniaptsacouncil.org

The current standings are below. If you feel like some points haven’t been entered please reach out and we can get any mistakes or omissions corrected.

Keadin Parish

Livonia PTSA Council PEP chair

Start uploading photos for the 2025 Founders' Day now! When uploading photos, please include your UNIT NAME and a SHORT DESCRIPTION for each photo - thank you!

Buchanan Elementary PTA has been busy!

We were thrilled by the outcome of our Color Run fundraiser. Not only did our kiddos have a blast at the event, but we surpassed our fundraising goal of $25,000! Our school had multiple fundraising incentives, but the biggest prize was getting our very own Mr. Miller to dye his hair blue.

In addition to the fundraiser, we also worked hard on treating our teachers during parent teacher conferences to catered Pita Way. We are also organizing a Spirit Wear Swap for parents to exchange items used for milestone celebrations (ex. Kindergartens 100th day of school), Buchanan apparel, and other items.

Lastly, we hosted our annual Boo Bash trunk or treating event. This year brought beautiful weather, teachers selling hotdogs, fabulous NHS volunteers, hundreds of trick-or-treaters, 30 decorated trunks, and irresistible donuts from Detroit Mini Donut. Yum!

We cannot believe it is November! Coolidge PTA is so THANKFUL for our immense amount of support from our families and staff we have had so far this year.

Last month, the PTA supported Coolidge Staff through conferences with a delicious Jimmy John’s lunch. Several of our staff members were awarded a new classroom game/toy for being the highest earners in our fundraising efforts. We encouraged our students and staff to wear orange on Unity Day and our D.E.I.B. Committee held their first Caregivers, Coffee and Conversation event, where Coolidge caregivers and staff came together to discuss some proactive practices against bullying at home and at school. We had our very first Spirit Stick sale during lunchtime for students, and they were a huge HIT! We look forward to continuing this during the upcoming months. We wrapped up the month with a fang-tastic Halloween, our Monster-Mash Dance-a-thon celebration was a hit, students worked hard to earn this celebration from our fall fundraiser.

This month we are having having our second Dining for Donations event at MOD Pizza all day on Tuesday, November 5th at the Northville location (18821 Traditions Dr Northville, MI 48168). We hope to see many friendly faces there enjoying tasty food and supporting Coolidge PTA. A percentage of the proceeds will go toward enrichment activities at Coolidge that the PTA helps with providing throughout the school year.

Fall Festival for Coolidge family and staff is on Friday, November 15th at Riley Upper Elementary School. There will be food, music, dancing, games, and lots more fun to be had! We encourage all Coolidge families to attend, the event is free admission but there is a small charge for food.

Our Youth Making a Difference committee continues to encourage our students to HOP IN AND HELP by being a volunteer in their community. Flyers went home to students with important info about the program. Students who commit to a volunteer project will receive recognition with their name hung up on our YMAD bulletin board at school. We look forward to hearing all the creative ways our cougars HOP IN TO HELP, - together we can make a difference.

This month we will continue our school wide community service project that was established in 2023, Comfort for a Cause. Commitment forms are due by February 17, 2025, projects are due by April 11, 2025, and we will all celebrate together at the district wide event on April 23, 2025.

Merri-Craft Flower cards are currently available for purchase! They were a huge hit last year and the Coolidge PTA is selling them once again. For $40, you receive a punch card to redeem monthly for a beautiful bouquet of long-lasting flowers from January-December 2025. The punch cards are to be used at Merri-Craft Florist, right here in Livonia. These make great gifts for the holidays for friends and families who live nearby!! Cards can easily be purchased on our website: Coolidge.givebacks.com

For those interested who do not have a student attending Coolidge and wish to buy a card, please email fundraisers@coolidgecougarspta.com so the PTA can help you with getting your flower cards!

Honey Baked Ham gift cards can also be a purchase through our website, Coolidge.givebacks.com to use toward your holiday ham purchase! 20% of all gift card purchases will be donated back to Coolidge PTA and can be purchased up until December 31st .

Color Run:

We had our Color Run on September 27th. The top three earners got to dump color on a PTA member and teachers! The top three earners also received prizes later as well as the top three classes.

Top Prizes for the winners and classes for the color run:

The PTA hosted a taco bar for one of the conference nights for all of the staff!

Fall Fest:

Cleveland Families had so much fun at our Fall Fest on October 24th. We had a spooky hallway, petrified petting zoo, a maze set up, glow party outside and trunk or treat. Each class also decorated a pumpkin, and the top 3 classes received a prize based off votes!

Emerson had it's first student PTSA meeting and the kids had donuts and cider. We are loving that the students are getting involved with PTSA.

We are thrilled that our World’s Finest Chocolate fundraiser was a resounding success! Thanks

to the hard work and dedication of our amazing Grant Gators, we not only met our fundraising

goal but surpassed it, raising crucial funds for a fantastic school year ahead. Funds raised will go

directly toward enriching our school year with exciting activities and engaging assemblies that

will enhance our students' learning experiences. A HUGE thank you to everyone who

participated and supported our efforts.

This year, the annual trunk-or-treat event brought together current, former, and future Gators

for a night filled with fun, friendly fright, and festivities. With 35 creatively decorated trunks,

the atmosphere buzzed with excitement and anticipation as families gathered to celebrate the

Halloween spirit. In addition to the delightful candy haul, the event featured engaging games

that kept the energy high. With multiple game stations, there was something for everyone to

enjoy. The highlight of the evening was undoubtedly the dance party, where participants

showed off their best moves, creating an electric atmosphere filled with joy.

Thursday, October 24th, Hayes Elementary hosted our first Trail-or-Treat. Parents signed up to host a station on the trail to decorate and hand out candy. Trick or treaters voted on their favorite station and prizes were awarded. First place went to the Lions, 2nd place went to Hocus Pocus, and 3rd place went to the Spider Web. We had over 300 kiddos participate. Cider and donuts were also served. It was a fun night and a great alternative to the traditional trunk-or-treat.

Wow, time is flying while we're having fun at Hoover!

We've had our annual Color Run, Penny Wars, and Hoot'n Howl as of late! It is truly so much fun to see the kids engaging in all the fun activities!

Our Color Run was a GREAT success! The Hoover Community raised over $33,000 to support the PTA, including our wonderful sponsors; which I've listed on the right (click to enlarge)! I hope the Livonia Community can support these generous businesses, as a lot of them are local!

U of M won our Penny Wars for the third year in a row! We'll get to see our principal, Mr. D, decked out in U of M gear this week!

And lastly, our Hoot'n Howl, a well honored tradition at Hoover! We had a beautiful night, and the kids enjoyed being outside for part of the event, and seeing some cool creatures from Nelson and his Wildlife Safari!

We are ready for the next adventure!

Kennedy Elementary kept busy this October!

Our PTA kicked off the month with our Positive Note Campaign. This is when the PTA comes together with parent and student volunteers to help write encouraging messages along with distributing them. Each student receives a special message on his or her locker and every staff member receives one too. It is always a hit and we coordinate it with “Book Fair” and “Conference” week each fall.

The Kennedy PTA also offered a fun dine out at Portillo’s last month. Let’s just say the food is loved by not only the students, but their parents too.

Kennedy’s PTA hosted our first Riverside Skate Night of the school year as well. It was a great turnout as usual and the students where encouraged to wear orange and black, or something Halloween themed if they desired.

Our PTA went all out once more with our fan favorite Fall Fest! We had many parent volunteers who decorated tables and passed out tricks and treats to our students. We also had food trucks, a petting farm, a DJ and yummy donuts for all.

Busing for our 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade students was provided by our PTA this month to go see the movie “The Wild Robot” together. This first of its kind field trip was hosted by Kennedy’s wonderful librarian. All 2nd-4th grade classes read the book and finished it prior to the viewing. It was definitely a highlight for all.

Our PTA ended October with our beloved Pumpkin Decorating Contest. Kennedy’s students are always creative and multiple winners are chosen each year by students and staff alike for each category.

All in all it was a fun and busy October at Kennedy!

Mark your calendars NOW for Founders’ Day, Officer’s Training, and the Audit Party!

2024

NOVEMBER

11/20 – LPTSA Council Meeting | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

11/20 – Food Service Prep following meeting

11/21 – Food Service Appreciation Event

DECEMBER

STEM Family Event, location TBD

2025

JANUARY

1/15 – LPTSA Council Meeting | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

1/18 – Chili Cook-Off | 11 a.m.-2 p.m. | Franklin High School

Possible Reflections Ceremony

FEBRUARY

2/19 – Founders’ Day Celebration | 6 p.m. | St. Mary's Cultural & Banquet Center

Possible Reflections Ceremony

MARCH

3/19 – LPTSA Council Meeting with nominations | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

3/19 – Transportation/Warehouse/Maintenance Prep following meeting

3/20 – Transportation/Warehouse/Maintenance Appreciation Event

APRIL

4/16 – LPTSA Council Meeting with elections | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

4/23 – YMAD Event | 6-8 p.m. | Churchill High School

MAY

5/21 – Officer Training | TBD | TBD

JUNE

6/11 – LPTSA Council Meeting | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

JULY

7/16 – Audit Party | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

AUGUST

8/20 – LPTSA Council Meeting | 6-8 p.m. | Central Office

If you are a PTA/PTSA officer or committee chair, please make sure to join our group for important information, discussions, and more! Be sure to answer the questions when you request to join. A lot of great information is shared on this closed group page. It's also a great way to network with other units, share ideas, and ask for help.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/541318689333449/

Michigan PTA Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/everychildonevoice

National PTA Website: https://www.pta.org/

National PTA Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ParentTeacherAssociation

National PTA Blog: https://onevoice.pta.org/

The Livonia PTSA Council is a group of 22 local PTA/PTSA Units within the Livonia Public Schools District. The Council is organized under the authority of the Michigan PTA for the purpose of promoting conferences, communications, leadership development and coordination of the efforts of the local units.

Interested in joining Council? There are chair opportunities available! Contact President Mandy Gerstenbrand at president@livoniaptsacouncil.org

Email: newsletter@livoniaptsacouncil.org
Website: www.livoniaptsacouncil.org
Location: 15125 Farmington Road, Livonia, MI, USA
Facebook: facebook.com/LivoniaPTSACouncil
Twitter: @LivoniaPTSAC