Schools

Greenbelt Elementary PTA Gears Up for Fair

The Greenbelt Elementary School is hosting the annual Spring Fair Saturday promising a silent auction, bike rodeo, crafts and Jars for Japan.

Even though Saturday is not a school day, it will be busy with kids and parents partaking in annual Spring Fair.

“Really, for me, it’s about community,” PTA President Lucy Dirksen said. “We want to bring the teachers together with the students and the parents so everyone has a good time.”

This is Dirksen’s first year as president and first year organizing, as she was always a participant in the past.

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“Having to organize all of the events and making sure we have enough volunteers to man the events is definitely different to just being a body and donating time or artwork,” she said.

The group is expecting 100-200 parents and kids throughout the day. Dirksen said they chose this weekend because Maryland School Assessment testing just finished and spring sports have not begun yet, so they hope more families are available to attend.

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The Greenbelt Police will be helping out with one of the returning events, the bike rodeo, and will also help with a fast-pitch activity, where they’ll measure how fast a baseball is thrown.

One of the new activities is the Jars for Japan campaign, organized by Lauren Rankel. Rankel was inspired to donate to Japan after her daughter, Grace, heard the news of the earthquake and was concerned for a classmate’s family that were still in Japan.

“She’s reached an age where the world is actually a real place to her and so she wants to do something to help, so she felt like she needed something to do,” Rankel said. “The earthquake was such an overwhelming event and it seems every day there is another catastrophe. I work hard with our girls to teach them about giving and try to teach them a drop in the bucket from everyone fills the bucket. It only takes a little bit from each person and if we all do our part, it will make a difference.”

Rankel will be collecting donation spare change in quart-size canning jars for each grade, and then the money collected will go toward the Red Cross Japan Relief Fund.

“For the kids, it’s a visual and concrete way to show them they’ve done something,” she said.

The fair begins at 10 a.m. and runs until 2 p.m., aside from the rodeo and the Jars for Japan there will also be a silent auction that includes a $65 certificate to New Chicago Dance Studio, a Swedish massage with Renee Cooper, a family portrait with Aaron Springer valued at $200 and a $50 gift certificate toamong other prizes.


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