1. PACT:  (Peacemakers and Counselors in Training:  PACT is a summer feature at Better Beginnings.   These youth, ages 8 to 11, add a dimension to life in the preschool classrooms as they perform many duties, with great attention and commitment.    Just as an example, one of their duties in the classroom to which they are assigned is to help with meals.  Afterwards, they rinse the plates, and return them to the cart to go to the kitchen.   I observed that the dishes were so clean they appeared to have been washed already.  Everything was neatly stacked.  They have developed great work habits and are unfailingly willing and courteous.

2. InterAct!   Probably the most enjoyed by all is their interaction with our youngest students.  Luz Nereida Horta, Executive Director, notes that it is great to see them as they are drawn to the younger students, particularly the new ones.   As preschool intake is phased in, the little ones are sometimes shy and fearful.   PACT members are a great comfort to them.

As they are closer in age and size to the little ones (than we are), PACT members often have ideas for activities that we might not have thought of, such as origami.   The intricate folding might have caused me to pass it up.  So when I saw young children in the Smilies’ classroom making and decorating an origami project, taught by PACT member, Brandon, I was astonished.     We might do folded fans or even simple paper airplanes, but this one was more complicated.  The young children were very proud of their achievement, and gained much in the problem solving and fine motor control they gained. Emergent literacy was fostered since words were part of the design.   Less obvious, but just as important, was the growth of their appreciation for another culture.  Besides teaching many crafts, PACT members taught and played games such as leap frog and potato hop, helped with all duties such as stacking cots and reading stories, and much more including increasing cognitive skills such as math readiness.  Sometimes, they are also interpreters!

Hearing them mediate and implement peaceful problem solving is a special treat.

3. After Fact:  Tuesday, August 30, was the last summer day the PACT students would participate.  The date was noted with some ceremony, but no tears, because as one of them reminded me, “We’ll be back soon.  We’re the After School kids!”  You gotta love ‘em.  They are the sweetest, smartest, most beautiful young people you would ever want to meet.  They are Nataly, Steven, Brandon, Christian, Emilia, Santiago, Shantell, Ashley, Stephanie, and sometimes Ariel and Miranda.    In addition to their helping duties, they also increased their own skills, including reading and keeping a log, learning to knit and crochet, and working with wood.

Some are the older brothers and sisters of our young students.  Some are family members of faculty. Accommodating faculty in this way is one of the benefits that makes Better Beginnings an enjoyable workplace despite the poor pay.  Since most of work     (cont.)

at making Better Beginnings the kind of place we want for our own children, this is a natural!

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony." ~~ Mahatma Gandhi (1869 - 1948).

4. Community ImPACT:  Members of our community work at helping us keep our doors open.  Our children are the beneficiaries.  Back to school for elementary students, and First Day of School for our new Kindergartners, will be a pleasure, thanks to folks like Evelyn Wishnie (Verizon Pioneers) who delivered four book bags loaded with various supplies, Dennis McClary who delivered an huge abundance of school supplies plus an HP Computer, Denise Giannone and Anita Brink who also made a generous provision of school bags and assorted supplies.  Preschoolers gained from donations of crayons, plastic cups, books, puppets, yarn, dollhouse furniture, tapes, snacks, and computers from Zoila Angos, Deborah Shuman, “Mr. Jonathan” Craig, and Leon Brostoff.

Robyn Brandow donated children’s clothing, toys and books, while Margaret Duperreault donated miscellaneous cards and craft items along with a generous contribution.  Gene Creasi donated a typewriter, which I can hardly wait to get my fingers on!  I bet the children enjoy it.  That reminds me of the time recently when “Miss Janice” brought out a 78 record to play.  One of the children exclaimed, “Look at the big CD!”

Judson Hagerty on behalf of Anne Gordon must have read our minds.  While we were working on the multicultural portion of our lesson plans for the Fall and Winter, and hoping we would have many appropriate magazines for the young students to peruse, here they come with TWO boxes of National Geographics!  We can still use magazines, pictures, videos, artifacts, music, food, books, stories, and such to fill out this category.

Classroom Volunteers of the week are Joan Freeman and Jerry Turkel who have been faithful for a long time and who are much loved by “their” children.

Our gratitude to every one of you for the unique and charitable ways in which you have chosen to support our mission of encouraging families and children to reach their full potential.

5. Penny Pincher:   Now that we need to be more frugal than ever because of the gas prices, the Pincher is looking for more ideas.  She reminds us not to shop for groceries when we are hungry.   Make a list and stick to it, she adds.

6. Two Cents Wordth:   The bear was sighted in a nearby neighbors yard in Roosevelt this past week-end.  Two Cents wanted to know if it was bare?  I don’t know because I could barely see. But I think it had hair, because it was fuzzy.  Remember that rhyme, “Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear; Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair.  Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn’t fuzzy, wuz ‘e?”