Due to a conflict on Tuesday, Feb 14 (Happy Valentine’s Day), the February parent meeting will be moved to Thursday, February 16 at 7:00 pm in the orchestra room.

We’re all set for Icicle Creek tomorrow.  The weather report is wonderful — snow on the ground, and cold and clear weather to enjoy it (with some fog that will hopefully burn off). 

Students should bring a sack lunch for Thursday to eat on the bus.  The bus is due to arrive at 11:30 for a 12 noon departure from the 30th street north lot. 

Students should bring their luggage to the auditorium balcony before school Thursday.   

Please make sure items you don’t want to lose are labeled with the student’s name. 

Icicle Creek Packing List: 

• SACK LUNCH for the bus on Thursday

• Clothing and toiletries

• Outerwear suitable for walking/playing in snow

• Slippers or heavy socks (outdoor shoes are not allowed in rehearsal room, nor recommended in sleeping rooms)

• Sheet Music and Pencil

• Instrument

• Optional:  Books or games for free time, small flashlight, snacks (we’ll also supply snacks)

 Students may bring cell phones, I-pods or other electronic equipment.  However, keep in mind they are easily lost and students are responsible for keeping track of them.  Students must also use electronics responsibly (e.g. no non-emergency phone calls after lights out, no electronic game playing during rehearsals, etc); offending equipment will be confiscated for the remainder of the weekend.

 Students will have free time for shopping in Leavenworth on Saturday, and may wish to bring a small amount of cash with which to make purchases.

In addition, due to a communications failure last fall (the school district computer blocked email from Sleeping Lady to Eckstein), we are two rooms short on Saturday night, and were unable to add rooms on Thu/Fri when the number of students attending increased.  Thus some children should bring a sleeping bag and pillow (and perhaps a sleeping pad), or arrange with someone else in their Saturday cabin to do so.  Please check the list of names in the orchestra’s 2/1 email from nano_fish@msn.com.

We are all set for the orchestra retreat to Icicle Creek.  Thank you for getting in your permission slips on time (everyone did!).

If a child will need any medication during the retreat, even if it is self-administered, a parent or guardian must talk with the school nurse, show her the medications, and sign a new form before we leave.  The nurse has been given a copy of the permission slips and should contact you, but you are welcome to initiate that contact.

 Before school on Thursday, students should bring their gear to the auditorium balcony (entrance across from the library).  This will be locked during periods 1 through 4 (Mr. Smith has a key).

 The bus is scheduled to arrive at Eckstein at 11:30 am for a 12:00 departure on Thursday.  Since first lunch is at 11:10, students should bring a sack lunch to eat on the bus, and report to the auditorium at the beginning of homeroom/lunch.  They should then bring their gear down to the first floor of the auditorium and wait for further instructions from Mr. Smith.  

 The bus is scheduled to arrive at Icicle Creek on Sunday at 11:30 am for a 12:00 departure, as well.  That should get us back to the parking lot behind Eckstein (by the portables) around 2:30 pm.  We’ll tell students to call home on a cell phone somewhere between Monroe and Woodinville to let you know a more precise arrival time.  The school will be open so students can pick up items left in their lockers over the weekend.

As of last Thursday, Icicle Creek had four feet of snow on the ground, and it is forecast to be above freezing during the day and below freezing at night with scattered precipitation (light rain or snow, depending on the time of day) between now and then.  Students need to bring appropriate clothing to be outside in cold and snow.  They will also want to bring “house-shoes” to wear inside the buildings, since snowy/muddy shoes aren’t allowed on the wood floors.  

 Finally, below you will find a list of the ground rules for the retreat.  It is a real privilege for middle school students to be allowed to use this wonderful facility, and we need to maintain our excellent reputation to return in future years.  Please review the rules with your child before we go.

 The chaperones on the trip will be Marjorie Olmstead, Sharon Doty, Irene Iwata, Babs Dolby, Lorna Rozelle, Marilyn Kaino, Rodrigo Berho and Jim Koenig.   Irene is a nurse.  Marjorie’s cell phone is 206-850-5112.  The Sleeping Lady Resort front desk can be reached at 1-800-574-2123, and the Icicle Creek front office (empty nights and weekends) is 509-548-6347.

 We’re looking forward to a wonderful time!

 Icicle Creek / Sleeping Lady Ground Rules

1.    Mr. Smith is the boss – what he says, goes.

2.    School rules of behavior are to be followed at all times.  Both Mr. Smith and the chaperones have the right to enforce them.  

3.    NO RUNNING on the paths. They are likely to be coated with ice (especially first thing in the morning or after dark).

4.    Students must always be in groups of at least 2.

  a.    This includes being in your room or cabin as well as walking around the grounds or on our trip into Leavenworth.

  b.    If you are in a group of three and one person falls behind, you must wait for that person, find someone else to wait with that person or call a chaperone to do so.

  c.     Exception:  It is OK to go alone to the restroom building from the Wren Building during daylight hours as long as a chaperone knows you are going.

5.    Do NOT open the door to your cabin or room for anyone you do not know if there is not a chaperone there.

6.    Students may not leave their rooms or open any outside doors or windows between when the chaperones do their bed check (around 10 pm) and when they do wakeup calls (around 7:15 am) without a chaperone being present unless there is an extreme emergency (e.g., a fire).

7.    Chaperone room numbers and cell phone numbers will be posted in your rooms.  Contact a chaperone if there are any issues (e.g. clogged toilets, injured roommates, etc.), and let them contact facilities if required.

8.    Students going to Sleeping Lady from the Music Center must tell a chaperone.  Depending on the weather or time of day, that chaperone may need to accompany you.  The Sleeping Lady spa, hot tub and exercise room are off limits at all times.

9.    Student groups taking a walk during breaks (e.g. to the Sleeping Lady gift shop) must carry a turned-on cell phone with service in the Icicle Creek area and leave the phone number with a chaperone.  They must answer the phone when it rings.

10. Any thrown snowballs must disintegrate on impact (i.e., no hard packed snow or ice).  They may not be thrown at non-participants.

11. Students staying at Sleeping Lady must monitor the noise level in their rooms at all times such that it does not disturb other residents.  At ICMC, this holds after 10 pm.

Note:  Students with medical issues (e.g. must take medications or have a physical disability resulting from a fall on the ice) must stay at ICMC and not Sleeping Lady.  This may require rearrangement of roommate requests.

Due to inclement weather and hazardous road conditions, the Camp Casey trip is postponed to the following weekend, 1/26-1/29. Students should bring their gear to school Thursday before school, and we will leave sometime midday on Thursday from Eckstein. 

Pick-up on Sunday, 1/29, will be the same—approximately 3:00 p.m in the lot by the portables, behind the school.

If the schedule change means your student cannot go (or now may go), please contact Shanon Radford (shanon.radford@gmail.com) as soon as possible. We need to provide Camp Casey with an adjusted headcount no later than Tuesday.

Eckstein Orchestra Camp Casey retreat this weekend (Thursday, January 19, through Sunday, January 22) is on!  

We are planning to go even if school is closed or on late start.  If the trip is canceled for an unforeseen reason, you will receive an email and/or telephone call Thursday morning by 11 a.m.  The weather is predicted to begin clearing up on Thursday morning, and our charter buses are able to safely handle various road conditions.  We expect warmer, rainy conditions for the rest of the weekend.

 We will begin loading at 12:30 on Thursday in the parking lot behind Eckstein. If school is canceled, please plan to arrive at Eckstein between 12:00 and 12:15. If school is on regular schedule or two-hour late start, please have your child place his or her gear in the auditorium balcony before school starts. Please label items.

 We will return on Sunday, January 22. Expect a telephone call from your child about 30 minutes before arrival on Sunday to verify the exact time (expected arrival is approximately 3:00 pm).

Attached is a packing list—it has a few additional suggested items than the list sent home from school. Please note that music stands are optional, but useful. You may also want to include chargers for cell phones or other electronics. Please be sure your child has any needed medication and is prepared for wet, muddy weather.

The trip chaperones are:

Shanon Radford, trip coordinator (206-948-7477, cell)

Jen Hamilton (206-992-5821, cell)

Laura Kimball, medication support (206-407-6322, cell)

Patty Sather (206-714-1418, cell)

Courtney Miller (206-619-5554, cell)

Diana Louden (206-369-5147, cell)

Erik Rucker

Laura Kimball is providing medication support for the trip. Laura has a list of all disclosed medical conditions and medications from the permission slips, along with any instructions provided and parent contact information. Laura and Shanon will check in with all students who are taking medications.

If you have general questions, please send them to Shanon at:  shanon.radford@gmail.com. Specific concerns about medication support may be directed to Laura Kimball at lkimball@uw.edu.

We’re looking forward to fun, safe trip with lots and lots of music!

Best regards,

Shanon Radford

All four orchestras.  Junior and Beginning Orchestras should report to the Orchestra Room (#117), and Intermediate and Senior Orchestra should report to the Band Room (#118) at 7:15. 

We will need one parent from each orchestra to keep order in the practice rooms (so you can leave to hear your child play), plus one or two additional parents in the halls to monitor the auditorium doors.  Gina McCotter will be coordinating.

Hello, Orchestra students and families!

It’s time to begin the annual winter greening of our neighborhoods. For the past several years, we have worked with Deer Run Greenery to put on a successful, popular, and unique fundraiser for our orchestras. Let’s make this our best year yet!

Basic things you need to know (and even use to sell greenery to your family, friends and neighbors):

•  This year’s prices are the same as last year’s. That’s right–no inflation! 2011 greenery prices are:      

2011 Greenery Fundraiser Flyer with Prices

25-foot Cedar Garland: $32       

Noble Fir Mini-Charm: $14   

Mini Door Swag: $15                         

Table Wreath: $18       

Mixed Noble Wreath: $22 

Noble Door Swag: $22

Big Red Bow: $3

• Deer Run is a local (within 50 miles, in Bonney Lake), family-owned company. Their items are made from sustainably harvested branches. These wreaths, swags and garlands smell wonderful and will last beyond the holiday season without needing any special attention from you.
• These items are much less costly through the fundraiser than they are through retail channels. In fact, the beautiful door wreath that we sell for $22 costs $39 if ordered through Deer Run’s own website. And, even at our fundraiser’s great prices, we average 50% profit per item…that $22 wreath makes back nearly $11 for the orchestra.
• All items are prepaid. Have your customers pay with cash or a check made out to “Eckstein Middle School Orchestra” when they place their orders with you. Order forms and payments should be turned in to the collection box in Mr. Smith’s room.
• You will deliver orders to your customers at the beginning of December.

Logistics:

• Our order deadline this year is Thursday, November 10. Please turn in your forms and payments to the collection box by that day. We are hoping to have the greenery order delivered to Eckstein on December 1^st, so you can deliver items to your purchasers the first weekend in December.
• Please be sure that your own name, phone number, and email address are printed legibly at the top of your order form! Put your email address in the box that says “Organization”. This will make it MUCH easier for me to do all the tracking, notification, and data entry required for a successful fundraiser.
• At the concert on November 17, we will have a table for last-minute orders ONLY (as in, “I forgot about Aunt Sally!”). In order to have Deer Run agree to this, though, we MUST have the bulk of our orders in by the 10^th.  If you are able to help staff the table on the night of the concert, please let Jen Hamilton know!
• Call or email Jen any time with questions, comments, ideas for increasing our profits for this fundraiser, or offers of assistance.  Jen Hamilton, 206.992.5821, ecksteinelf2011@comcast.net

Wondering who to sell to? How about…family; friends; neighbors; friends at church, or work, or at a younger sibling’s school; small business owners in your neighborhood. Remember, too, that this greenery makes great gifts for holiday hosts and hostesses, your boss, your dog walker, your mail carrier, your hair stylist, your favorite teacher or coach…you get the idea.

And, as we say to all those who buy greenery from us, thank you for supporting Eckstein Middle School’s amazing orchestra program!

Cheers!

Jen

• A-I     Salads
• J-R    Main Dishes
• S-Z    Dessert