The Greenhouse School

Please Give to our Spring Appeal

Dear Friends,

Spring is busting out all over, and nowhere is this more evident than at The Greenhouse School. In fact, last week was one of the most exciting weeks we have seen in a long time, and it turned out to be a sort of Old Home Week for the school. We welcome new students Juliana, Elijah, Alexanra and Josiah, and in a few weeks, Jumana as well. Last week also saw visits from old students Funmi, Jordan and Bunmi, as well as Milton, Jasmine and their two new siblings.

The weather has allowed the reemergence of Ms. Julia’s Outdoor Classroom, where the kids used flowers Mr. Danny had given her for her birthday and anniversary, along with other natural materials, to produce amazing works of found art from nature. We feel it is crucial to instill in young minds the notion that beautiful things are all around us, and they are almost always better made than bought.

We are excited to announce that Ms. Kyanna will also be back soon, and we will have Ms. Gamra to volunteer as well. We were proud to welcome Liam, who stopped by to be grilled by Mr. Danny on SAT prep material. This is the kind of activity and loyalty that highlights how a truly longterm commitment to education beyond our walls. Never stop learning, indeed. And while not exactly news given his longstanding commitment, Marcus was also here, and it is an inspiration and example to the younger kids to see our successful graduates thinking about college and the importance of their education with an eye toward the future.

Along the same lines, it is especially gratifying to note that the new students’ Mom,
Heather is actually herself a former student, having attended the school many (we’re not
at liberty to say how many) years ago. In short, it was a very gratifying week, and things do indeed seem to be looking up.

However, every silver lining does semm to have a cloud around it, and while the future looks solid, we are hard pressed to say we are out of the woods just yet. Surviving another winter is a costly affair, and utility bills were especially onerous this year. If that weren’t enough, we have twin emergency crises that present quite a challenge: both our fire alarm system and our commercial dishwasher need work, with an unexpected replacement cost of over $8,0000. It is enough to leave us a bit breathless, and quite anxious for the present, if not for the future.

Many of our families are also falling on harder times, which makes our challenge greater.
Still, we strive to keep tuition low, and in any event in even the priciest private schools tuition never completely covers the cost of attendance. We are therefore also asking that people give generously to our Spring Appeal, which is now in full swing.
Please help spread the word; you can help by seeing if your employer will match contributions as well.

Our other initiatives are also promising, but need a boost from word of mouth to continue to gain traction. Our Family Meals program is quite a hit, and seems to fill a need which can be expanded. It won’t be an enormous source of revenue, of course, but it has some potential, and every new stream helps. Along these lines, we are pleased to report that Mr. Danny has a brand new fresh batch of his Medicinal Meatloaf, and is working on his famous ribs for a new menu item. If not today, the ribs will be available early next week. You can help by taking flyers to church or community events and spreading the word. Our recent Valentine Catalogue of handmade craft items was our first attempt of that kind to expand our revenue potential in that area as well, and if anyone can help in this regard that, too, would be a boost.

Again, these will not eliminate the need for fundraising; but we are hoping to make the school as self-sustaining as possible as we overcome the difficulties of the past few years and focus on what we love and what we do best. Thanks as always for your continued support,

Sincerely,

Daniel P. Welch & Julia Nambalirwa-Lugudde, Directors