Simplify Your Holiday Shopping with the La Mariposa Gift Card Program

Fundraising While You Shop!

We all love to find easy ways to earn money for our school without selling! Gift Card fundraising is a no-selling program that allows you to raise money for La Mariposa simply by purchasing gift cards for your everyday purchases and gifts.

Here’s how it’s done:

You simply purchase gift cards from your school coordinator, Lisa Carraway, at face value and she will order those cards at a reduced price. The difference in money is an instant rebate for our school. It’s really that simple!

Here is an example:

Purchase a gift card for the GAP for $50, Coordinator buys the gift card and they will contribute 14% back to La Mariposa.  You in return get your gift card for $50 to the GAP and the school has now made $7.00 instantly!

All retailers have different contribution % so check out the retailers list for more info.

Order forms and retailers list are located here.

LM Gets $1950 From Target REDCard Program

La Mariposa Gets $$$ When You Spend with Your Target REDcard

The Target “Take Charge of Education” Program allows you to earn money for La Mariposa while doing your typical household shopping with your Target REDcard.  Target donates 1% of every dollar back to our school.  1% doesn’t seem like a lot, but when you add up what you spend per year at Target and multiply it by the number of families at La Mariposa, it adds up fast.  

Help La Mariposa, Help Your Business

We are looking for sponsors for our 2013 La Mariposa Elementary Rock-N-Run Jog-A-Thon which is being held in October.  Do you know of a company or family that would like to be a sponsor?  We have learned that asking our network of people is the best way to obtain support.  As you may know, this is one of our main fundraisers that benefit our students; these funds sponsor programs and purchase technology.  Click here to see how we spend our PTA funds.  There are many ways that you can support our students!

First, we have a new sponsorship that gives your business YEAR ROUND EXPOSURE at La Mariposa:

Platinum School Sponsor – $1000 *New Promotion

• Your logo with be advertised all year round, especially at our Back-to-School night, Jog-A-thon, Dinner Dance, Open House, etc.
• Your company will be a Gold Sponsor, receiving all the sponsorship benefits for both the Jog-A-Thon and Dinner Dance.
• Your business linked from our school website and marketed through our weekly parent eBlasts
• A special “Thank You” article featuring your business in our Pawprint Blog

Here are two other ways to sponsor the Jog-a-thon: 

Gold Sponsor – $400 Donation (Donation can count for individual student prize)

• Your logo on the back of over 850 T-shirts distributed to students, faculty, and parents worn on the day of the Jog-A-Thonand throughout the school year to show school spirit.
• Your logo on promotional banners and your business linked from our school website and marketed through our weekly parent eBlasts.

Silver Sponsor – $250 Donation (Donation can count for individual student prize)

• Your name on the back of over 775 T-shirts distributed to students, faculty, and parents worn on the day of the Jog-A-Thon and throughout the school year to show school spirit.
• Your name on promotional banners and your business linked from our school website and marketed through our weekly parent eBlasts.

In addition to supporting La Mariposa and your community, your tax deductible donation will provide a great advertising opportunity for your business.  Our goal is to obtain our sponsorships for this event before August 1st, 2013.  Options for non-monetary donations are also welcome.  Our sponsor letter is attached.  If you know of anyone that would be interested in sponsoring this, please forward this email to them!  We thank you in advance.

Help Needed For Tiger Olympics

Click here to Sign Up!

Hey La Mariposa, Got Pictures?

We know our tigers are doing plays, off on field trips, and taking part in class projects.  We also know there are always parents around taking pictures with both very official looking cameras and their Smart Phone cameras.  We can’t be everywhere and we’d love to share all of those great moments with our school community.  If you have pictures from:

• Kindergarten Spring Sing
• 1st Grade Camping Day
• 2nd Grade Trip to the Lemon Field Trip
• 2nd Grade Geology Rocks Play
• 3rd Grade Trip to the Chumash Museum
• 3rd Grade Trip to the Getty
• 4th Grade Piñata Day
• 5th Grade Trip to the Reagan Library
• Class parties or project days

Please share them with us.  Simply email them to kamblivity@gmail.com.  Don’t forget to tell us the class and what the kids are doing.  Thanks!

Missing A Bike…or Two?

Following the end of the 11/12 school year, two bikes were left in the bike racks.  Our custodian has been storing then on campus in the hopes that someone would come forward to claim them.  It’s now 9 months later and no one has come forward.  We have one mountain bike and one BMX style bike.  If you think one of these bikes belongs to your family, please contact Kamala at kamblivity@gmail.com and let us know what color they are.  We will hold the bikes until April 15th.  After April 15th we will donate the bikes to someone less fortunate.  Thank you!

Diamondback mountain bike

Mongoose BMX style bike

Be A Hero, Donate Blood at La Mariposa

The United Blood Services will be at La Mariposa on April 9th.  Be a hero and sign-up for La Mariposa’s on-campus Blood Drive by clicking here or calling (805) 654-8014. Please use sponsor code 8902 when making an appointment. Please note, you must not have donated blood in the previous 8 weeks (since Feb. 12th.)

Why Donate Blood? 

From http://www.aabb.org

A blood donation truly is a “gift of life” that a healthy individual can give to others in their community who are sick or injured. In one hour’s time, a person can donate one unit of blood that can be separated into four individual components that could help save multiple lives.  

Dinner Dance & Auction: Be There & Bid

THE 2013 DINNER DANCE IS SPONSORED BY: CAULFIELD CONSULTING, LLC;LAUBE TECHNOLOGY; AND KOPPEL PATRICK HEYBL & PHILPOTT.  CONTACTS:  AARON LASKY & KAT GREGORY

5th Annual La Mariposa Dinner Dance & Auction

• Saturday, February 23, Camarillo Ranch Red Barn
• Learn more at our Event Website
• Make your reservation now!

Be There & Bid

We have some fabulous packages that will be included in the live auction this year, but you gotta be there to bid on them.  A little birdy has given us the inside scoop on a few of these great items up for bid.  Check ’em out and join us for the best party of the year!

Let Them Eat Cake!

Nothing Bundt Cakes has been a loyal donor to the La Mariposa Dinner Dance & Auction.  This year they have donated one Bundt Cake a month for a year!  These are serious, get out of bed, sneak downstairs and eat ’em in the dark with your fingers kind of cakes–they are ridiculously amazing.  For all your sweet tooth needs please visit www.nothingbundtcakes.com or visit them at the Thousand Oaks location!

U is For Umbrella

Santa Barbara Designs donated a unique Patio umbrella that you can’t get at any retail store, the umbrella is white with a black base.  This is not your Target umbrella.  Crafted with care, this umbrella will turn your backyard into a high end resort paradise.  Santa Barbara Design umbrellas are known the world over for their quality and durability.  Valued at nearly $2000, you normally would have to go through a designer to get one. Please check out all their designs at www.sbumbrella.com.

Give the Gift of Dance

The Dance Company gives everyone the opportunity to learn to dance.  Once again The Dance Company has been generous with 1 free year of dance class to a new student.  They feature professional instruction in Jazz, Ballet, Tap, Lyrical, Hip-Hop, and Pointe for beginners to pre-professional with ages ranging from babies to teens.  Award winning choreographers and competing teams.  Please visit the Dance Company at www.thedancecompany.biz.  The Dance Company builds great dancers!

Escape Reality, If Only For A Weekend

Spend the weekend at The Four Season Resort and Spa Westlake, an idyllic retreat set within acres of gardens. This package includes:  One Night Deluxe View Accommodation, Breakfast for Two, Dinner for Two in Onyx or Lobby Lounge, One Spa Unity Package (Ginseng Facial and Swedish Massage), One 50-Minute Swedish Massage.  You deserve to get away from it all.

A Weekend Get Away For the Whole Family

Rancho Las Palmas Package Two Night stay at the Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage.  Guests will find exciting experiences including Splashtopia, a thrilling pool complex, and bluEmber, our signature restaurant in the heart of the plaza, which exudes the sun-drenched charm and relaxed elegance of the Southern California desert.  This package includes: $100 Rancho Las Palmas Gift Card, $100 Visa Gift Card, 4 passes to the Children’s Discovery Museum of the Desert, $25 Chevron Gift Card.

Still not sure if you are going? Read the Top 8 Reasons To Attend the Dinner Dance.

La Mariposa Student Eco Team Conducts Waste Audit

by Natalie Swarts, Eco Team Leader, La Mariposa PTA

“There is only so much room available for solid waste disposal, and because landfills are so tightly packed, it takes a great deal of time for material to decompose. The easiest way to reduce solid waste is to reduce your consumption of daily products. Be cautious of what you buy, and whether anything you are going to put in a trash can really belongs there.” Earth911.com

La Mariposa completed our first Waste Audit on December 13th.   Students and parents worked together to sort everything that was thrown away during an entire school day.  The Eco Team met on January 18th to discuss the Waste Audit results and talk about goals for reducing waste.  Take a look at the chart below:

54 lbs of unopened food was collected in a single day.

Participants were surprised to discover that we had 54 lbs of unopened food, including whole sandwiches, cartons of milk, bags of chips and untouched granola bars.  (picture) Additionally, we found almost 90 lbs of partially eaten food and 7 lbs of ziplock bags – from only one day!  In total, we threw away over 300 pounds of trash, which means our school likely sends over 54,000 lbs (or 24 tons) of waste to the landfill each year.

Student Comments & Suggestions

Career Day Speakers Needed at Las Colinas

Our big brothers and sisters could use a little help with their career day. They are looking for all types of careers from plumbers to artists to physicians.

Career Day Speakers Needed at Las Colinas.