2025-12-14 Newsletter

Countryside Holiday Gift Drive  (Last Chance to Contribute)!

The Annual Countryside Holiday Gift Drive is back again for another year of spreading cheer. There are families in our Countryside community who would greatly appreciate support this holiday season. As in past years, our PTO will work with our school social worker, Gillian Van Delft, to gather requests and distribute assistance to Countryside families.

Through our PTO-sponsored Countryside Cares program, we were able to support Countryside families requesting assistance as part of our recent Thanksgiving drive. In addition, we provided support to families facing hardship due to recent SNAP benefit disruptions. We are very grateful for everyone’s support.

You can support our Annual Countryside Holiday Gift Drive by donating to our Countryside Cares program. Funds collected will go directly to Countryside families in need. The deadline for all donations is Wednesday, December 17.

Here's how to donate:

• Venmo  link here (please reference “Countryside Cares"). This is our preferred method.  

• Check, made payable to Countryside PTO (please reference “Countryside Cares”) and return it in your child’s folder.

• Donate a gift cards by signing up here. Our goal is to collect them in $25 increments.

We are grateful for donations in any amount. Please email Julie Winsett, Jennifer Saputra, or Melissa Hagerstrom with any questions or follow ups. For families in need, please reach out to the Countryside Social Worker Gillian Van Delft or Principal Herlihy. 

Save the Date! Saturday Night, February 7!

The PTO is pleased to share that we've reserved The Biltmore Bar & Grill, in Newton Upper Falls (five minute drive from Countryside school) for this year's PTO Parent Party on February 7th.  We hope you can join us for a relaxed night of fun, mingling, and getting to know more folks.  This is the night before Super Bowl Sunday, and the Patriots are doing VERY well this season...so look out for some fun raffles and games, like picking squares for the final score, at the party!  

More details to follow after the holidays.

Want to see your country of origin represented? We need YOU! If your country isn’t on the list, consider becoming a Country Leader and share your heritage with the community. It’s easy—just fill out this form. The Deadline to complete this form is January 18. 

Not sure what’s involved or the time commitment? We’re here to help! Reach out to the MCF Co-Chairs anytime with your questions.

Let’s make this year’s festival the most vibrant yet—join us and celebrate the diversity that makes Countryside special!

Inclusive School Week

Last week, Countryside Elementary celebrated Inclusive Schools Week, a nationwide initiative that highlights the importance of building welcoming, respectful, and supportive school communities for all students. Inclusive Schools Week is an annual celebration dedicated to strengthening a sense of belonging in our schools.

To celebrate this year's theme, Children First—Building a Stronger Tomorrow, students created snowflakes to contribute to a school-wide Sharing Wall, celebrating “What makes Countryside Elementary a special place to learn.” Students and staff also wore orange to show their commitment to inclusion, as the color represents belonging, unity, and the power of including everyone. We want to give a heartfelt shout-out to our incredible Countryside teachers and staff for your dedication to creating an inclusive and supportive learning environment for every child. Special thanks to Abbey Bannon, Valerie Brunache, Sahar Zaheer, Janet Jackson, Zina Liss, Gizem Nemutlu and Tera Hickle for organizing this year's activities!

Green Team

Thank you to the children and families who helped plant flower bulbs at Countryside this fall. It was a beautiful fall day to work in the gardens/flower beds. We planted a mixture of crocuses, tulips, alliums, and daffodils, and are so excited to see them bloom in the spring. Special thanks to the Lipson-Winsett and Saputra families, who helped plant, and to the Countryside Green Team for organizing!

A belated thank you to the families that participated in the Green Team Harvest and Tea Party! We harvested and ate fresh veggies and herbs from the garden and drank hot teas and cider. We learned about the science of "tisane". We appreciated new members of our community joining and had a great time! Thanks to the Allen, Gjata, Hosmer, Kim-Cho, Pogrebnyak, and Winsett-Lipson families for helping. Special thanks to Joris Gjata for her tea/tisane expertise! Please email Julie with questions, or if you want to join for our next event.

Newton SEPAC Community Conversation with Rep. Jake Auchincloss

Wednesday, December 17 at 6:30 p.m.

Register Online

Newton SEPAC Hosts: Understanding Basic Rights in Special Education

Guest Speaker: Attorney Alicia Warren

Wednesday, January 21 at 7:00 p.m.

Register Online