CONTRIBUTING TO COMMUNITY

Building and nourishing community through mutual aid, volunteering, fundraising, and more.

MUTUAL AID

The Puddletown community engages in mutual aid in a number of ways throughout the year by responding to specific or ongoing needs in the school community and the larger community of which we are a part. Some examples of mutual aid and supporting one another are:

  • Puddletown’s Family/Caregiver Association maintains a Family Support Committee that organizes help for Puddletown families going through challenging life events.

  • Puddletown regularly raises funds for scholarships for families who would otherwise be unable to take advantage of early education or Montessori for their child(ren).

  • Puddletown’s Family/Caregiver Association regularly organizes food and clothing drives regularly for local organizations.

  • Children are active participants in mutual aid and older learners often research and organize mutual aid efforts. For example, Puddletown’s 8-12 year olds organized a fundraiser and supply drive for the People’s Store, who provide mobile mutual aid to unhoused people in the Portland area. During summer camp, 3-6 year old children created “Heatwave Snack Bags” and pb&j sandwiches during summer to be shared to PDX Free Fridge.

  • Puddletown staff makes monthly donations in support of Native communities. For the year 2022, staff voted to direct these funds to Peacekeeper Society.

VOLUNTEERING

Volunteering is critical to the success of our school, both physically and in building a sense of community. Every family is asked to contribute their talents and time to fundraising, community projects and/or classroom endeavors.

Some of our past volunteer opportunities:

  • material making for the classrooms (sewing, cutting, photocopying, etc)

  • chaperoning an Elementary “Going Out” adventure

  • taking part in a committee on the Family/Caregiver Association

  • attending some or all of our Community Education offerings

  • participating in community Anti-Bias Anti-Racist committee meetings

  • mentoring a family new to Puddletown

  • being a part of one of our fundraisers (auctions, work-a-thons, carnivals, Piepalooza, etc)

  • working on the grounds (repair projects, deep cleaning, weeding and maintaining the garden)

We require a minimum of 10 volunteer hours (15 hours if more than one child is enrolled and half time for a mid year enrollment). A per-hour payment of $20/hour is charged at the end of the school year for families who have not reached this minimum level. Puddletown makes every effort to connect families to volunteer work that fits their interests and abilities, and our goal is that no one uses the payment option. If you would like to volunteer but are unsure of how you can help, drop us an email, and we will let you know what projects we are currently working on.

PUDDLETOWN EVENTS

Puddletown hosts events throughout the year. Below are descriptions of the types of events, then click the link to access the current calendar.

  • PUDDLETOWN CARNIVAL: Each year we have a wonderful carnival with vintage games, cake raffle and many other super fun activities. Tickets purchased earn funds for our scholarship program.

  • WORK-A-THON: Puddletown children and families/caregivers work at a local park cleaning, raking, painting and more. The children earn sponsorship dollars for their work that goes towards the scholarship fund.

  • PUDDLETOWN HALL: An adult evening out with delicious food, amazing silent auction items, live music and merriment. All funds raised go towards the scholarship fund and programs at Puddletown.

  • MATERIAL MAKING GATHERINGS: Help make the wonderful materials our children use everyday in the classroom. This is a great way to become familiar with the materials your child works with in the classroom. (And it’s a HUGE help to the teachers!). 

  • SPRING WORK PARTY: Bring your cleaning and gardening supplies to help spruce up the classrooms and grounds. It’s a fun, adult-only event that leaves the facility looking great for our kids! 

  • FAMILY/CAREGIVER COFFEES: Adult get-together Fridays after drop-off at a neighborhood coffee shop. Announcements made in the Google Group.

  • PUDDLETOWN PLAYDATES: Activities are announced such as swimming, roller-skating, seeing a play, etc. These activities typically fall on a weekend or a day the school is closed. It’s a good opportunity to enjoy a Portland children’s activity, while knowing that some of your child’s classmates will also be there.

  • ELEMENTARY SOCIAL: A back to school get-together in late summer for new and returning elementary students and their families.

  • END OF THE YEAR PICNIC: On the last day of school all families/caregivers are invited to Berkeley Park for a graduation ceremony, singing, and a whole school picnic.

COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

Puddletown is proud to learn from and work with a variety of local and national organizations. These include, but are not limited to: