We received a notification from the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America thanking schools for their demonstrations of support for other Waldorf schools and institutes in hazardous smoke and fire zones. Santa Cruz Waldorf School sadly reported that families have lost their homes. In addition, a number of schools in Northern California and Oregon have shared that community members have needed to evacuate their homes, or be prepared to evacuate. The majority of AWSNA schools along the west coast report that they are impacted by heavy smoke, ash, poor air quality, and, for some, delayed school openings but otherwise report that they are safe. 

From the Siskiyou School in Ashland, OR

We are reaching out to alumni whose work is related to the COVID-19 pandemic. If you or someone you know would like to share their experiences with the WWS community, please send us an email.

Zachary Smith attended WWS from 1st through 12th grade and graduated in the class of 2009.

Q: Briefly describe the work you are doing related to the pandemic.

A:  I work as an Emergency Medicine Physician at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston Salem, NC. Everyday at work, I have the privilege of caring for some of the most severely injured and critical ill adult and pediatric patients in North Carolina. Many patients I take care of are suffering from COVID-19 infections and often require emergent life-saving measures in the Emergency Room (such as intubation) before they are admitted to the hospital or ICU. I work with a large multidisciplinary team and have been amazed at the ingenuity, creativity, and grit my team demonstrates everyday with new situations, logistical challenges, and medically complex patients.

Q: What is the most inspiring thing you’ve seen during the pandemic?

A: The daily resilience of the clinical staff in the Emergency Room at Wake Forest Baptist Medical center has been truly inspiring. It has been humbling to be part of a team that on a daily basis overcomes fear of the unknown, fear of spreading COVID-19 to family members, and the physical demands of wearing full PPE while taking care of people who are often experiencing the worst day of their lives for 8-12 hours at a time. One of the beautiful aspects of Emergency Medicine is that no two days are the same and every patient has unique aspects of his/her illness that require open-mindedness to best meet individual needs. Working at a medical center that has very active clinical research departments staffed by researcher clinicians has also afforded me a front-row seat to the battle to better understand and develop tests and vaccines for COVID-19. While large medical centers are often characterized as overly burdened by bureaucracy and rules, it has been inspiring to see so many of my colleagues so quickly form large collaborations with other large medical centers and focus tremendous resources towards rapidly designing and implementing multi-center clinical trials trying to find a viable vaccine and develop tests that have more rapid turnaround-times.

You can view the full calendar online either on the website , in ParentSquare , or in the BigSis portal (these 3 platforms are synced from the same calendar). 

These brief coffee breaks will be a causal time for parents to join Jennifer Page online for a visit and to ask questions as the school year begins. Zoom details will be sent out through ParentSquare.

Handwork has been a long-standing tradition at WWS. Parents and faculty have gathered to make Waldorf Dolls, to knit, sew, to needle felt and wet felt - the list is long. These gatherings happened at people's homes, in our library, and in our lobby after the 2015 renovation and no experience is necessary! All that is needed is interest in handwork and a desire to create community. A handful of parents will be meeting via zoom on Tuesday, Sep 22 from 9:15-10:15am to talk about this year's Craft & Conversation group. We'd love to see you there! Questions? Contact Maria Monteverde-Jackson at mmonteverdejackson@washingtonwaldorf.org.

Zoom calls might not be for everyone but, for those who are craving social time with WWS parents, please join us on Thursday, September 24 from 9:15-10:15am to meet other parents and catch up with those you may already know. Zoom information will go out the day before via ParentSquare.

We want to know your go-to song, rhyme, or mantra that helps you and/or your children count yourself through frequent handwashing...

Send an email to agoodyear@washingtonwaldorf.org

We welcome submissions of community news, items for sale, want ads, etc. Please keep notices to 500 characters or less. Listings will likely be edited. Please submit listings by COB Tuesdays with the subject "Bulletin Submission." Bulletin Board notices generally run for 3 weeks - if space allows - unless other arrangements have been made. There is no charge for listings.  

Every Wednesday night in September, join Gay Straight Alliance members from across the country for a FREE online Acting Workshop with Broadway actors Colby Lane Chambers and Brian Spitulnik (WWS Class of 2001)! We'll be diving into improv and theatre games; exploring scenes and monologues; and honing the techniques of acting for the camera! You are welcome to bring monologues, scenes, or even original script writing to workshop with Brian and Colby! This series is in co-operation with Encircle, a resource center for LGBTQ+ youth and families based in Utah.

Go to https://encircletogether.org/online, click on GSA Night, and join us via Zoom!

Capacity Partners, Inc., a growing, full service nonprofit consulting firm, is hiring an Operations Associate. We are looking for a detail oriented person with a can-do attitude who loves systems as well as direct work with clients and prospective clients. Position is 30-40 hours per week during standard work hours, virtually at first, post-pandemic in office located in the Sangamore office plaza. Office is a 5-minute walk from WWS.

View the full job description and information on how to apply.

Contact: Stephanie Hanson (WWS Parent)

capacitypartners.com | 703.505.4289 (cell) 

contact: wyman.michelle@gmail.com

FINAL DAY for Alumni Family Game Kicksarter

For Sale: Half size cello, $1100. Please contact Geoff Baker for more details! breadbaker1@gmail.com

We welcome your comments and submissions. Contact Alia Goodyear if you would like to be added to our mailing list, or if you have submissions, questions, or suggestions. Please email submission by COB TUESDAY with the subject line "Bulletin Submission."