Liebe TCGIS-Gemeinschaft,
This has been a fall semester like no other - and we have made it to winter break, together!
It is life-affirming to see how Minnesotans come together during such a challenging time. In a year consumed by a pandemic, punctuated with violence, a public health crisis, political unrest, and a completely new way to ‘do school’, Minnesotans have shown up for each other. The Star Tribune reported a record-breaking Give to the Max Day this year with $30M in donations, a 28% increase over last year.
At this time last year, our community had raised $57,692 for the TCGIS Annual Fund. As of this week, our Annual Fund donations have reached $65,645! We are so grateful for the incredible support and generosity of our community, which this year included many grandparents, relatives, friends, corporate matching grants, and a $10,040 board match, in addition to our strong base of individual and family donors.
The generosity of our community also shows in the time and care we invest in each other. We have seen parents come together to support one another (and students) with recordings of German lessons and family support nights in Zoom. Our PTO sponsored 4 fundraisers in just 4 months, as well as a fun, safe, and inclusive Halloween event! Staff have started a Buddy Program to support colleagues who are far away from family during this challenging year. Our community truly does share their time, treasure and talents, and it makes a difference every day.
Before I close and send you off to finish out 2020, I have one more piece of good news to share with you. As you know, October ended with TCGIS instituting significant budget reductions and it was a very difficult time for all, but especially for a number of our staff members. I am pleased to inform you that $781,000 of our $927,000 Payroll Protection Plan loan has been forgiven and that we are already working on restoring much of what was cut. For details, please watch Wednesday’s Special Board Meeting.
So as we begin Winter Break, your TCGIS team wishes you and your family the time and space to enjoy one another without the stressors of schedules and assignments. We wish you safe and joyful holidays and look forward to seeing you in 2021!
Mit dankbaren Grüßen zum Jahresende -
Ted Anderson
