A Reflection on Planting Papaya Trees

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by Ms. Rebecca, Lower Elementary

Oh my goodness, I just have to tell you this story, it makes me laugh and makes me proud at the same time. So, Irie's mom gave us baby Papaya trees at the start of the year (4) and we have nursed them in different pots. And we discovered that the smallest pot grew the largest tree and its root is currently growing out of the pot. So, I looked at my bare landscape around my room and thought, Let's plant this baby! And I planted a tire palm once and it was NOT EASY digging in this soil, so I asked Wyatt, Matthew and Tameem if they were interested. And lo and behold, I have 3 enthusiastic boys, digging in this tough soil. We're pulling out worms, wiggling rocks free like a wiggly tooth and trying different techniques and they say, "Can we dig tomorrow too?" So now Liam is also asking, Can I dig? So yesterday they get to school and now all 4 boys are "CAN WE DIG?!" haha and I kid you not, they SKIPPED FREE CHOICE FRIDAY AND EXTRA PLAYTIME so they could dig! Isn't that the most beautiful thing you've ever heard?

My takeaway is their energy toward it. I love their drive and I observe that it's fulfilling a need. So, we're going to keep DIGGING that hole! And working to plant those papaya trees next week. I thought I'd reach out and ask you to watch a video on how to dig a hole in rocky terrain but all the vids I watched used heavy duty equipment like jackhammers and augers and I do NOT want to take away their enthusiasm for hardwork, teamwork and problem solving because a machine can do it better. If you would like to do some research with them, or give them tips, please do. Our maintenance guy is letting us borrow a digging bar and spade. And if you have a shovel or any (kid-friendly) tools that we could borrow next week, I would be so grateful. WE HAVE 4 TREES and a LOT of enthusiasm for digging right now.

** Side note: If you are not convinced this is important work, these boys are learning teamwork, problem solving, service work and they are exposed to soil science, microbiology, geology and geography as well as biology (planting the papaya and if it will grow). :)**

Meet the Senior: Alivia Arroyo

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Alivia Arroyo

“I think that the IB was the defining factor in me receiving this scholarship, because I’ve done well in it and universities know how difficult it is.”

In this new addition to the Volt, the Student Media Team will be contributing articles chosen, researched, and written by the students. This week, we sat down with Alivia Arroyo, one of our excelling seniors, to share her story.

by Natasha Webster and the VIMSIA Student Media Team

Although it’s only December, VIMSIA senior Alivia Arroyo has already been accepted and signed with Nova South Eastern University in Florida. Alivia received the Dean Scholarship, granting her a full ride to the college.

“I think that the IB was the defining factor in me receiving this scholarship, because I’ve done well in it and universities know how difficult it is,” she says.

In college, Alivia plans to major in Public Health to eventually become an ultra-sound tech. She mentioned how her IB Biology class has furthered her interest in this.

In addition to college applications, Alivia is somehow ahead in the intense workload of the IB classes. Whereas recent graduates and current students alike agree that their senior year was/is the most challenging year time-management-wise of their lives thus far, Alivia is ahead on all of her deadlines. “She is one of the most self-motivated, productive people I have ever met. She gets everything done and somehow still has time for other things,” says a fellow classmate.

Not only is managing college and the IB successfully an outstanding accomplishment, but Alivia balances the intense workload with a committed sport and job. She plays on the 18 Under Elite Volleyball traveling team for Island Mixx, and when school volleyball was in session, she led the team to claim first place in the inter-island championship team. Lastly, she also works at Ocean Surfari as a sales associate on the weekends.

So how does she do it all?

“At the beginning of the year, I was stressed, because I didn’t have a plan and I knew that things were just going to get more difficult. I know I get stressed easily and I have a lot going on, so I forced myself to make a plan and stick to it,” Alivia explains.

When asked what she recommends to be able to balance everything during senior year, Alivia shared her advice of creating lists, calendars, and reminders, but most importantly, “know yourself, because everybody handles stress differently. Once you balance your school work, life will be much less stressful”.

"Pasta and Bingo Night" Elevates VIMSIA Sailing Team

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A heartfelt thank you to all who attended this week’s fundraiser at St. Thomas Yacht Club! We are thrilled to share the tremendous success of “Pasta and Bingo Night,” held on Wednesday night to support the VIMSIA sailing team. Thanks to the incredible support and participation from our community, the event was not only a delightful evening but also a significant step towards achieving our fundraising goals for the team.

The event kicked off with a wonderful array of pasta dishes that were enjoyed by all prepared by our very own Colin Auchicloss. As the evening progressed, the excitement heightened with the start of the bingo games. It was a joy to see participants of all ages engaging in the friendly competition, with lucky winners walking away with amazing prizes donated by our sponsors.

"It’s so great to see our kids working together and being shining examples of why we send our children to this school and confirmation of our belief in the Montessori spirit," said Ravi Nagi.

We are proud to announce that, through food sales, donations, and the Bingo, we have raised a quarter of our yearly team fundraising goals. 100% of these funds go directly towards supporting the VIMSIA sailing team, enabling them to pursue their passion and travel to stateside regattas.

"I love how everyone comes together on this team! We have the best parent and student group,” added Sarah Auchincloss.

This event would not have been possible without the dedicated efforts of our volunteers, the generous donations from local businesses and individuals, and, most importantly, the participation of our community.

Once again, we extend our heartfelt thanks for your contribution to making the “Pasta and Bingo Night” a resounding success. We look forward to the continued support of our community and to seeing you all at our next event.

Check out some great photos from the event below!

the whole team with Gaylin Voegel, Winner of the blackout bingo game. She won a night at the Ritz-Carlton!

Mariana Brunt Designs 60th Anniversary Logo

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“I found merit in the notion of employing vibrant and colorful patterns, owing to their inherent warmth and potential for representing our school and the community”

- Mariana Brunt

Earlier this semester, we organized a contest for students in Grades 6-12 to submit an original logo design to help commemorate VI Montessori School's 60th year celebration in 2024. The goal: capture the spirit of our school and island community in a simple, memorable graphic. The chosen design was selected by the Carnival Committee, made up of @vimsiapta and staff members.

We are so pleased to announce that 10th grader Mariana Brunt submitted the winning logo, featured above. Congratulations, Mariana!!

Mariana's artist statement is below. Her beautiful, thoughtful design will be featured on the Children's Parade banner during 2024 Carnival and on all of our anniversary marketing materials.

YOU are invited to become a part of VIMSIA's long Carnival legacy by joining us in the Children's Parade next year. We need your participation! If you can help, please sign up here: https://tinyurl.com/yc7dscca

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Artist Statement: Mariana Brunt, Grade 10

"In conceptualizing this design, my intention was to incorporate a facet of our cultural heritage. I found merit in the notion of employing vibrant and colorful patterns, owing to their inherent warmth and potential for representing our school and the community. Thus, I decided to feature the Madras pattern as the central design element, as it symbolizes the profound and time-honored traditions of Caribbean culture that are not only memorable, but also integral to our identity."

Everything you need to know about VIMSIA's Las Vegas Night

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Las Vegas Night is the biggest annual fundraiser for our Virgin Islands Montessori School and Peter Gruber International Academy (VIMSIA). Over the years, it has gained the reputation of a “not to be missed” event on the St. Thomas social calendar. A seasonal celebration of goodwill towards VIMSIA, proceeds help subsidize tuition costs and fund scholarships to encourage student diversity.

We can’t wait to kick off the holidays together again! This year, Las Vegas Night will be held on Saturday 2nd December 2023 from 7:00p.m. to 1:00a.m. at Sapphire Beach Resort.

There are several areas for our parent body and the larger corporate community to get involved in. These are as follows:

1) Raffle: one of the largest income earners in the event. Tickets are $5 each and are sold in books of 10. Cash prizes totalling $14,500 are at stake.

On September 7, each family received a minimum of 2 books for purchase or sale. We have 10,000 tickets to sell though, so we ask for your strongest and timely efforts in this venture. Please turn all money and ticket stubs as soon as they’re sold to the school’s Office Manager Kathy Huttel, and ask for more books to sell. Remember, the 2 families that sell the most over 35 complete raffle books will have $1500 and $750 discounted from next year’s tuition. We need a raffle coordinator as well as 10 persons to cover our car park collection between Nov 27 & Dec 1.

2) Prizes & Donations: These are used in  auctions that are run throughout the night. As a parent community, we are connected with the best companies, products and services. Whether it be cruises, charters, branded baskets, vintage collections of wine, hotel packages, boat charters, jewellery, arts and crafts, electronics, automobiles, spa packages, restaurant or private catering services – keep in mind that ‘if you’d want to bid on it, then we’d want it as a prize’.

We need a solicitations coordinator as well as 10 -15 persons to cover our asks.

3) Volunteers: Las Vegas Night is a huge undertaking. Areas of work (pre-event and during the event) include admissions, auction, banking, data entry, dealers, raffle, set up and take down and solicitations. We need reliable, pro-active, dedicated and hard-working volunteers. To gain free admission to Las Vegas Night, volunteers are required to work for a minimum of 4 hours prior to the event, or a minimum of 2.5 hours on the night. Of course, if you can afford the time, please volunteer for a longer period. Your reward will be knowing that you’ve given back to the school that’s giving your child/ren such an amazing education!

4) Marketing and Advertising: If you are a boss at flyers, videos, social media, or have an “in” with radio programs or newspapers, please let us know how best you can help spread the word.

5) Admission tickets: $125 each in advance and $150 at the door. Included in the ticket price are light hors d’oeuvres. Our school population is 290, and our goal for participants on the night is over 700+. Do the math and let’s all work to fill the venue. Tickets can be purchased in advance on our website: www.vimsia.org/donate.

Once at the event, here’s what you need to know:

Drink tickets and gaming chips will be available for purchase at the admissions table and at the Main Bank. Gaming chips are used in the mock gaming, which includes blackjack, roulette, poker (Texas Hold’em) and maybe craps. PLEASE NOTE THAT NEITHER DRINK TICKETS NOR GAMING CHIPS ARE INTERCHANGEABLE OR REEDEMBLE FOR CASH – YOUR GAMING WINNINGS OR LEFT OVER CHIPS CAN BE USED TO BID ON SOME AUCTION PRIZES, OR CONSIDERED A DONATION TO VIMSIA. We thank you in advance for your generosity in spending.

For those who want to support the school but don’t like or are opposed in principal to the concept of gambling, the socializing is wonderful, dress up and party with the community. The atmosphere is a thrill, and DJ Cypha will be on hand for dancing. There’s something for everyone – and we look forward to your most enthusiastic support, to making lots of money for our children’s school, and to seeing you all there!

See below roles, responsibilities, and expectations for volunteer areas. Please contact me at lchamelyaqui@gmail.com to offer to serve!

Warm regards,

Lisa Chamely-Aqui
Fundraising Coordinator

VOLUNTEER DUTIES AND DESCRIPTIONS

SOLICITATION
Pre-event
Head of Solicitation:
Co-ordinates the solicitors and lists of businesses. Makes initial contact with businesses via email. Responsible for the organization of the solicited items and their documentation.

Works with database head.

Hands everything over to the Heads of Live and Silent Auctions and Bingo in a timely fashion.

Solicitors:
Contact minimum of 20 businesses and ask for donations to the Live & Silent Auctions, Bingo and Straight Sale portions of the event.

Follow-up with dropping off documentation and collection of donations to be used in auctions and bingo on the night.

MARKETING
Social media boosting, flyers, logo placement, webpage content development, promotions

DATA ENTRY
Pre-event: Help with the data entry of all Auction items and packages. Must be able to work with Access and Excel programs.

At the event: Register the auction bid cards with contact information corresponding to the bid number; as that eases off, work with the auction checkout table.

VOLUNTEERS

Pre-event:
Help manage Sign up Genius for LVN
Call/send emails to registered volunteers to confirm shifts, expectations.
Prepare sheets with volunteer names/shifts to have at admissions.

At the event: Check off volunteers at admissions.

AUCTION

Silent Auction Director:
Works closely with the Heads of Gift Solicitation, Live Auction, Head Banker and Data Management in packaging donations.

Provide the auction package data to be included on the website and maybe as a brochure at the event.

Work with Live Auction to create PowerPoint display for auctions (for school creations and high-end items).

Creates the layout for the auction presentation.

Reviews all gift descriptions and starting bid amounts.

Ensures that all items are properly tagged and displayed, and appropriate documentation is in order.

Oversees bidding process.

If a dispute arises, will have final say in the resolution of the dispute.

Responsible for the providing Data Management / Check-out of the winners and posting the auction results.

Ensuring that all auction items are relocated from the auction tables to the check out area and that the labeling is clear for claiming.

Silent Auction Volunteers:

Task on the night:

Need to become familiar with the items up for auction.

Monitor bidding process during auction cycle.

Post winners.

Secure items after auction cycle closes.

Monitor until pick-up of items takes place.

Live Auction Floor Coordinator:

Pre-event:

Works closely with the Auction Director and Head of Gift Solicitation in organizing donations for Live Auction.

Responsible for the flow of all support activity on the Live Auction floor.

Create ppt to advertise live auction packages.

Be familiar with all package details as presented in the Live Auction brochure.

Works closely with the Head Auctioneer, providing him/her with printed prompt cards of additional details on all items in the Live Auction.

At the event:

Assist with the running of the Live Auction by being on the auction floor and spotting potential bidders, noting bidding information and taking forms from the floor to the auction data entry area, inputting data into the computer.

Show auction items to attendees during bidding.

Assist onstage to read package descriptions before Auctioneer starts bidding.

Manage gifts after auction to assist during checkout.

Check out: verify auction winners, take credit card or chip payments, hand over items won with due diligence.

Depending on how big the auction is, you will need to prepare the bidding owl with items, assign and control bidder numbers at the event, enter all of the silent and live bid winning sheets as they each close, create invoices, take payment, pick/pack product.  If it's small, you may not need that much control.

ADMISSIONS

Pre-event: Help catalogue and distribute admissions tickets/chips to sponsors.

At the event:

Greeters meet attendees at the entrance.

Entry table sales assist with selling admission tickets, beverage tickets, and chips to be used at the gaming tables.

Accurate handling of monies.

Be able to explain the activities and their locations, available through out the evening.

Door attendants to verify admissions and stamp or provide bands.

BANKING PARENTS ONLY PLEASE.

At the event: Responsible for the accurate handling and accounting of monies, chips and ticket sales on the night of the event.

GAMING
Pre event: Practice during at least 6 blackjack dealer practices which are held twice a week at Caribbean Fish Market leading up to the event and to dealing on and off during the course of the LVN event. Contact wthomas@kellfer.com if you want to be a blackjack dealer.

RAFFLE
Pre event:
Encourage sales
Collection of tickets/money etc at drop off and pick up at both car parks the week leading up to LVN.

At the event: Sell raffle tickets

SET UP AND STRIKE

Pre and post event:

Help provide the safe and secure transportation of items needed at the dealer practice venue and to and from Sapphire.

Moves equipment.

Provide maintenance of equipment where necessary and assist with heavy labor during the decoration process and in the taking down process the morning after LVN.

Hanging of LVN signage.

Helpful to have handyman experience and access to a pick up truck.

STRONG PEOPLE NEEDED PLEASE!


After SOLICITATIONS: please put pre-event before all the responsibilities.

With Silent and Live AUCTION

Add task on the night: