 Preparedness for emergencies and disasters, as well as the prevention of accidents is a serious concern of those who care for children in the home, at school, and in the community. Activities to promote safety/injury prevention can be incorporated in all PTSA/PTA interests. To help inform our communities about the value and importance of emergency preparedness (e-prep), Northshore Council PTSA E-Prep co-Chairs Robin McKenzie and Tracy Jokisch have compiled some sample blurbs that local PTA/PTSAs can customize and include in their communications. See some examples below (scroll all the way to the bottom for an easy, downloadable version!). Be Prepared, Not Scared Did you feel our 4.6 earthquake near Monroe in July? Are you prepared at home for an emergency or a disaster? Here are 12 ways you can get ready (click on the picture):  The Great Washington Shake Out: October 17th On October 17, at 10:17am, [school name] will be participating in the Great Washington Shake Out, an earthquake preparedness drill. Participating is a great way for your family or organization to be prepared to survive and recover quickly from big earthquakes– wherever you live, work, or travel. Remember to drop, cover and hold during an earthquake! Stay where you are for several minutes afterward, bracing for possible aftershocks. Click on the picture for more information.  Northshore School District Emergency Reunification The Northshore School District has created a standard Emergency Reunification process for all schools and conducted a drill in May 2019. For information on the process (Click Here) . [School Name] Family Reunification Do you know what to do in the case of an emergency or crisis during school hours? Do not rush to school to pick up your child. Our school is in an area where the additional traffic may impede needed emergency vehicles or personnel from arriving. If a school evacuation is ordered, your presence at the site could delay evacuation and reunification. When the situation is under control, students and parents will be reunited in a safe, orderly, and timely manner.
Please take this opportunity to update the emergency contacts in ParentVueOpens a New Window. and consider including trusted neighbors or others that can respond to the reunification sites in case your response is delayed by other emergencies happening in our region. How Can you Help? Please remind your emergency contacts that when picking up a student during an emergency, everyone must have picture identification. These additional contacts will be critical if you cannot pick up your student.
Emergency Supplies Did you know…. that the supplies used in an emergency by the students and staff of [School Name] are funded by the [school name] PTSA (Parent Teacher Student Association)! Parents thank you for your donations to our PTSA! [insert Picture of School E-Prep Container] Download them in Word format (.docx) so that they are easy to edit and copy and paste as needed: 
How do you share information about e-prep in your community? What ideas do you have about building e-prep awareness? We'd love to hear from you! Email Robin and Tracy with your ideas.
 Threads & Treads provides Northshore families free, quality donated clothing for school age youth, teens, young adults and parents. Clothing items include: school-appropriate clothing for the school day and special events, sportswear, shoes, and accessories. All NSD families in need of clothing assistance are welcome to shop each month for 3 outfits and school event attire. They are open weekly each Wednesday afternoon from 3-6pm. **NEW in 2019-2020** Starting Saturday, October 5th, Threads & Treads will also be open one Saturday a month from 9-12pm. Please consider helping to spread the word about this Northshore community resource via your PTA communication channels! Download a poster or suggested write-ups that you can share via social media and/or your website. Or consider printing a poster that you can hang at your school (check with your office administration regarding poster guidelines at your school).
 Threads & Treads Needs Donations!
Threads & Treads Needs Volunteers! Visit this link to sign-up today: https://cpptsa.org/ways-to-help/volunteer-sign-ups/
Threads & Treads donation wishes:
If you have any questions or would like information to provide to your school, please feel free to contact Kelly Hennessey. Thank you for your help in supporting this vital community resource! THIS PROGRAM IS COORDINATED AND SUPPORTED BY CANYON PARK MIDDLE SCHOOL PTSA.
This amazing community resource is available to our community thanks to Canyon Park Middle School PTSA in partnership with the school district and Bothell United Methodist Church. It is a huge responsibility to operate a resource like this and it is a testament to the dedication of CPMS PTSA and the many caring volunteers who make the time to operate this resource for Northshore families. At Northshore Council PTSA's general meeting on September 16, 2019, Threads & Treads Coordinator Kelly Hennessey briefly spoke to the work that they do and the families they serve and invited Northshore PTAs to contribute their support either by budgeting an annual financial donation or by volunteering. She also shared that at the during this year's NSD Back to School Fair, they provided outfits to more than 100 people, and in just the first few weeks of school, they have been averaging 50 people a week who visit and take home clothing. And they are working to help broaden their impact by offering Saturday shopping hours once a month. The importance and relevance of Threads & Treads in our Northshore community cannot be understated. And CPMS PTSA and the Threads & Treads volunteer leaders are working hard to make that known! Through email campaigns, social media, and by sharing their story with local PTAs and community leaders at our Northshore Council general meeting, they are already seeing successes and gaining additional support. Seeing the work CPMS PTSA and their dedicated volunteers are doing to not only operate Threads & Treads-- but also to help it grow and become an even stronger resource in our Northshore community-- makes us PTA Proud!  Visit the Threads & Treads website for more information about donating, volunteering, making financial contributions, or arranging a clothing drive. If your PTA is interested in learning more about out how it can offer support, please contact Threads & Treads Coordinator Kelly Hennessey.
 The membership of Northshore Council PTSA adopted a Furniture Tip-Over Prevention Resolution at its membership meeting on September 16, 2019. The full resolution is available for download below: 
The idea to make this a PTA resolution comes from Moorlands PTA member (and librarian) Crystal Ellis. Crystal lost her two-year old son to a tragic accident involving an unsafe dresser. She has turned her grief into action, founding Parents Against Tip-Overs and advocating with members of Congress for legislation that would lead to safer furniture. She has even testified before Congress for passage of a law to improve and make mandatory regulations to prevent furniture tip-overs. The bill, the STURDY act, has now passed the US House of Representatives with bipartisan support: https://www.congress.gov/116/crec/2019/09/17/CREC-2019-09-17-pt1-PgH7720-3.pdf Northshore Council PTSA will now submit the Furniture Tip-Over Resolution for adoption at the National PTA Convention in 2020.
 Northshore Council PTSA's 2019-2020 calendar is now available: Be sure to save the date and mark your calendars for this year's Northshore Council PTSA General Membership Meetings:
All meetings start with a Meet & Greet beginning at 6:30pm followed by the official Call to Order at 7:00pm. Each PTA may send up to 4 voting representatives-- but we welcome ALL who are interested to attend. Council meetings will build your PTA knowledge, give you the opportunity to network with other PTA, school district and community leaders, and they can be a lot of fun, too. We look forward to seeing you there! Some other 2019-2020 calendar planning tools: Northshore School District Calendar 2019-2020 OSPI Calendar of Common Religous and U.S. Public Holidays, 2019-20 Education-related recognition event dates, 2019-20:
 The start of the 2019-20 school year is about a month away and it is time to start thinking about heading back to school! According to Huntington Bank's 13th Annual Backpack Index, the average back-to-school costs adds up to $1,017 for elementary students and over $1,600 for high school students for school supplies, extracurricular fees, and technology (this includes the cost of a laptop and internet access at home, which are often needed for school work). Thankfully, there are resources available for Northshore families who may need some support for preparing for back-to-school. Events: Northshore School District Back-to-School Fair - August 16, 2019 - 4-6:30pm - Canyon Park Middle School This is a FREE community event for children of all ages and includes children's ID cards, haircuts, activities, school and community resource information, entertainment and more.  Back2School Event - August 17, 2019 - 10am-3pm - Woodinville, WA Babies of Homelessness hosts this event which offers free school supplies, kids K-5 essentials, services and activities. Back2School was created to ease the heavy financial burden that back-to-school shopping creates for low income and homeless families. For the past 2 years, through the Back2School event, 170+ volunteers have equipped 783 students for success in school. Also, many Northshore schools and local PTA/PTSAs host welcome or back-to-school events for their school communities. These events often offer opportunities to meet teachers, connect with classmates, and learn about programs and resources available at each school site. Check the websites for your school and your PTA/PTSA for information about upcoming events. Community Resources: Northshore School Foundation Backpacks for Kids - Northshore families can request a backpack filled with school supplies using this link https://bit.ly/2GkFhmp. Backpacks & supplies will be available in your child's school office by August 27th. Students in grades 6-12 can pick up supplies at their offsite location - 22107 23rd Drive SE, Bothell, WA 98021- on August 23rd from 11am to 1pm and from 5-7pm. Threads & Treads - Threads & Treads is a free clothing store for families in the Northshore School District located at Located at Canyon Park Middle School. Families can choose 3 outfits for each family member each month. In the weeks leading up to the start of the new school year, there will be some special dates/times for families to shop, including 8/16, 8/21 and 8/28. More information... NSD Resources: Northshore School District School Supply Lists -
School supplies are requested but not required. If purchasing school supplies creates a financial hardship, please contact your school's office manager and supplies will be provided for you. Free and Reduced-Price Meals at School - Parents whose income falls within specified guidelines set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture should apply for free or reduced-price meals for their students. Families must re-apply every year for the school free and reduced-price meal program. Applications for Northshore School District for the 2019-20 school year are available on their website starting August 5, 2019. 
Nutritious free meals are available for children and teens, ages 18 and younger, at a number of locations in the Northshore area throughout the summer while school is out of session:
To find locations in other areas:
Other Food Resources:
Community Meals in North King/South Snohomish Counties:
Food Stability Resources & Food Banks in North King/South Snohomish Counties:
(ID and proof of residence required at all locations)
Northshore Nourishing Networks offers regularly updated printable lists for community meals and food stability resources (food banks) on their website: www.nourishingnetworks.net/networks/northshore/.
 The Northshore Council PTSA Emergency Preparedness Team, composed of E-Prep Chairs from schools across the district, meets monthly to discuss and support important school safety and preparedness initiatives. Topics have included NSD Emergency Management, Safety Policies, Emergency Containers, Safe School Emergency Operations Plans, Safe Schools Advocacy in Olympia, Student/Parent Reunification, School Active Threats, Security Cameras, Door Locks, Stop the Bleed Kits and much more. At the June 3rd, 2019 E-prep meeting, three individuals were recognized for outstanding contributions to Emergency Preparedness this year:
 Northshore Council PTSA 2019 E-Prep team picture, taken at the June 3, 2019 meeting. (Photo courtesy of Robin McKenzie.) Next year we hope to expand our team to include every school PTSA in the district and create even more collaboration with the School District Safety, Security and Emergency Preparedness group. Robin McKenzie and Tracy Jokisch will be serving as our Northshore Council E-Prep Co-Chairs for 2019-20. Please contact Tracy and Robin if you would like to be a part of our PTSA E-Prep team and join our Facebook group.
 The Northshore School District has established a consistent emergency Reunification methodology for all schools to ensure efficient and safe release of students to parents in the event of a crisis or emergency situation. It conducted a drill of the process in May 2019 that included district administrators, students, parents, and community members. As a part of the drill, students were bused from Woodinville High School to Pop Keeney Stadium and then were successfully reunited with their parents after a mock crisis/emergency. More drills are being planned for next year. Here is a list of things parents should know:
If you are interested in learning more about the process and methodology of parent-student reunification, here are a couple of resources: Northshore School District "Reunification Process" page: Standard Reunification Method handbook by The "I Love You Guys" Foundation:  Reunification drill organizers gathered outside of Pop Keeney stadium. (Photo courtesy of Robin McKenzie.)  Join us on Wednesday, January 16, 2019, for an important talk by author, educator and international speaker Jo Langford tailored to parents to build their Internet "savvy" to help our kids balance their online lives with boundaries, etiquette and good judgment. The talk will include:
The talk will begin at 7:00pm at the Canyon Park Middle School Little Theater (23723 23rd Ave SE, Bothell, WA 98021). This parent education event is being co-sponsored by Skyview Middle School PTSA, Canyon Park Middle School PTSA, Northshore Council PTSA and beheroes.net. Questions? Contact Skyview PTSA President Melissa Kline.  Download the flyer:
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