1. Handicap Parking Spaces: The spaces in front of the school’s MPR are only for cars that have either the handicap plaque showing on the car’s front window or cars that have permanent handicap license plates. If you park in one of the designated handicap spaces and don’t have a plaque or license plate, you will receive a hefty fine from the Police Department.
2. New Contact Info: Please notify the office of any changes to your address, phone number or email address by contacting: office@sphds.org
3. Absent Students: If your child is sick, please report this to the school office, as early as possible, by calling: 408.738.3060.
4. Late Students: If your child arrives after 8:45 a.m., please come into the office to sign your child in.
5. Early Pick-Up: If you need to pick up your child for an appointment during school hours, please come into the school office to sign your child out and then your child will be called from class to meet you.
6. The Lost and Found is overflowing. Please come and check it out and retrieve your children’s lost items - clothing, lunch boxes and books.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Parents are needed to sell lunch tickets on Mondays or Tuesdays from 8:00 – 9:00 a.m or 11:45 – 1:15 p.m. Volunteering will help to fulfill your 20 hour volunteer requirement. Please email jbocian@pacbell.net to help. Thank You.

Download Form

To celebrate a birthday, anniversary, graduation, or, send get well wishes or condolences, fill out an Honor Fund donation form and submit to Barbara Spielman. Acknowledgements will be sent to recipients.  A donation form is attached to the Chai Lights and is also available in the school office.

Mazel Tov
Giovanni and Anna Celli on the birth of their second granddaughter
Barbara and Steve Goldstein

In Memory Of       
Norman Sokoloff, M.D.
Ilene Sokoloff
Selig Ligorski, on his Yahrzeit
Paula and Stanley Zaffos

Many Thanks
Clara Rosenfeld and Linor Eylon for all their help and support
Sidney and Bernice Borison

SPHDS YOUNG AMBASSADORS PROGRAM KICKS OFF AT VISIT TO ISRAELI CONSULATE
On Tuesday February 3^rd SPHDS’s 8^th grade class visited the Israeli Consulate in San Francisco and met with Consul General Akiva Tor. This visit was part of South Peninsula Hebrew Day School’s Israel education program called Young Ambassadors. As part of the BASIS program funded by the Jim Joseph Foundation, our students will be trained as ambassadors for Israel through an extensive and deep Israel experience including meeting with members of the Israeli consulate, and learning key marketing, reporting and presentation skills. They will become adept at making the case for Israel.

Eighth grade student, Havneh Feder-Haugabook, reported, “When we arrived at the Consulate, we were greeted by the head of foreign affairs and then we reached “Israeli Territory.” Before they could go any further they had to go through security where they were questioned by the head of security and then they were taken to the conference room where they met Akiva Tor, the Consul General. Havneh continued, “The Consul talks to lots of government heads about what’s going on in Israel and what the government can do better to fix the problems in America.

BELMONT VILLAGE VISIT 
On Friday, February 6^th the sixth grade students visited the seniors at Belmont Village for Kabbalat Shabbat and to celebrate Tu B’Shevat. 

Rabbi Jacobs led the services with assistance from the sixth grade students. He talked with the seniors about this lesser known holiday. Each senior received a written description about Tu B’Shevat which the students read to them.

A special thank you to Joyce Kostura, the event coordinator at Belmont Village, to the parent drivers and to Miri Levy for organizing the visit.

SHOE DRIVE   
The Kindergarten class’ shoe drive will continue through Wednesday, February 18^th. It is part of their unit on recycling and all shoes donated will be given to either Nike’s ReUse-A-Shoe program or to From Our Feet.

Nike accepts used athletic shoes (any size, any brand, or any condition) that will be processed and recycled into “Nike grind;” which will be used to make sports surfaces and playgrounds for people in underprivileged neighborhoods throughout the world.

GAN AVIV CELEBRATES TU B’SHEVAT     
Tu B’Shevat was joyously celebrated by the preschool with a host of activities. They planted beans, flower seeds, parsley and grass heads. They also did taste tests with harvesting crops of beans, peas and barley as well as fruits that grow on trees – lemons, grapefruits, oranges, figs and dates.

They walked to the school’s Biblical garden to look for blossoms on the skediyah tree (almond). The pre-kindergarten classes also enjoyed participating in a round robin of various activities, as one large group.

The entire Gan came together on Monday for a community Tu B’Shevat celebration with songs, finger plays and a dramatization performed by their teachers of “Six in a Bag.” The morning ended with the Gan enjoying delicious fruit plates provided by the Parents’ Association. Todah Rabah Parents’ Association.

SHABBATON
The sixth grade girls had a “blast” at last week-end’s Shabbaton which was hosted by Chana Greenberg. Friday night’s program started with a game of charades about subjects from the Tanach, then they davened kabbalat Shabbat and learned new songs. After a delicious Shabbat dinner they had a workshop about priorities and then enjoyed an oneg.

SAVE THE DATE: 4th Annual Foothill Century  Sunday, May 17, 2009!
The 4th Annual Foothill Century Bike Ride is coming May 17, 2009 and promises to be a fun and exhilarating ride with beautiful scenery and incredible food at all the rest stops and at our celebratory Bar-B-Q. (Yes, we will have Babkas in the morning, snacks at the rest stops and chicken at the BBQ). It was a terrific fundraiser for us last year and we’re sponsoring it again. We hope you’ll join us and encourage all your friends to participate as well and also consider making a donation to support our school.

Choose from our 100K, 50K or 10K Family Fun routes and activities for young children at the school. We have improved road markings this year! The early bird registration fee is $45 per person until May 1, after that it will be $55 and includes a free T-shirt and plenty of delicious food. For the Family Fun Ride early bird registration fee is $45 per family until May 1 after that it will be $55 and includes one t-shirt and four meal tickets, additional shirts ($5) and meal tickets ($10) can be purchased.

Hope to see you there!