Dear William Reid Families,

Hard to believe that we are only two weeks away from Winter Break. The staff of William Reid are working very hard as we approach the holiday season. We want to let you know that the next couple of weeks are filled with lots of great opportunities as a community. Firstly, our Winter Celebration is happening on Thursday of next week. Please see the details below. As well, we have our winter spirit week coming up with many activities.

Wishing you and your family a great weekend.

Upcoming Dates and Events

• Dec 8                 Owl’s Nest Book Fair (see #1)
• Dec 9                 Cancelled School Council
• Dec 11              Winter Celebration (see #2) / Last day to order Healthy Hunger
• Dec 15-19       Winter Spirit Week (see # 3)
• Dec 17              Winter Market Event (see #4)
• Dec 18              Healthy Hunger – Mucho Burrito
• Dec 19              Last day of classes - Winter Break
• Jan 5                 Classes resume
• Jan 13               School Council (7:00pm)
• Jan 15               Kindergarten & Grade 1 Open House
• Jan 27               Healthy Hunger - Subway

1. William Reid School Store Now Open

 Just in time for Christmas, we have opened a school store that has apparel for purchase. Our school store is open now and will close on December 9, 2025. Orders will arrive by December 17, 2025.

2. Owl’s Nest Book Fair | December 8-12, 2025

To make this special event a success, we need your help - come in and enjoy the Book Fair with the students. Sign up to volunteer.

Please note that the Book Fair will be open on the evening of December 11.

All purchases go towards new books for the library. OWL's Nest Books

3. Winter Celebration Event – Trickster Premiere | December 11, 2025

Trickster Theatre worked wonderfully with our students, and we are excited to showcase the culminating performance during our viewing evening, as we know many of you would love the opportunity to see the production. Thanks to the generous support of our School Council, a film crew professionally recorded the show. We will be hosting a special Premiere Event on the evening of December 11, 2025, from 6:45 PM to 8:00 PM. All students and their families are invited to join us at the school to watch the video recording of the Trickster production together at that time.

Due to our space limitations in the building, we are going to ask that parents view the Trickster Premiere in their child’s classroom with the exception of a few of our classes that will gather in the gym.

Doors will open at 6:45 PM. Running time for the show will be close to 1 hour in length. We will most likely begin the presentation at 6:55 PM at the latest depending on how long it takes to load classrooms with families.

To support the cleanliness of the building for Friday, we request that families remove their boots as they enter the school and leave them outside of their child’s classroom. Those viewing in the gym will leave their boots outside of the gym.

Seating will be limited and creative in classrooms. Students will be asked to sit on the floor in front of the SMART boards and parents sitting at their child's desk. Should you need additional seating, we encourage you to bring a smaller camp chair if you like or you may stand at the back of the classroom.

Alternatively, if you are unable to make it to the school for the live viewing event, you can log in via teams – the link to the meeting will be shared out the day of the performance through school messenger.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out.

4. Winter Spirit Week | December 15 – 19, 2025

Our Student Voice Action committee has identified a number of days to help celebrate the festive season just prior to Winter Break. Here is a schedule for our special days. We are asking that students dress up to help us celebrate this festive season as outlined below.

5. Winter Market | December 17, 2025

We are excited to announce the Winter Market is back!!

On December 17th, students will visit a market in the gym and “shop” for holiday gifts for their loved ones. This will be similar to a garage sale, where gently used items are donated by you, our school community. Each child will be asked to bring a list of people they will be shopping for, as well as loonies, toonies and small bills to “buy” the gifts. All gifts are $1 (monetary donations also accepted). All proceeds from purchases will be donated to the Calgary Food Bank. Once students have chosen their gifts, our busy parent volunteer elves will wrap each item so that students can bring them home at the end of the day.

Starting Nov 24 until Dec 16, families are asked to bring in previously enjoyed “treasures” that you would like to rehome. We are looking for previously enjoyed books, puzzles, games, knick-knacks, jewelry, art, etc., for dads, moms, caregivers, sisters and brothers (not for pets). No large items that are hard to wrap or bring home by the student, and no stuffies. We would also love donations of gift bags, tissue paper, and wrapping paper! 

Please drop off donations to Mme Moreau (Room 9) at the East entrance by the playground.

To make this special event a success, we need your help - come in and enjoy the holiday fun! Sign up to volunteer.

If you have any questions please contact Julie, julielinmccann@gmail.com, Rachel racheldekorol@gmail.com, or Mme Moreau jewalshmoreau@cbe.ab.ca

6.  William Reid 2025-2026 Yearbook

Order your 2025-2026 Yearbook now! The yearbook is a valuable keepsake which captures memories and key moments throughout the school year. The book contains 32 colour pages and features a custom cover created by one of our students – more details to come for this year’s cover contest in February!

Use this link to order: WR Yearbook Orders

Our Yearbook ID code is 14464826

 7.  School Council | Next Council meeting, January 13, 2026

William Reid is in immediate need of filling two roles for the William Reid School Council (WRSC) and William Reid School Fundraising Society (WRSFS).

• School Council Chair – Leads meetings, sets agendas, and liaises with the principal and school community.
• Fundraising Society President – Leads meetings, oversees fundraising, and ensures compliance. Holds signing authority.

These roles are not overly time consuming, but are crucial to the organization and success of Parent Council. Please contact wrchair@gmail.com with your interest.

8.   EvenStart Winter Hampers – Message from School Council 

It is an annual tradition at William Reid School (WR) to support the EvenStart Foundation, in partnership with the Heartland Agency in Calgary, by helping families during the holiday season. This year we have the pleasure of sponsoring five (5) families in the city of Calgary who need a helping hand.

We encourage parents to engage their children in the process. Our goal of having our children participate in the EvenStart Christmas hampers is to foster a sense of community citizenship, service and engagement.

Use the links below to review instructions and family lists to learn how you can make a meaningful impact this holiday season!

• Instructions: 2025 Christmas Hampers Instructions Letter
• Link to Family Lists (find the tab with the GRADE(S) for your child(ren): 2025 Christmas Hampers
• Gift drop-off deadline is December 12.
• Tax Receipt Forms can be found here or in the 2025 Christmas Hampers google sheet.

Parent Volunteers

We are looking for 5 parent volunteers to collect gift items at their house for one Grade/Family. The pickup date by EvenStart Foundation is on Monday, December 15 between 9am and 12pm.

Volunteer Commitment Includes:

• Having your home address & cell phone number made available to your fellow grade parents.
• Collecting and storing donated gift items in your home until EvenStart comes to your home to pick up the donations on December 15. Please check off each gift item as they are dropped off using the table for your designated Grade/Family in the 2025 Christmas Hampers google sheet.
• Being home on Monday, December 15 between 9am and 12pm to ensure collection by EvenStart.

If you wish to volunteer or if you have any questions related to the EvenStart Christmas Hampers, please contact Sarah Simms at sarahasimms@me.com.

Thank you in advance for your generous donations!

In the spirit of giving, we will also be assisting William Reid families in need.

9. William Reid Families to support

We are also collecting gift cards for certain William Reid families that need our assistance.

Donations will be restricted to gift cards and prepaid credit cards. Suggested gift cards may be for Walmart, Superstore, Safeway, Sobeys.

Please write the $ value on the gift card.

DROP-OFF location: THE OFFICE at WILLIAM REID SCHOOL

The collected cards will be evenly distributed among the William Reid families in need by the school’s Principal, Kenzie Rushton.

Please mark the envelope for William Reid families as this is not affiliated with the Evenstart Foundation.

10. Healthy Hunger Special Lunch Volunteers

Our next Healthy Hunger is on December 18, 2025 – Mucho Burrito

Thank you to all the Volunteers that have signed up and made these days fun.

Healthy Hunger Volunteer Sign Up

11. Chess Club

Takes place every Wednesday at lunchtime in the gym!

• Bring your lunch
• Bring your own chess set (if you have one!)

Or team up with a friend who brought a game

All skill levels are welcome—from beginners who want to learn the basics to experienced players ready to show off their best moves. Come sharpen your mind, meet new friends, and have lots of fun.
See you there!

12. Request for Early Pickup

To help our office staff manage student pickup more smoothly, please call when you're on your way to the school, about 10 minutes beforehand. Also, if you are aware, please email your students' teacher and the William Reid email the night before to give a heads up. We understand that sometimes students are not ready at the time of request due to unforeseen circumstances, and we appreciate your cooperation and patience!

Ongoing Fundraising Links

We have several ongoing ways that parents can contribute to our school financially throughout the year.

Financial Donations:

https://www.educationmatters.ca/project-matters/william-reid-school/

Bottle Drive:

Manchester Bottle Depot – 410 – 38a Ave SE – Donate your bottles here for William Reid School

If you return your empty bottles to the Depot mentioned above and let them know that you would like your refund to be donated to the William Reid, the funds will come directly to the school. 

Kind Regards,

“Learning another language is not only learning different words for the same things but learning another way to think about things.”
Flora Lewis