Ups and Downs

 This is a long one today, but with some important news.  To offset the 'wall of text' we've put a few extra pictures in.

Mahalo nui loa from Thren and I!

From a newsletter we sent out today:

From Threnody

Hi all! Firstly and most importantly I would like to thank those who have helped us to get this far. With such a short amount of time and money left to go, La Pietra is turning from a dream into reality.
Why La Pietra is the school for ME
    I know you’ve all heard plenty from my mom on why La Pietra is an excellent choice, however I thought you might be interested in why I LOVE it. La Pietra is a small school, which is great; I love knowing my teachers and being on a first name basis with all my classmates, it also helps for college applications since the teachers can write much better “personal” recommendations. Despite being small it still offers a huge variety of classes (including AP and online classes).
    The teachers are experts in their fields : how often can you say your physics teacher in high school was a doctor? ...Lastly I would like to point out how many outside opportunities I would get from La Pietra: they have so many connections with volunteer organizations and for our junior projects they help us find a mentorship in a field we are interested in. This allows us to give back and decide if it’s a field we are definitely interested in as a career!
Thank you again!  I hope you enjoyed our newsletter, you’ll be hearing more soon.

Shave Ice rainbows make everything better!

I thought we'd start this post with a few words from Thren herself.  And now, some good news:

We raised over 14,800 between donations and financial aid!  We have signed the initial deposit and registration paperwork; Thren will get her list of books to order for her classes soon!
(That amount also includes parental contributions.)

She's already received her schedule - and is *very* excited about her classes.

Who knew math, two languages, 3 science classes (and more) would be so exciting?

I am still trying to figure out how to cover the last small gap of $2210 this month - we'll get there somehow.  Please feel free to email us if you have any ideas to share.

I know it's not completely covered - I think I have a new swatch of silver in my hair to prove that.  But it's an amazing opportunity, and we are so close, I know we can cover this last part somehow.

Also, if you've pledged some money, but haven't sent it in yet - now is the time.  You can use the yellow button to the right, or just send us an email to work out another method. Thanks again!

Why La Pietra?  Why not another public school or homeschooling?

From the ChipIn blog:

When we first moved here, we had heard great things about the high school she is currently in from both long-time residents and fairly recent graduates. However,
Threnody has had a difficult time there, and she’s fallen a bit behind in a few key areas.
(She won’t be returning there next year.)
What has been most disheartening to me is her frustration and despair with attending school - it has really diminished that spark, that love of learning she used to show daily. We decided to begin exploring other options, and after numerous applications, interviews, tours, shadow days, financial aid applications, etc - we finally found the best fit for her overall: La Pietra Hawai’i School for Girls.

Hawai'i public schools are in a different category entirely than what we've been used to!  If you'd like some basic information on them, I recommend this series of short articles, especially the second one: "Education Reform Must Put Kids First".

 I have to thank some of our family in New Orleans for helping me see how unhappy T was with her current school; none of this would have happened as quickly as it has without your help!
Reviewing our options, transferring to a new public school is out, unfortunately.  Community college/homeschooling is also out for next year - there isn't enough breadth that she could take and fully withdraw from her current school.  It would also make her transcript even more more of a 'mishmash' than it already is.

At LP, she can take classes at the highest levels, and boost areas that she needs some extra polishing in.  They are also phenomenal at getting aid and scholarships for their students - so this will help her in the longer run with her college financing.  In short, she will be able to really explore, have her transcript cleaned up and organized, and have the best introduction possible to various admissions and financial aid staff.  *Over 100 fly to La Pietra each year and visit the students on their campus*.

I hope this helps clarify a bit about why we're doing our best to make this happen for her.  Again, many thanks for all that you've done - we really appreciate it.  If you have any ideas use the email link above, or the other buttons and links to the right.

I'll close again with a little bit from Thren:

Maybe I could work with Dolphins for my mentorship?

 

Please let us know if you didn't get the newsletter/update and would like to!  Eventually we'll close the blog later this fall, and update by email.

7 extra days!

Aloha!

We're able to extend the fundraiser another week; if you've been meaning to donate  - thank you to those of you who have contacted me - now is the time.  (If not, no worries!  We'll figure it out.)

Many many thanks to all those who have helped so far - we're so close, less than 2,300 to go!

 A special thank you to Dorian Rush, who asked that in lieu of gifts or drinks for her borthday that people donate to Thren's schooling instead.  Amazing!


If anyone has any other ideas about fundraising for us - please feel free to conatct me through this email.


Again, our deepest thanks - we're almost there, and it's meant the world to Thren (and myself!) to see such love and support from all of you.

Last Push!

Thren at work to help raise funds!

Aloha!  We’re nearing the end of Threnody’s fundraiser for La Pietra; many many thanks to all of you who have helped out in so many ways.
The deadline is approaching quickly, so if you've been thinking about helping out, now is the time.

We are extremely close to our goal - we have just over $2500* to go to be funded for Thren!
*This means over $14,500 has been raised through financial aid and donations - and we have some very kind offers for help with next year!  Amazing.
(What you see above is all that is left to cover.)

If you’ve been thinking about donating, or aren’t sure how to do so/if there are other ways to help, we’ve outlined some of those below.  We've also added a new option: shopping to help out!

I cannot explain how genuinely excited and happy she is, we’ll be posting some updates to the blog site from her perspective soon.  It’s nice to see her so inspired and excited about things.

1. NEW: Shop to help!

To help reach our goal, I’m offering a sale in my Etsy shop you can find that link here.
Use the code LAPIETRA at checkout for free shipping worldwide!  All proceeds will go directly towards her tuition and related school costs.  If there’s something you’d like in a different format or style, just let me know!

I will be adding new items to the shop this weekend and early next week - so save the code and check back soon if you don’t see anything to your liking just yet!  (The code will be valid until June 3rd.)

2. Direct Donations

If you’d like to donate directly, that link can be found right here, just scroll down and look to the left for the yellow donate button. (There are also other donation methods, which can be found here - look below the white chart.)

3. Make Some Noise!
If you think someone might be interested in donating, feel free to pass along this information.  This is the final stretch!




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Our Young Entrepreneur and Altruist

This process has really been inspirational for Threnody - she has some interesting work and volunteer projects lined up for the summer, and has a renewed interest in making a difference, and she is very excited about her upcoming academic year.

(She’s also been fundraising herself to help cover the cost of her uniforms and books.)


Again, many, many thanks for all the love and support!

Here's a happy, muddy puppy pic:

Patch hikes Manoa Falls

Getting Closer!

Bonjour à tous!

We signed the paperwork last month, and wanted to give a short update - we're past the 4500 mark! 

Many thanks for all the help and support, again, feel free to pass this along if you'd like.


This means so much to Thren, she is truly looking forward to next year.

Great News!

(Geek side note:  I still can't type anything like that w/o hearing the Professor's voice from Futurama...)

We *do* have good news though:  We passed the 4G mark!    Thanks again to everyone who is donating and/or putting the word out there - it means a lot. 

We said yes to the school, so we're in the home stretch. 
Keep sending all the good luck you can; it's definitely working!

We made the halfway point!

Many thanks to all who have helped - we made it to the halfway point already!

Our goal is to raise the final 'homestretch' of 3550 by June 1st.  For those who have helped already, by donating and spreading the word - thank you!  To all those who would like to help - there's still plenty of time.  You can donate now using the Paypal button to the right, or you can email us and we can make an arrangement if you'd like to donate something later in April or May.

Again, our thanks, and keep spreading the word!  We're so grateful, and this has really meant the world to Thren to see the encouragement from near and far.

(She'd also like me to add a suggestion to donate here if you've been stymied as to what to get her for her birthday or Christmas, Yule, etc.  Think of it as a year-round gift!)

Mahalo nui loa!

P.S.  We also have a facebook page - 'like' it to get the latest updates and alerts! 
(Or just check back here.)

We're getting close to halfway!!!

Thank you all so much!  If we can keep forwarding the information/passing it along (tweeting, facebook, etc.) I think we can keep the momentum going.

I realize the two different donation sites can be confusing: ChipIn doesn't allow me to add in  contributions outside of the ChipIn site.  To avoid confusing things (and having two different running totals) I've removed that link here, now just click the yellow button to the left to help out. (And thank you!)

The red thermometer found to the right will be the most accurate running total count - we'll update it at least 2x per day.

So if you'd like to contribute, here's a revised summary how:

1. Use Paypal directly, click the link above or the  yellow 'Donate' button found to the right. (You may donate any amount you wish.) We will update the total amount raised manually as soon as possible.

2. If you would like to make a pledge now for a specific amount (again, any amount is fine) to be paid by June 1st, email us with the amount you would like to pledge and the date you would like to pay it by. We will send you a Paypal payment reminder when the due date approaches.

3. If you would like to make a donation of 500.00 or above directly to the school, contact:

Brie Ericksson, Executive Assistant

(808)922-2744
briee@lapietra.edu

(If you could let us know the amount sent to the school, that would be helpful so we can update the total amount raised.  If you would like to remain anonymous, that can also be arranged.)

4. Thank you!  (It bears repeating - we are truly grateful for any help and support.)

P.S. You can still access the ChipIn site here if you wish.