Stories that Make Me Smile and the Latest with Alameda Education Foundation

My favorite part of being president of the Alameda Education Foundation (AEF) is making people smile — like when I walk into a classroom to make an Adopt A Classroom presentation and the kids are cheering and the teacher is smiling, sometimes crying, from joy.

But sometimes I’m the one who does the smiling thanks to the great stories I hear.  

A few weeks back I was making a presentation about AEF to the Rotary Club and I shared this story: Years ago when I was principal at one of my students, Kate Rockwell, received a Rotary grant to start a school book club during lunch.  

Kate went on to graduate from Encinal and UC Davis and now works for Perforce Software here in Alameda. Perforce provides each employee with funds to donate to charity. Kate decided to give back by adopting her former Encinal High English teacher, Mr. Kahane.  

Mr. Kahane used part of the gift to purchase books for an after-school class for African American boys taught by Dexter Moore (also a former student of mine) and the rest to purchase tickets for his students to see Les Miserables.  

Out of this one act of generosity that began a dozen or so years ago with a Rotary grant came many other acts that have positively impacted dozens of student lives.

This makes me smile.

Another reason to smile is AEF’s upcoming Salute to Education event on April 19th, 6 – 9 pm, at Rock Wall Wine Company.

Every K-12 school in Alameda will be sharing an innovative program that their school is doing and honoring a volunteer. The programs and volunteers are highlighted on posters throughout the venue and in the event program.

Guests can mingle and network while enjoying fabulous food catered by Alameda’s own Cafe Q , wine from local vintners along with other beverages, and fabulous music provided by the Alameda and Encinal High School jazz bands. 

There will also be a raffle featuring the newest ipad mini and other prizes.  Advance tickets are just $30 and can be purchased online or at Cafe Q (2302 Encinal Ave.).  

Tickets at the door are $40. All tickets include one drink ticket and a commemorative glass, with additional drink tickets for sale for $5 each.

Proceeds from the event will help support AEF’s Adopt A Classroom, Middle School Sports, and Enrichment scholarship programs. Thank you to our sponsors:  Cafe Q, South Shore, Rock Wall Wine Company! 

I sincerely hope you will join us and show your support for public education!

In other program news, after an exciting basketball season our Middle School Sports track program is beginning with the first all-comers meet on April 24th (running events) and April 25th (field events).  A complete schedule may be found here.

Registration has begun for Summer Enrichment Camp. We have some very exciting camps, such as aviation, NASA science, Mandarin, Spanish, architecture, computer programming, art, drama and much more.  

All of our camps feature small class sizes to maximize learning, so register early! AEF is also partnering with Alameda Recreation & Parks to offer after care. Check out the complete camp brochure here and register online at www.alamedaeducation.org. 

Summer camps are for students who have completed Kindergarten – 12th Grade and are open to all students.

Finally, please join us on April 5th at Angela’s for Friday Night Flights, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m., 2301 Central Avenue, Alameda.  Get two glasses of wine for a $10 donation. All proceeds benefit AEF.

Thank you for all your continued support!