Dear William Reid Families,

This weekend offers an opportunity to reflect on the important role that mothers and mother figures play in shaping and supporting our lives. As we celebrate La Fête des Mères (Mother’s Day) with heartfelt, school-made gifts and family gatherings, we express our gratitude for all they do to help us grow into the best versions of ourselves.

As part of our Indigenous learning, students have been exploring the Seven Sacred Teachings. Our Grade 1 and 2 teams have created presentations focused on the teachings of Truth and Honesty. These are important character traits that benefit us all, and we encourage you to connect with your child and ask them what they have learned through this work.

For upcoming events, please review the information below. You can also stay up to date by visiting and subscribing to our school calendar: William Reid School Calendar

1. School Council

Join us

Tuesday, May 12 at 7:00 PM will be held online only via Microsoft Teams. All parents are welcome; it is an excellent way to stay up to date and be involved in school planning.

The agenda for the meeting and minutes will be found here: School Council We are seeking volunteers for vacant positions, please consider the following:

• Co- secretary — support with taking meeting minutes
• Vice president – Fundraising society – a supportive role to the president of our Fundraising society
• Co-Treasurer – Fundraising society – work alongside our current co-treasuring to support with managing fundraising funds

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.

2. Jump Rope for Heart | Fundraiser

We kicked off our Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser last week! Please consider donating to our schools fundraiser by clicking the link below. Your support helps Canadians affected by heart disease and stroke, including patients, survivors, and their caregivers.

Ask your child if they remember what FAST stands for with regards to the signs of a stroke.

Our fundraising goal for this year is $5000. Help us achieve our goal for such a worthy cause.

https://jumpropeforheart.crowdchange.ca/119273

3.    Terry Fox Fundraiser Update | Top 50

We are proud to share that École William Reid School has been recognized as one of the Top 50 Terry Fox Fundraisers in Alberta, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut for 2025. This achievement reflects the generosity, dedication, and community spirit of our students, staff, and families. For a school of 320 students, this is a huge achievement.

This year also marked a historic milestone for the Terry Fox Foundation, surpassing $1 billion raised for cancer research across Canada. We are honoured that our school community played a part in supporting this incredible legacy and continuing Terry Fox’s dream of hope and perseverance for future generations.

4. William Reid 2025-2026 Yearbook

• Final deadline to order: Tuesday, May 12 2026
• Use this link to order: WR Yearbook Orders   Our Yearbook ID code is 14464826

5. Year End BBQ | Seeking Alumni Volunteers

We are excited to celebrate the incredible efforts of our students this year—especially their hard work raising funds through our bottle drives! To recognize their contributions and bring our community together, we will be hosting our 2nd Annual Year-End BBQ and Western Day on:

• 📅 Thursday, June 11, 2026
• 🕛 12:00–1:30 PM

This special event will include a school-wide western day celebration and barbecue, providing students and staff an opportunity to celebrate as a community.

A big thank you to our parents who have volunteered!
 We are no longer in need of any additional parent volunteers.

Calling All Alumni!
 We are excited to invite former William Reid students to volunteer at the celebration. Alumni can volunteer in a variety of ways, such as:

• Preparing food and drinks
• Assisting with activities
• Helping tidy and support event setup

This is a wonderful opportunity for former students to reconnect and serve as positive role models within our school community. Please note that alumni volunteers may be assigned to different roles based on event needs.

All alumni students must have parent/guardian permission and are responsible for informing their current school of their absence.

If your child (alumni) would like to attend, please contact

Mme Kathryn Ferguson at kaferguson@cbe.ab.ca.

Thank you for your continued support in helping us build a strong, connected, and vibrant school community. We look forward to celebrating together!

6. Staff Appreciation Lunch – Call for Deserts!

The William Reid staff appreciation lunch will be held on June 2, 2026. We are in need of some volunteers to provide some deserts! If you are able to provide a desert, please sign-up here https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A4AA4AE2AA0FAC70-63853694-staff

From the School Council Staff Appreciation Lunch Organizer, Merran.

7. Volunteer Celebration | June 4, 2026

To all our parent volunteers, thank you for helping us grow!

On Thursday June 4, 2026 at 8:30 AM, we are honoring our amazing volunteers in the gym at William Reid School. There will be coffee and an assortment of treats for you to enjoy. There will also be performances by the students.

Our school simply wouldn’t be the same without the dedication of our incredible parent volunteers. Your time, energy, and generosity make a meaningful difference in our school community. We are truly grateful for all that you do - from chaperoning field trips and participating in School Council, to supporting teachers and students during residencies, helping with fundraising, organizing special events, distributing lunches, and so much more. We would love the opportunity to thank you and celebrate the many ways you give so generously of your time.

Please RSVP to your child’s teacher by May 14 to let us know if you are attending.

8. Healthy Hunger Special Lunch Volunteers

Our next Healthy Hunger fun lunch day is on May 28, 2026 – EDO. The Saturday prior is the last day to get your orders in! Order here: https://healthyhunger.ca/

 Thank you to all the Volunteers that have signed up to help organize and distribute food! 

9. Elementary Track & Field City Championships | Grades 3 - 6

The Elementary School Track & Field City Championships will take place on Saturday, May 30 and is open to students in Grades 3–6. This event is designed to build physical literacy through fun and inclusive experiences in running, jumping, and throwing, helping to address a gap in opportunities for younger students.

This is a great opportunity to support student well-being, confidence, and engagement in physical activity while introducing them to track and field in a positive, accessible way. The entry deadline is May 27.

Please click on this link to find out more information: Brochure Link

Bottle Drive: Donations at William Reid on Thursday, May 14

Our fourth monthly bottle drive is coming up this Thursday May 14. Every extra bag collected helps fund special student activities and experiences. Start saving those bottles now and let’s see how much we can raise together! 

You can start dropping your bottles off on the cement compound along the fence line on 36th ave. at 7:50 a.m. A bottle truck will be parked on the school cement compound from approximately 8:15 to 8:45 and they will load the bags of bottles then. We will be collecting refundable drink containers only.

Final scheduled pick-up :

• June 4

All funds raised will go directly toward activities and events that benefit our entire school community.

Your participation truly makes a difference and helps us create fun, memorable experiences for all of our students. Thank you for your continued support and for being such an important part of our school community.

Bottle Drive:

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

Please return empties to the Manchester Depot and let them know that you would like your refund to be donated to William Reid, the funds will come directly to the school. And, your visit at the Depot will be super quick, no wait time, just drop-tell-leave.

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