Serendipity Center’s ESY program is in full-swing! Going into our second week of the extended school year, Garden Coordinator Nicolas has been taking students into the garden to harvest an abundance of summer veggies. Today students were able to harvest yellow squash, LOTS of delicious green beens, and green chili peppers. Serendipity would like to thank the employees of PGE, Point B, and Capital One for their volunteer efforts in caring for the Growing Minds Garden. Due in part to the help of volunteers, and the work of all the Serendipity staff and students, the growing minds farm looks to have another bountiful season.
The evening of June 17th, 2015 was a major milestone in the lives of six Serendipity students. Last night staff and student families gathered to celebrate the graduating class of 2015. It was a night for reflection of accomplishments and excitement for what the future may bring. Each graduate self-selected a staff to speak on their behalf during the ceremony. The touching tributes were a reminder of the many obstacles our graduating class has overcome to become young, educated adults.
Thank you to all of graduation speakers, the families in attendance, TTIP teacher Brenda for organizing the ceremony, and everyone who made the evening so special for our grads. Good luck class of 2015! We know you will do great things.
On Tuesday, June 16th students at Serendipity Center enjoyed an end of the year field trip to the Oregon Zoo! More than 70 students across ages and grade levels were excited to experience the variety zoo exhibits. From California Condors, to Polar Bears, to African Elephants students marveled at all of the amazing animals.
Serendipity Center would like to thank all of the staff and parent volunteers for helping make this field trip an awesome experience for everyone in attendance. A special thank you is in order to Lower School teacher Tyler for organizing the trip. It was a perfect way to end the school year and start summer!
Our good friend Rojo the Llama of Mtn. Peaks Therapy Llamas and Alpacas visited Serendipity yesterday! Rojo and all of his buddies at Mtn. Peaks Therapy Llamas and Alpacas have been visiting Serendipity for many years. Since Rojo first started visiting Serendipity he has become the most famous Llama in the world! He has been featured on national publications like Huffington Post. CBS News, and Today.
All of the students interested in meeting Rojo were able to give him hugs, “Llama kisses,” and lots of petting. Rojo’s friendly demeanor and soft fur make him perfectly suited to relax the students of Serendipity and give them a unique break during the day. Thank you so much Lori for bringing Rojo to Serendipity, we hope he can come back soon!
Rojo giving a student a “Llama Kiss”
On Tuesday, June 9th the students of Serendipity Center enjoyed the annual Field Day celebration. The year end school-wide PBIS party was a fun time for students of all ages and grade levels. Staff operated games including three-legged races, bean bag toss, and hula-hoop pass, to name a few. The morning of excitement and games was capped off with an afternoon treat of snow cones! Congratulations to the students for earning their final PBIS reward for the year. Thank you to all of the staff who volunteered to run games and our PBIS coordinator Gretchen for organizing Field Day and all of our past PBIS events.
Here are a few simple ways to support Serendipity by doing your weekly shopping!
Escrip.com – Market of Choice:
Once you register, donations will come to Serendipity whenever you swipe your debit card at participating locations, including Market of Choice. Serendipity will receive 2.5% of your total bill and up to 5% if you complete an online survey.
1. Go to www.escrip.com
2. Click on “Where to Earn” at top, then sort by Locations (middle column)
3. Scroll down to OREGON, Market of Choice is only selection. Click SIGN UP button on the right column
4. Select Serendipity Center as your preferred non-profit
5. Register your debit or credit card
Fred Meyer:
You can now donate money to Serendipity simply by shopping at Fred Meyers! Every time you swipe your Rewards card, a donation will be made to Serendipity. If you already have a Rewards card, it is only 6 steps (seriously, I tried it and it was super easy). You will continue receive the Rewards Points, Fuel Points and Rebates that they have in the past.
Fred Meyer donates back $65,000 per quarter. Non-profits receive a percentage of that total depending on how much our donors who have linked their Rewards Card to shop at Fred Meyer compared to other organizations’ donors.
- Go to www.fredmeyer.com/communityrewards
- Select “Link Your Rewards Card Now”
- Sign in (or create a new login)
- Search for Organization (by name or our ID number, 84042)
- Select “Serendipity Center”
- “Save”
New Seasons Market:
Serendipity Center has been selected to be a Bag it Forward partner with New Seasons beginning on May 1st, 2024 until April 1st, 2025! Each time a customer shops with a reusable bag at New Seasons, 5 cents will be donated and evenly distributed among Bag it Forward partners focused on food access and equity.
Serendipity Center’s graduating class of 6 students joined together in the dining room today, May 29, 2015, to celebrate their amazing achievement; graduating high school. Parents, families, and staff enjoyed bacon, eggs, and waffles prepared by our wonderful kitchen staff, Joey and Brian. The morning was a celebration of a life changing accomplishment for our students. Having a high school diploma increases earning potential and life opportunities for all of the students who will walk across the stage on June 17, 2015. Serendipity couldn’t be more proud of the graduating class of 2015 for all of the hard work and perseverance through out their academic careers.
On Friday, April 24, 2015 Serendipity Center held it’s second annual PBIS carnival. Since the last PBIS reward day (pajama and movie day) Serendipity students earned over 4000 tickets. Tickets are awarded to students throughout the school day for demonstrating safe, responsible, and respectful behavior toward their staff and peers.
The carnival featured a number of different games and activities for students to win prizes, including a ring toss, bean bag toss, and even a nail salon. Games were designed and facilitated by high school and TTIP students. One of the most popular parts of the afternoon was the pie toss – students competed in games for the opportunity to earn a ticket to throw a pie at the principal! Special thanks to PBIS coordinator Gretchen for organizing such a fun and memorable event for Serendipity students.
Spring is upon us and summer isn’t far behind. That means there will be plenty of volunteer opportunities at Serendipity Center for those of you with a green thumb who are interested in urban farming, horticultural education, or special education. Serendipity Center is currently taking applications for volunteers who would like to help in the therapeutic and production gardens on the first, second, or fourth Friday in the months of May and June. Volunteers are required to be at least 21 years of age and able to pass a background check.
If you would like an application for volunteering at Serendipity Center or require more information please email Jelena Doney at jelenad@serendipitycenter.org. Your investment of time, talents, and resources are truly appreciated, and will have more impact than you will likely ever know!
On Thursday, March 12 at Sentinel Hotel in downtown Portland, Serendipity Center held it’s annual benefit dinner Pearls of Hope. Serendipity would like to thank all of our event sponsors, donors, volunteers and all those involved in making this year’s Pearls of Hope an awesome success! Also, special thanks to our graduate speaker Mariah, our longtime MC Tony Martinez of “Good Day Oregon” and Kelly Russell of Kelly Russell Auctions, LLC.
The generous support of our community members is the foundation of Serendipity’s success as a organization. This year Serendipity Center was able to raise over $130,000 to support our vision of educating students with unique challenges and needs. To get involved with Serendipity Center please check out our volunteer opportunities or make a donation.