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With all our schools celebrating Jimmy Gerken's legacy of friendship with Kabookie Week this week, some of you might be wondering who Jimmy Gerken was. Jimmy Gerken was a friend to all. He was an East resident and then staff member with special needs. One of his most famous quotes is his response to someone who was bullying him:  “That’s okay," Jimmy said. "I’ll still be your friend.”

To help share Jimmy's story with a new generation of students, the Foundation's communications director, Jay Forstner, worked with Jimmy's brother, Don, to create a children's picture book about Jimmy. You can watch and listen to Jay's read-aloud version of the story on the Foundation's "Honoring Jimmy Gerken" page at https://egrsf.org/what-we-do/honoring-jimmy-gerken/

The Foundation's Gerken Fund was created to remember Jimmy and the life lessons he taught our community while supporting the activities that Jimmy loved most – athletics and co-curriculars. The Foundation also created Jimmy's Friendship Fund for families in need. The fund helps students and families who are experiencing temporary financial troubles pay for participation fees and other expenses. You can support the fund at https://egrsf.org/what-we-do/jimmys-friendship-fund.html

Build your child's foundation at WECC!

Registration for Woodcliff Early Childhood Center's 2026-2027 preschool and child care programs is open now! Visit egrps.org/preschool for more information and to register. 

WECC is a tuition-based center, meaning there are no residency restrictions to attend. Priority will be given to current WECC families who complete their registration by February 16, 2026. 

Contact Courtney Van Heck, Director of Early Childhood, at cvanheck@egrps.org with any questions. 

There has been such a great response to Crochet Club that we are finding that we need extra help. Please see this sign up if you’re interested in volunteering to help students learn to crochet on Tuesdays during second recess (2-2:20 p.m.).

One of Lakeside’s long running traditions is having families in our school community provide snacks and drinks for the staff and teachers each Wednesday to show our appreciation for how hard they work. If your family would like to provide snacks one Wednesday this year, please click here!  Please reach out to Logan Schmidt at lclschmidt@gmail.com if you have any questions or need any more information. Thank you for your support.