Billings annual fund

(This is from October.) Dale and I were the Billings Middle School “annual fund chairs” this year, which means writing a fundraising letter. We staged this fun update of a photo from three years ago and had a good time composing this letter together. There’s also a video version.

Dear Billings family,

Many of us don’t remember middle school with delight. Maybe the classes were dull. Maybe the social morass of junior high was miserable. When it was time for our older son to head to middle school, we worried that he would lose his joy and self-confidence amid crowded halls and boring classes. And then we found Billings. Actually, Jordan found Billings. From his first visit day, Jordan felt everyone at Billings was interested in him. The teachers, the staff and the students all wanted to hear him out—what he liked, what he wanted to do, what he found challenging, what he found funny. At tours of other schools, he felt herded around. At Billings he felt like a full participant, and Billings was the school he asked to go to.

In his three years at Billings, Jordan did snow science in the Cascades. He backpacked for a week on the Olympic Coast, on the trip where everyone helped carry gear for another student with a broken collarbone. He overcame early limitations in writing, pushed by his teachers to do high-quality text analysis of terrific books from Maus to Twelfth Night. He studied (and schooled us in) major current social issues such as mass incarceration. When we groaned to see that his homework included analyzing the president’s 100-day plan, he politely retorted, “I think it is great that I am reading this! I love how my classes are not only about the history of a long time ago but also the history of now.” Jordan’s relationships with his Billings teachers were so strong and trusting that he invited some of them to his 14th birthday party. Can you imagine? We barely can, but we see it right before us! And now we get to see it again, as our younger son Aaron begins 6th grade.

We are excited about the new building soon to be under construction, and the amazing “base camp” it will provide for the Billings experience. But as we all know, there’s a lot more that makes Billings special. The Annual Fund supports Billings to hire and retain great teachers and staff, buy art supplies and books, purchase park permits, provide teachers with professional development – including specialized Wilderness First Aid training, because the teachers are out there with our kids! And it helps the school offer tuition assistance to many families.

Please join us and other Billings families, alumni, and 100% of the staff, faculty and board of trustees by donating to the annual fund. It’s easy: you can give online or return a pledge form to the front desk in person or by mail. You’ll help our kids find themselves, uncover their passions, and be amazing middle schoolers. And you’ll help build this great community that is Billings.

Thanks so much for helping make that happen.