South Pasadena

Educational Fund

(SPEF) By: Elise Hernandez

Period: 1

What is SPEF?
SPEF stands for the South Pasadena
Education Fund and it is located in
our hometown of South Pasadena.
It was started in 1979 by a group of
parents because they were
concerned about the South Pasadena
Unified School District budget.
SPEF is the official fundraising group
for SPUSD. It raises money by
putting on fundraisers like Parti Gras,
the Tiger Tourney and many more.
Over the last 30 years SPEF has
raised almost 7 million dollars.

Who does SPEF serve?

SPEF raises money for our five schools:
AV, Marengo, Monterey Hills, SPMS
and SPHS.
Every year SPEF donates the money
they raise to SPUSD.
With the money SPEF raises, we are
able to have summer school, tutoring
programs, art and technology
programs. They help pay for the 5 th
grade musical, some of our wonderful
books and even our lockers. They
help SPUSD afford programs that it
cant afford to pay by itself.

What is Evil Twin Studios?

Evil Twin Studios puts on an annual haunt for
charity. The founders are South Pasadena
dads Todd Schroeder and Scott Peterson.
For years Todd and Scott had their own haunted
houses on Halloween at their homes but the
crowds got too big.
Last year and this year they put on a haunt at
the Fremont Center Theater. This year the
theatre was transformed into the Raymond
Hill Mortuary.
This year, the haunt raised money for SPEF.
Evil Twin Studios put on a fundraiser Lights on
Party and sold tickets online for regular
nights. The Haunt was open for seven nights.

How I volunteered.
I participated as one of the
actors/haunters. I worked every night
the haunt was open. I volunteered for
seven nights and worked a 6-hour
shift from 5:00pm to 12:00am for a
total of 42 hours. Sometimes, we
worked past midnight! I got very tired
but it was a lot of fun scaring people.
I was a faceless gatekeeper. They
called us the death angels. I also did
the stretch wall, which is a wall that
we can see through but other people
cannot, and we grab the people as
they stand in the mortuary lobby. My
favorite part of the whole thing was
the shock wall. It is in a hallway
(maze) that is pitch black and you
have to touch the wall to find your
way out. When you touch the wall, it
shocks you.

Who I interviewed.
I interviewed Cindy Knight, a current
SPEF board member. Cindy got
started this year because she
thought it would be a great way to
be involved. The SPEF board
members have a 3-year term.
This year she is part of the comity that
works on Parti Gras. She said that
this years Parti Gras is beach
themed.
When her kids stop going to school in
the South Pasadena Unified School
District, Cindy says she will still
support SPEF.

How you can contribute to SPEF.

You can help SPEF by:
Volunteering
by becoming a SPEF board member
by working in the SPEF office
by working the phone banks
by working summer school registrations
by working any of the events put on by SPEF
Donating
giving money directly to SPEF
participating in Parti Gras
participating in the Tiger Tourney
participating in any events sponsored by SPEF
SPEF Contact Information:
1020 El Centro Street, Room 3
South Pasadena, CA 91030
(626) 441-5810 ext. 1163

Reflections
I feel that I did the right thing supporting
SPEF by volunteering at the haunt. Some
people don't even know what SPEF is and
live in South Pasadena. I think whether you
have kids or not you should know that our
schools programs, supplies, libraries, and
much much more are helped paid for by
SPEF. SPEF is a big funding part of SPUSD.
Some times during the haunt I felt tired. I
needed to sleep but I went on with the
night, and I felt great afterward. I was
responsible in my volunteering and always
showed up on time. I knew I was helping a
good cause. I knew that with my
volunteering I was helping South Pas kids
have a better education. I really liked
acting in the haunt and it was great knowing
I was helping SPEF raise money for our kids.

Please Donate!
The State does not give SPUSD
enough money to provide the
kind of education we feel our
kids in South Pasadena
deserve.
Your donations benefit us now
and in our future.
By giving us a better education
now, you make us better
leaders for tomorrow.