DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

XI GRAM
DKG Xi Chapter | Winter 2022 | Vol. II

President’s Message
Xi Business
Meetings &
Dear Sisters, 
Notifications
We hope everyone survived the tornados
Save the Dates: and storms from Ian and Nicole without
any damage.     DKG members in some
Xi Holiday Meeting
areas on the west coast of Florida were
December 3, 2022
not so lucky.
Hawthorn Village At our last meeting, we voted to help DKG
Club House members who were affected by Ian by
7101 East Tropical offering gift cards as a gesture of
Way sisterhood to those who suffered damage
Plantation, Fl. 33317 and are trying to rebuild their lives.  We
have contacted the District VI Director and
she offered to help us identify a Chapter
whose members suffered damage.  We will
be collecting the gift cards if you choose to
participate in the Holiday Brunch on
December 3 from 9-11 am.  If you really
rd

cannot be there (although we hope you

can be) let us know if you have a gift card
of any denomination to donate and you
can drop it off or we will pick it up. 

Also, remember about the white elephant

sale. 

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

President’s Message Continued…

See information in this newsletter about how the sale works.  

We had hoped to be given a tour of the Broward Center of the

Performing Arts to see the students in their various performance
classes, etc.  Unfortunately, they are booked unless there is a
cancellation by another group.  We are looking for ideas for a
replacement FUN activity for January or February.  No meeting per
se, but FUN! 

We also need to be thinking about scholarship or grant opportunities

you could access.  Want to pursue a Master’s or PhD?  You could
receive generous help in that pursuit.  See Paula’s summary.

We also need a few good women who potentially would like to join
Xi.  Think about Key Women Educators that you know and let Jane
Claud know.  You may invite them to an upcoming meeting so they
can meet our members.

Have a great Thanksgiving and please come to the Holiday Brunch. 

Please RSVP to Pat Houchens whether you can come or not, as
soon as possible. 

Paula and Pam

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

Let’s face it, we have a very talented group of

members in Xi, but life and Covid have
sometimes gotten in the way of knowing each
other.  So, I am planning on getting to know at
least two and hopefully more members for
each Xi Gram.

Two Xi Sisters I barely knew a few months

ago have become new friends whom I admire
tremendously.

Elaine Aaron 
I knew the basics about Elaine—that she was
an NBCT and an elementary Media Specialist at my neighborhood
school.  That she had fought cancer and survived.  I did not know
how well she relates to the Silver Ridge students as she rotates a
dizzying number of classes into her media center throughout the day;
encourages them to check out multiple books a week; and how well
she mesmerizes them by her storytelling and then asks them to

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

In the Spotlight Continued…

answer increasingly higher level thinking skill questions about the

story as they sit on the ‘button mat’ or at the tables at the other end of
the center.  Wow!  And then she checks out the books, checks in the
books, reshelves the books and decorates the bulletin boards. Elaine
is also the recipient of the prestigious Florida Power Library School
Award. Talk about a Wonder Woman!  Media Specialists are being
asked to go above and beyond daily and I am in awe! When she
retires this year, it will be a great loss to Silver Ridge.

Katrina Fossella
Katrina was an effervescent young woman whom I met only by Zoom
until the District V meeting at First Baptist Church last February
where she hobbled around on crutches with Jessica assisting her
when necessary. Katrina is also a Media Specialist and works at
Pembroke Lakes Elementary School. 

The photo above is from a recent

presentation for Microsoft. Way to
go Katrina!

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

In the Spotlight Continued…

She has created a beautiful Media Center with visual interest

absolutely everywhere you look. 
She has an amazing rapport with all the students who come in for
classes.  I thoroughly enjoyed her lesson with students at various
grade levels throughout the day about internet safety and stranger
danger.  They interacted openly with her and seemed to take to heart
all the issues and examples they discussed.  She is an amazing
young woman and Pembroke Lakes is lucky to have her.

Holiday Meeting/Event
Please plan to attend our Holiday Event on Saturday, December
3rd .  We will be getting together, in person at the famous Hawthorne
Village Clubhouse at 9 am for a Light Brunch, and some real party
fun.  
      At this event, we are participating in a Gift Card Collection for
our Holiday Project: ‘Supporting DKG Members that were affected by
Hurricane Ian’.   Please bring your gift cards to the event.  If you are
unable to attend on 12/3/22, we can discuss another plan for
collecting the gift cards/money. Details about the gift cards was sent
in a previous email.
       In addition to the Gift Card Collection, we will have a ‘White
Elephant’ style fundraiser to benefit our Holiday Project.  Raffle
tickets will be sold at the event, ($2.00 per ticket, or 6 tickets for
$10.00.)  Don’t forget to bring a new/nearly new “treasure”.  The
raffle ticket money will be added to our Xi Holiday Project Fund. 
Please RSVP to Pat Houchens by 11/19/22.

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

Hope we brought smiles to the faces of those still working, with our
Back-to-School Bags.

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

From Paula
Save the Date for Chalk Talk 1:

What: Helping Educators Survive and Thrive Through Listening and

Storytelling (An online, virtual conversation with educator, author, and
mental health consultant)

Karen Gross, Presenter

When: Thursday, December 8th, 7:00-8:00 pm (ET)

Presented by: FL DKG State Legislative Committee

Dr. Vivian Posey, Chair

Registration information and additional details will be forthcoming.

Broward County Library broward.org

Our library system contains an impressive array of resources/programs/
events that are available in person or online for professional and personal
growth. A few of the resources/programs/events are listed. The latest
issue is available here and on the BCL website.

Playaway – The All-In-One Audiobook

Each Playaway comes with a single audiobook. Playaway are available at
some branches or can be ordered using inter-library loan.

Playaway Launchpad Learning Tablets – designed for kids and

preloaded with high quality, ad-free fun and educational apps. Available for
check-out at several branches.

Gear to Go – information located under Directory of Services G-L

Some of the items available to check-out are:
Digital Tablets, Wi-Fi Hotspots, Creation Station Gear, Birdwatching
Backpacks, MERGE Cubes, MERGE Headsets, Workforce Ready – Digital
Tablets, Laptops & Wi-Fi Hotspots

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

November 2022 Library Magazine:

Programs for Native American Heritage Month
Veterans Family Day
Novel Writing Month
 
Upcoming Events:
21 Annual Storybook Festival
st

Director’s Book Club

NEA Big Read

Fun Fact: According to Allison Grubbs, BCL Director, the library has over
4,200 free downloadable magazines
A few online resources to explore for professional and personal
development:

Libby/Overdrive – ebooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines

Freegal- music
Hoopla – ebooks, eAudiobooks, movies, television, music and comics
Kanopy- movies, documentaries
Rosetta Stone- Includes 30 languages
Classes: Gale Courses, The Great Courses, Universal Classes

DKG Grants/Awards/Scholarship Deadlines:

https://dkgflorida.weebly.com

Educational Excellence Committee: https://www.fldkgef.org

Florida DKG Educational Foundation's Educational Grants & Professional
Development applications Due by February 1, 2023      
Scholarship Committee: Florida State Organization DKG offers
scholarships annually to members of the Society to enhance the fulfillment
of its fifth purpose, "to endow scholarships to aid outstanding women
educators in pursuing graduate study ... "    Deadline: February 23, 2023

The Nov/Dec 2022 DKG News is available on the dkg.org website

The DKG International Educators Foundation received $292.76 from

Amazon Smile (4/1/22-6/30/22) – Members are encouraged to register for
this program.

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

!om the Program Committee

Broward Center for the Performing Arts

The Program Committee has been busy planning an event for
January 2023 at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.  The
members of this committee worked with the Director of Education at
the theater to plan the event.  Unfortunately, Saturdays are booked
until the end of the year.  We may be able to plan another event, and
he will keep in touch with us.

He sent information about the Broadway for Teachers Program at

the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.  We may be able to
participate in this program later in the year.

We would like input from our members about other “fun” events to
investigate.

Thank you to the Program Committee for their diligence and hard
work.

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

Program Committee Continued…

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

Upcoming Birthdays
January

30 Carol-Ann L

February
10 Kristin M
10 Sharon B

March
20 Renee S

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DKG Xi Chapter Florida 2022-2024 Biennium November 17, 2022

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