Every year at Camelliapalooza, Camellia Waldorf School’s annual fundraising auction, we include a special fundraising effort called Fund-a-Need, where we focus on top funding priorities for the school. Last year, we raised funds to create a master plan for the grounds of our new campus and funded the first priorities. Now we’re moving to the next phase of Building Our Vision, where we will implement the next priorities of the master plan. We’re only in our second year at Camellia’s permanent home, so there’s still work to do!

For this year’s Fund-a-Need, we are focusing on three elements: sign, shelter and play. As Dorothy follows the yellow brick road to the Emerald City to see the Wizard of Oz, whom she hopes will grant her a way home, she meets Scarecrow, who wants a brain; the Tin Woodman, who wants a heart; and the Cowardly Lion, who wants courage.

• A new sign out front by the street will add curb appeal and delineate Camellia’s main entrance, representing the BRAIN of our school.

• A shade canopy in the HEART of the campus will provide shelter outside second and third grades, allowing teachers to better care for the children, protecting them from sun and rain, and extending the classrooms into this reimagined outdoor space, where shade trees will be added and some concrete removed.

•  Additional Waldorf-appropriate playground equipment will give children more options for play, engaging their minds and bodies and fostering COURAGE.

Together, these elements will enhance our campus, provide more play options for the children and create a more Waldorf environment.

Our goal for this year’s Fund-a-Need is $25,000. Any funds raised beyond this amount will go toward additional playground equipment. We already received a $6,000 grant this school year from the Waldorf School Fund specifically for playground equipment. We will soon be installing a see-saw, pull-up bars and monkey bars.