Below is the link to the agenda for today's meeting.

rsagenda69

In February, the Roots and Shoots Club is sponsoring an all school pet food drive to benefit a local pet food pantry. The project is called Operation RUFFF (Raising Awareness for Furry Friends.)

Animals are ofter the forgotten victims of a weak economy. When humans are suffering financially, they are often forced to make choices between their own needs and those of their pets. They can afford pet food or their own food and medications, but not both. For this reason, the population of shelter animals increases during a down economy. The pet food pantry provides free food to people in need, allowing them to keep their animals.

This video explains the impact of the weak economy on pet owners.

Pets and the Economy

We are lucky to have a number of pet food shelters in the Chicago area that can help people keep their pets even when their owners are struggling financially. When people keep their pets, not only do the people and their animals benefit, but the number of abandoned pets needing homes is reduced.

Please bring in canned and dry pet food all during the month of February to help these people and their animal companions. Collections bins have been placed in each advisory.

Thank you for your contributions!

We will have our first 2011 -2012 school year meeting of the Marie Murphy Roots and Shoots Club on Friday, September 2nd at 3:30 in Ms. Stewart's room, #288. This meeting is for RETURNING MEMBERS ONLY. We will be planning for our presentations to the sixth grade, which introduces them to Roots and Shoots. New members, and those curious to see what Roots and Shoots is all about, are invited to join us on Friday, September 16th at 3:30 in the Dr. Porto Community Center. At that meeting, we will begin to brainstorm project ideas for the year. We are looking forward to another great year of service to animals, the environment, and the human community.

Over the course of this past school year, the Marie Murphy Roots & Shoots Club has participated in a conservation project know as "On The Edge" -- a Jane Goodall Institute initiative to bring attention to the plight of endangered species. Our club chose to focus on the conservation and promotion of public awareness of the peregrine falcon. The peregrine population had been wiped out in Illinois, but were recently reintroduced to the area. They are now listed as a threatened species.

On May 31st, 2011, Roots & Shoots Club members continued their participation by visiting the Evanston Public Library to witness the annual banding of peregrine falcons by the Midwest Peregrine Society.  Indigenous to locations laden with cliffs, peregrines in the Midwest have learned to adapt to urban and suburban environs by nesting on the ledges of tall buildings and skyscrapers.  Such is the case with a family of peregrines who have made a third floor ledge of the Evanston Public Library their Spring and Summer home.

With the ever-vigilant parent birds -- Squawker and Nona -- looking on, ornithologist Mary Hennen and her team carefully gathered, examined, banded, then replaced the four offspring -- Wilbur, Lincoln, Dewey, and Rosalind -- into their nest.

With well over 100 people in attendance (including students, adults, and camera crews from NBC Channel 5 and ABC Channel 7), the Evanston Public Library did a tremendous job of including the public in this important initiative.  Kudos to Marie Murphy's Roots & Shoots students for their participation in this endeavor, and for their continued involvement in innovative service learning projects!

You can view the young chicks live on the Evanston Public Library's Falconcam.

See if you can spot members of our Marie Murphy Roots and Shoots Club in this video celebrating the 20th anniversary of Roots and Shoots. (Hint: Watch for the "NO Idling Zone" sign which was installed as a part of our Global Warming Project.)

Mary Hennen, an expert on peregrine falcons at the Field Museum of Natural History, will be joining us Friday, February 11th. She will give the Roots and Shoots group an introduction to the peregrine falcon and discuss their near elimination from the Midwest. Ms. Hennen has been instrumental in reintroducing the peregrine to the Midwest, and will provide us with real stories of their successful return here. In preparation for her visit, please visit some of websites below. They will help you come with questions in mind. Following the presentation, we will begin to discuss what we can do to insure the survival of this magnificent species.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology - This site has basic facts about the species. Be sure to listen to the peregrine's call by playing the  "typical voice."

Evanston Public Library Falcon Cam - While not currently live, you can view archived images of the peregrine nest, parents and chicks at  the Evanston Public Library.

Midwest Peregrine Society - This is the site for a conservation organization for the peregrine falcon in the Midwest. There are great links to the history of the species and its restoration.

National Geographic

Peregrine Fund

Additional Links - Click here for additional links and peregrine webcams from the Midwest Peregrine Society.

During the month of December, the Marie Murphy Roots and Shoots Club sponsored a school-wide project to benefit abused and neglected children served by CASA. Roots and Shoots Club members learned about CASA through a guest speaker, CASA volunteer Noga Villalon. They researched CASA's activities and decided to sponsor a project to provide gift cards to some of CASA's neediest families. We called it Project Lifesaver because CASA has a profound and positive impact on the lives of these children.

The Roots and Shoots Club provided each advisory class with information about CASA and the CASA families. Each advisory was asked to raise funds to put on a gift card to be given to a CASA family to purchase groceries, clothing, diapers and other necessities for the children. Through the generous contributions of Marie Murphy students, parents and staff, we were able to purchase a dozen $50 gift cards to Jewel and a dozen $50 gift cards to Target to be distributed to CASA families. Thank you to everyone who contributed and supported this project.