On Board Newsletter, Summer 2025
Happy Summer! As we reflect on the 2024-2025 school year, we’d like to thank you for all of your time and participation in GCS events. Thank you to all of the Room Parents and families who donated time, talent, and items to support the school. Special thanks to our outgoing Board of Directors members: Jess Barie, Buildings & Grounds Co-Chair; Otonye Braide-Moncoeur, Vice President; Lindsay Guaraldi, Treasurer; and Kaitie Phinney, Fundraising Co-Chair. We are so grateful for your dedication to GCS over the years. Have a wonderful summer!
With gratitude,
Kaitlyn Brokaw, Board of Directors President
Want to have fun and help GCS grow? Join the Board!
The GCS Board of Directors supports daily school operations and assists the staff in creating a strong community for the entire school. Members play an important role in fundraising efforts and spearheading many fun events. Get an inside glimpse at how it all works, experience a stronger connection with the staff and teachers, and make some great new friends! Interested? The Board of Directors is always looking for new members to join our team! Feel free to speak with any Board of Directors member, or join us at our upcoming meetings in August and/or September.
We have a positive, fun group of parents/guardians happy to jump in and welcome you on board. Please reach out anytime!
Buildings and Grounds Update:
The 2024-2025 school year was a great success for Buildings and Grounds efforts, thanks to the hard work and dedication of our community. A big thank you to all the parents who volunteered their time as part of the Fall Fix Up and Spring Spruce Up! With your help and muscle we were able to tackle a laundry list of items that ultimately saves money for the school and helps keep the playground and outside spaces fun and engaging. We can’t thank you enough! An additional THANK YOU to outgoing long term Board of Directors member Jess Barie, who has been instrumental in many large projects throughout the years.
We take great pride in making sure the playground is fun and safe. If you are interested in pitching in with any tasks or projects, please reach out to buildingandgrounds@grotoncommunityschool.org. We would love to hear from you!
Parent Representative Update:
Thank you 2024-2025 room parents! GCS room parents have played such an important role this year in helping out with classroom projects and organizing teacher appreciation efforts, such as classroom gifts and Fun Fridays.
We would also like to give a special thank you to the many volunteers who participated in the monthly “Stock the Staffroom” efforts. We are so grateful for the volunteers who help keep GCS a close-knit community!
Questions? Reach out to Samantha Wall & Luella Simakauskas, Parent Representative at: parentrepresentatives@grotoncommunityschool.org
Fundraising Update – Every Bit Counts!
A sincere thank you goes out to all GCS families for your willingness to volunteer your time and participate in our fundraisers. They not only help balance our budget and keep our tuition rates affordable, but they also provide meaningful opportunities to participate in your child’s educational experience. We had a very successful year in large part to the Groton Community Home Tour held last November. The final tally for all fundraisers came to $36,746! We couldn’t have done it without your continued support and generosity.
2025-2026 Board of Directors
Kaitlyn Brokaw, President
Melissa Sulprizio, Vice President
Linda Kosinski, Director
Lisa Stafford, Assistant Director
Kristina Hepburn, Treasurer
Justine Mannix, Secretary
Bri Borek and Abbey Lambert, Public Relations
Jesi Clinton and *Open Position*, Buildings and Grounds
Catherine West and Danielle Recco, Fundraising
Luella Simakauskas and Samantha Wall , Parent Representative
Mai Tirella and *Open Position* Members-at-Large
Contributors to the 2024-2025 Annual Fund
We would like to express our sincere gratitude for the generous contributions to this year’s Annual Fund. Your donation makes a difference for every child at GCS. This year’s donation is directed to our Exceptional Teacher’s Fund!
There is still time to donate! The 2024-2025 Annual Fund runs through Aug. 31.
Donate Here Now
ALUMNI
Joshua Kosinski
Ryan Kosinski
Carlo Perrotti
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Brian and Brianna* Borek
Scott and Kaitlyn Brokaw
The Clinton Family
The Guaraldi Family
Scott and Kristina* Hepburn
Jason and Abbey* Lambert
Chris and Justine* Mannix
The Moncoeur Family
Steve and Melissa* Sulprizio
Samantha* and Alec Wall
Catherine* and Seth West
CURRENT FAMILY
Anonymous
The Crowley Family
Molly and Rocco Laurano
Charles and Rhenise Lucot
Andrew and Katherine Maroney
Matt and Kate Nitti
FRIEND
Anonymous
Linda Luca and Gerard Tarpey
Tim and Rowe Luca
George and Janika LeMaitre
Jodi-Joy and Matt O’Keefe
GRANDPARENT
Donna and Robert Halloran
Miriam and Stephen Helfgott
Dr. Kenneth Janes
Carol Mandra
George and Peggy Moore
John and Janet O’Brien
Mary B. Wills
MATCHING GIFT
Apple Inc.
BAE Systems, Inc.
Eli Lilly
IBM Corporation
Microsoft
Raytheon Technologies
Thermo Fisher
Z. Zurich Foundation
PAST BOD
The Belcher Family
David and Sarah* Eisenklam
William and Susan* Ellerkamp
Matt and Kate* Ferriola
Cynthia Maxwell
Agnes McKinney
The Moeser Family
Catherine C Pauly
The Pugh Family
Anonymous
Kelly and Susan* Roberts
Joe Walch and Laura* Cummings
PAST FAMILY
Anonymous
Daniel Courcy and Amanda Callahan
Andrew and Melissa Dewing
John Ellenberger and Patti Thompson
The Gagnon Family
Ralph and Kathy Giles
Joe and Tracy Guth
Lee Muir-Haman and Mark Haman
Lori and Jim Herberich
Pete and Kelli Hnath
Thomas and Christine Horsman
Mihirraj Joshi and Priyanki Thakore
The King Family
The Kritzer Family
Cliff Maxwell
Steven Onishi and Dawn Alling
Rajesh and Priya Palakkal
Andrei Peters and Fay Raynor
Bob and Becky Pine
Mike and Martha Resch
David and Pamela Stone
Steven and Jennifer Stone
Christopher and Tracy Towers
Virgil and Caitlin Vaillancourt
PAST LEARNING EXPRESS BOARD
Clay and Susan* Yost
PAST STAFF
Jean* and Thomas Brady
Linda* and Jeff Rubens
PAST TRUSTEE
Robert Collins
Rob* and Laura Moore
STAFF
Jennie* and Steve Fitzkee
Monty and Laura* Hankin
Linda Kosinski
Katy* and David Niose
Paul and Inga* Nuccio
Lisa Stafford
Bonnie Stanton* and David Quintin
TRUSTEE
John* and Diane Amaral
Randy* and Kathleen Barron
Daniel* and Alisa Barton
Tod and Caroline* Bouris
Stephen* and Paula Janes
Scott and Betsy* Kehoe
Deborah* and Scott MacDonald
Mark and Stephanie* Morrison
David Moulton
Peter* and Andrea Myette
Bryan and Natina* Perrotti
*Indicates past or present service to Groton Community School
Stay Connected with GCS
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