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Foundation readies fundraiser for needs at Los Gatos High School
By Rebecca Ray
To afford construction cost overruns and classroom supplies at Los Gatos High School, a new foundation will host its first weekend-long fundraiser. The nonprofit New Millennium Foundation will host the fundraiser the weekend of Sept. 14--the same weekend the classes of 1951 and 1961 will hold their reunions--to try to raise $250,000. The foundation would like to raise $1 million in five years.
Twelve high school administrators, teachers, parents and community members formed the foundation April 2001. While the $79 million Measure B bond, passed in June 1998, covers construction and renovation projects at Los Gatos and Saratoga High Schools, the bond does not cover new technology equipment, furniture or additional storage space. The foundation plans to raise money for these added expenses through the fundraiser.
The founders realized the school needed more money when construction workers discovered unknown pipes and foundations at Los Gatos High School. Moving these fixtures, bringing them up to code and building around them caused every project at the school to cost more than anticipated, leaving district and school officials to seek other sources of revenue for construction.
The foundation will begin its fundraising weekend the night of Sept. 14, with the Los Gatos High School varsity football team's home opener against St. Francis High School. Los Gatos head coach Butch Cattalico invited all football alumni to attend. Foundation members sent free tickets to all football alumni and asked them for donations. The foundation will honor them during halftime, as well as at a reception and silent auction in the gym after the game.
On Sept. 15, students who belong to the campus organization Link Crew will give community members free tours of the school. The tours are sponsored by the Home and School Club. Renderings of new buildings that will replace current buildings will be on display. The idea behind the tours is to show people why the fundraising is necessary, said foundation member Shelly Seders.
Although people think the school "has it all," the tour is supposed to show that that's not the case, Seders said. Foundation member Barry Bakken added that the school's exterior may look picturesque, but that when people move beyond the exterior, they'll see that the facilities are old.
On Sept. 16, the last day of the fundraiser, the foundation will hold a silent and live auction at the Opera House on Main Street, which the organizers hope will draw at least 300. Foundation members plan to auction off various items, from gift certificates to sports memorabilia to paintings to a week-long vacation in Lake Tahoe.
Foundations members mailed postcards to 10,000 alumni, requesting their support, and plan to solicit funds from the community at large, not just parents, Bakken said. The 50 or so community members who belong to foundation committees hope to create an endowment fund, so that the money they raise will collect interest.
Los Gatos High School teachers made a list of what they'd like to spend money on, and will write grant applications to the foundation to purchase the items they desire. Items include new lighting and sound systems and a curtain for the theater; stoves and sinks in foreign language classrooms; more storage space in art classrooms; and new tiles on the walls of the industrial technology lab.
Although the money the foundation raises is primarily for classroom needs, the school's athletic department has also made a wish list that includes new team uniforms and athletic equipment. The foundation would also like to pay for the locker room in the newly-constructed field house.
Foundation members asked town officials to proclaim Sept. 14 to 16 "New Millenium Foundation Official Reunion Weekend," which Town Manager Debra Figone plans to do at the Sept. 14 football game. Foundation members plan to hold a fundraiser each year, during a weekend when classes hold their reunions.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
