Information and order form packets were sent home with your youngest student yesterday (or today if they were absent).

Order forms and payment are due by Wednesday, May 12th. Return to Mrs. Morrison in the front office (K-8) or drop off in the labeled bin in the Manosh Wing (PK).

Flowers and plants will be delivered and ready for pick-up on Friday, May 28th - just in time for Memorial Day weekend.

Please reach out to Janelle Germaine at mjgermaine2011@gmail.com with any questions.

"I have ordered flowers for my flower beds as well as hanging baskets multiple times from this fundraiser. The flowers are beautiful and last all summer. I am never disappointed and look forward to it every year." ~ Jocelyne Lussier, a BJAMS grandparent

We all know warmer months bring out the bugs – including ticks! Did you know Vermont has around 14 different species of ticks? Only 5 are known to bite and transmit disease to humans, and of those, 99% of the trouble lies directly with the Black-Legged Tick.

They live in wooded areas, and fields with tall grass and brush. Their favorite hosts are white-footed mice, deer mice, chipmunks, shrews, and white-tail deer. Most of us are all familiar with the dreaded Lyme disease ticks carry and transmit, but they are also responsible for Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, and Powassan Virus. Anaplasmosis is curable, but serious and sometimes fatal, symptoms tend to appear 5-21 days after a bite, and are rather like severe flu symptoms. Babesiosis symptoms appear one to four weeks after a bite, and in addition to the flu-like symptoms, it can also cause a type of anemia that can turn urine dark, and possibly cause jaundice.

Lyme is the most common, and therefore most dreaded, but only about 25% of adults, and 50% of kids, get the “bullseye” rash we hear about. Which means you may not know you have Lyme until other symptoms present themselves, such as: fever, chills, headache, fatigue, and muscle or joint aches. In the absence of the “bullseye” rash, there may be swelling of the lymph nodes.

Prevention is key! Wear protective clothing when going out and, use a spray, cream, balm, or other deterrent that helps keep pests like ticks away. Be sure to do thorough skin checks after coming back inside. If you should find a tick attached, remove it as soon as possible, as the more time it has to feast, the more time it has to infect also.

Tick removal: please do NOT use petroleum jelly, nail polish, or glue to try and suffocate it, and don’t try to set it on fire with a match! These measures may make your situation worse instead of better. Please DO use fine-tipped tweezers, needle-nose pliers, or tick-removal tool; firmly grasp the body of the tick without squishing it, as close to the skin as possible, and pull upwards and straight back in a smooth motion. You should feel a bit of a “pop” as it releases and is removed. Don’t be alarmed if bits of mouth or leg are left behind, you will be washing the area, and your hands, thoroughly with soap and water afterwards. If you want to save the tick for testing, place it in a baggie; otherwise dispose of the tick by wrapping it in tape or toilet paper and flush it. Don’t pop it with your fingers, as minute openings in your skin may actually allow pathogens from the tick to enter your body despite being removed. Advise your personal care practitioner you have been bitten, and follow any instructions given to you, which initially will be observation for symptoms, and can progress from there if necessary.