Take the Plunge---Join the Sale Committee for Your Love of Parent Talk!

Dear Parent Talk Parents-

I’m so happy to hear how much you’ve loved your last few years.  This is truly the best time of life and having a great community to share it with makes all the difference, doesn’t it?  The playgroup you joined has really created some great bonds for the kids and the parents.  The toddler/preschooler events are great for the kids. They also break up the day for parents and help build our community connections.  Cupcake decorating, barn babies, story time with Elmo, outdoor movies… Only a parent of young children can appreciate the benefit of not driving for more than a few minutes to get somewhere and the even greater benefit of having a group of friends for you and your kids at said events without having to coordinate ahead of time.  (Because, really, who has time to constantly think of great things for kids to do that are fun for you too when you’re busy grocery shopping, feeding, potty training, making sticker charts, and doing the million other things that come with being a parent.)  So we’re agreed, Parent Talk is pretty awesome.  We were hit with the lucky stick when we moved to this area and found this group.

And then, of course, there’s the Parent Talk Sale.  All the money it makes goes into funding these great events. And the Sale is a great event unto itself. Remember those adorable, barely worn baby clothes that you got for next to nothing?  The exersaucer that you absolutely needed for about three months?  All the books that you bought for 50 cents a pop that you read over and over to your child?  Your preschooler’s first bike?  You saved so much money because of this awesome event.  I’m sure you figured out Needham’s worst-kept secret early on:  If you volunteer for a two hour Sale shift, you can shop one whole day early and get a jump on all the shoppers who come on sale day.

That’s a lot of benefits from one little not-for-profit organization, isn’t it?  It would be easy to think that you’ve gotten all there is to get out of our group.  

What you might not know is Needham’s best-kept secret:  there is another level of connection and community that you didn’t even know existed.  Over the years, the Parent Talk Sale has become a well-oiled machine.  But it’s such a big event that it can’t run unless it has fresh energy and leadership each year.  When I made the jump from volunteer to committee member a couple of years ago I was taken aback by everything I got out of the experience.  I got to know a group of amazing local parents on a deeper level.  I got to choose how I wanted to contribute and use some skills that are often dormant as I focus on the massive to-do list that comes with parenting. (For me, writing this blog is fun.)  I get to contribute to a group that I have benefited from and that I believe in.  And, if that isn’t enough, I get to go to the big tagging (pricing) party before the sale and buy some really amazing stuff that will never even make it to the Friday pre-sale, let alone the Saturday general sale. (If I didn’t buy that great double stroller, there’s no doubt that somebody else would have scooped it up!)

So, moms and dads, there you have it.  I just gave away the best-kept secret in town.  And I’m not sorry- you deserve to know about this opportunity.  My sources tell me that it’s not too late to join the Sale Committee for this October’s sale.  You can email Seema Layne or Diane Solomon at ptsalechairs@gmail.com to get more involved.  

To quote Water Country’s old radio commercial:  “Take the Plunge.  Ride the Wave.  Spend the Day.” You’ll be so glad that you did.

See you at story time,

Kara Veley