We are excited to announce our 1st Annual Thanks-4-Giving Turkey Trot, a fun and festive event to support all of the programs provided by Friends of Wilbur! On November 15, we will lace up our sneakers and race to raise funds for important school programs and activities. This exciting day will include running laps, a food drive and plenty of holiday spirit! Friends of Wilbur is very THANKFUL for all of the support we receive from our families and community members. Without your help we would not be able to keep all of these amazing educational programs and extracurricular activities that include Art, Music and P.E. just to name a few. This year we are asking each student to create their own fundraising page to collect donations for participation in the Turkey Trot. The kids will have 10 minutes to run as many laps as they can (donation is for participation, not per lap)! Use your individual link or QR code and send your fundraising page to all of your friends and family!!
We will also be holding a food drive in support of West Valley Food Pantry. Please have your children bring the non perishable food items the morning of Friday, November 15. There will be bins on the yard for collection. If you have large or heavy items they can be left by the drop off gates and FOW will collect them. Last year we collected over 400 pounds of food donations! We hope to beat that with your kind generosity this year!
The food pantry has asked us for a FOCUSED Food Drive concentrating on PASTA PARTY. The most needed items are listed below although they will be happy with any non-perishable and unexpired food item.
-Spaghetti
-Boxed pasta
-Diced tomatoes
-Canned/ jarred tomato sauce (no glass)
-Mac & Cheese
*They are unable to accept expired foods, and all donations should be unopened & in original packaging.
*They do not accept large #10 cans, or bags of dry goods over 5 pounds .
For any questions please email turkeytrotfow@gmail.com
About Us
Friends of Wilbur (FOW), our parent-run all-volunteer booster club, is the non-profit organization that supports Wilbur. FOW pays for computer, art, science, and music, none of which are currently funded by Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). FOW is 100% run by parent volunteers, and your involvement and support are vital to Wilbur’s continuing success.
Our Amazing Programs
Thanks to the support of our generous Wilbur families, FOW is fortunate to provide amazing programs to our students. With your donations, here are just a few excellent services and community events FOW will fund this year:
PE classes with three Coaches
Music classes with Ms. Kim
Art classes with Mrs. Schwartz
Generation Genius
Halloween Trunk or Treat
“Wilbur’s Got Talent” Show
Spring Carnival
Holiday Show
Field Trip buses
Valentine’s Day Dance
Movie Night
And more!
How to Get Involved
FOW is strong because of parents like you, and we are always looking for volunteers. You can help in many ways: as a room parent, event volunteer, donor, and active attendee and participant in school programs. Any amount of time, involvement, and support you can give is greatly appreciated and goes far to help FOW and Wilbur.
We are busy planning fun community events and fundraisers for this school year. Here are the best ways to stay connected and make sure you never miss an update:
- Register for the FOW Contact List to receive our newsletter.
- Check out upcoming events and programs on our website.
- Email us with questions, ideas, and volunteer interest on our Contact Page.
- Sign up to receive great year-round information through our social media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/friendsofwilbur/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friendsofwilbur/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/friendsofwilbur/
We are excited about the upcoming school year and celebrating our kids and teachers being back in classrooms! Thank you for your continued support, and welcome back!
Annual Fund
The “I HEART WILBUR” pledge drive is FOW’s biggest annual fundraising event and enables us to continue supporting these programs that your children and their teachers love. The goal of the “I HEART WILBUR” pledge drive this year is to raise $175,000. We have increased our goal this year due to rising prices in line items such as payroll, insurance, and materials, which have affected our overall budget. Every dollar counts towards reaching this goal, so if you cannot give the suggested amount, we appreciate gifts of any amount. EVERY BIT HELPS! DONATE NOW!
Where Does the Annual Fund Money Go?
You probably know that the Annual Fund supports our art, music and computer programs, along with the holiday show and field trip buses (two per year for each grade level!). But did you know it also pays for community events like Trunk or Treat and the Math and Science Bonanza, in addition to student achievement awards, teacher appreciation gifts and other important expenses to make our school as great as it is! These expenses are not paid for by LAUSD, so your donation is crucial! Take a look below to see the breakdown.
Download the Friends of Wilbur 2023-2024 Budget
Trunk Or Treat 🚙🍫🍬
Calling all Halloween enthusiasts! It’s time for Wilbur’s annual Trunk or Treat event! Dress in your best Halloween costume and join us on Wilbur’s Main Yard on Saturday, October 26 from 3pm-5pm.
DJ King G will be spinning some spooky tunes, thanks to Silver Level Sponsor – Dr. Bita Orthodontics.
There will be treats, a bounce house, and lots of festive trunks! Be sure to stop by and say hello to Gold Level Sponsor – Logix Credit Union (Tarzana Branch) at their trunk.
Food will be available for purchase, courtesy of Sugo Italian food truck.
We are still accepting “Trunker” volunteers to decorate their trunks in a creative way. Join the fun and sign up to pass out candy from the back of your car.
Boo-Grams Are On Sale! 👻
Place your order for Boo-Grams today! These are Wilbur’s annual Halloween treat gram organized by the 5th Grade Committee.
Surprise your student or their friends with a special, spooky goodie bag on Halloween that will be delivered to their classroom.
All proceeds will go towards 5th grade culmination activities and expenses.
Generation Genius 🧠
Friends of Wilbur is happy to announce that science and math teaching resource Generation Genius will continue to be offered for all grade levels for the 2024-2025 school year!
Thanks to the generous support of our Gold Level Sponsor Logix Federal Credit Union and its Tarzana branch location, which has fully underwritten the cost of this program, Wilbur teachers have access to all that Generation Genius has to offer and are incorporating it into their lessons.
This program, which was started by a scientist with a Ph.D. in biochemistry and an Emmy-winning former president of Marvel TV & Animation, aims to bring “school science standards to life through fun and educational videos paired with lesson plans, activities, quizzes, reading material and more.” Their videos, which are produced in partnership with the National Science Teaching Association, are designed to meet school standards, with different lessons and activities tailored for each grade level.
Totally Awesome Trivia Night 🤩
Book a babysitter, save the date, and start brushing up on your 80’s music and movie trivia!
Friends of Wilbur will be hosting Trivia Night at Lounge 51 on Tuesday, October 22.
Wilbur's Wild West Gala 🤠
The Gala is coming back March 2025! Book your babysitters now!
Save the date and stay tuned for more details in the coming months.
Save the Date for WilburChella
After a successful first year, WilburChella is coming back on May 3! Once again, we will be holding this awesome event on the big yard with lots of fun activities and games, good food and more. If you have any special skills or equipment that might be helpful, please let us know. Handy with a hammer? Maybe you can build a carnival game! Own a popcorn cart? We’d love to borrow it! We want to make this bigger and even better than last year. Let us know if you can help!
Corporate Business Banner Program is OPEN!
Our Corporate Business Banner Program is officially open for business. Do you own or work for a company that would be interested in supporting our incredible school, while also advertising your business? Then this is the program for you!
In accordance with District parameters guiding business banner promotions, Friends of Wilbur is streamlining the Corporate Business Banner Program. As details are finalized, we are happy to share that we are turning the clock back to 2019 with cost efficiencies. Please see the single rates for 2024-2025 below:
- $2,050 for Gold Level Sponsors**
- $900 for Silver Level Sponsors
- $700 for Bronze Level Sponsors
**Gold Level Sponsors will enjoy additional opportunities for visibility this year; all Gold Level commitments must be booked by September 30th.
Please contact Michelle Eskenazi-Wasser (Director of Corporate Sponsorships and Outreach Programming) via email for all your corporate business banner questions at friendsofwilbur@gmail.com.
Get Your Wilbur Wear! 🐬👕
Spirit Wear Fridays are every Friday during the school year. Make sure you have your gear ready to go. Place an order online by 8pm on Thursdays at the Wilbur Wear Shop and your order will be delivered to your student’s classroom on Fridays.
*NEW* Wilbur Website 💻
Hey, did you hear the news!? Wilbur has a *NEW* and improved website! Save Wilbur’s new website to your favorites list! Check it out HERE for all the latest updates and announcements that come from the office.
Generation Genius
Friends of Wilbur is excited to offer a new science and math teaching resource for all grade levels this year! Thanks to the generous support of our Gold Level Sponsor Logix Federal Credit Union and its Tarzana branch location, which has fully underwritten the cost of this program, Wilbur teachers have access to all that Generation Genius has to offer and are incorporating it into their lessons. This program, which was started by a scientist with a Ph.D. in biochemistry and an Emmy-winning former president of Marvel TV & Animation, aims to bring “school science standards to life through fun and educational videos paired with lesson plans, activities, quizzes, reading material and more.” Their videos, which are produced in partnership with the National Science Teaching Association, are designed to meet school standards, with different lessons and activities tailored for each grade level.
https://www.generationgenius.com/
https://www.logixbanking.com/branches/tarzana