Local company praises teachers

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Village Properties honored more than 300 local teachers last week as part of the sixth annual Village Properties Teacher’s Fund Celebration.
The event was held a Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort and according to Renee Grubb, vice president and co-owner of Village Properties, is a way to directly praise our local teachers for the difficult and admirable work they do everyday.”


Teachers were given more than 75 prizes at the event, which acts as a kickoff to the Teacher’s Fund, which has given more than $400,000 to 900 local elementary and middle school teachers since its inception in 2002.
Grubb said the Teacher’s Fund helps teachers purchase educational tools not provided or budgeted for by the respective school districts. She said items commonly purchased are encyclopedias, costumes for a play, gardening tools, computer software and other electronic equipment.
The Teacher’s Fund is supported primarily by Village Properties, donations from the community and help from the Orfalea Family Foundation and the Orfalea Fund.
Each month a judging committee made up of local residents meets to review requests from teachers and allocate distribute the money.
“We try our best to fulfill every request,” said Zena Drewish, a manager at Village Properties. “Every penny we receive gets passed on to the teachers.”
According to he Teacher’s Fund web site, when a teacher is awarded money, the teacher is sent a notice and told to purchase the requested products. The teacher then sends the receipt to the Teacher’s Fund and is later reimbursed.
At last week’s event, teachers received a number of raffle prizes that included gift certificates from local businesses, DVDs, baked goods, romantic dinners, pampering treatments and shopping sprees. Becca McNeese, a teacher at Monte Vista Elementary School won a week vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
“It’s our way of saying, ‘Thank you,’” Grubb said. “Every teacher deserves recognition and appreciation.”
For more information about the Teacher’s Fund and how to make individual requests visit www.teachersfund.org.