(Mission Times Courier, San Diego, Ca) -  The votes are in and congratulations are due to our 2008-2009 student council leaders : Brianna Pinto, President; Cassidy Scott, Vice President; Tyler Engquist, Historian; Sammy Mayers, Secretary; Landis Cotta, Fire Marshal; Madeleine Outlaw, Health and Safety. All candidates are thanked for their citizenships: the posters were wonderful, the speeches articulate, humorous and inspirational.

The Hearst Fall Festival was a huge hit this year with new games, a "Candy Bar" and lots of food choices from kettle corn to churros. The event grossed more than $15,000 and netted nearly $8,000. Congratulations and thank you to Fall Festival Committee Co-Chairs Janet Arkin and Lydia Krasner and all of the generous sponsors and volunteers who provided their time, talent and treasure to making the festival a true community event.

The Helen and Will Webster Foundation has again provided funding to expand gardens at Hearst. Together with the generous financial support from the PTA and dedicated efforts of Samantha Luchans (teacher currently on leave), we have $10,000 to create new gardens and programs that will provide hands-on experiences for all of our students. Our newly formed Garden Committee including Julie Kiley, Clyde Van Arsdall, Kelvin Hosking, Leslie Dilbeck, Jerry Klein and Sue Thomas will help plan and carry out this vision with the support of our tirelessly devoted gardening advocate and teacher, Mrs. Baker.

Mark your calendars for the Hearst Winter Concert taking place Wednesday, December 10 at 6:45pm at Lewis Middle School. All grades will sing about Christmas, Hanukkah, and winter, as well as some thoughts about Kwanzaa and La Posada. Invite grandparents and neighbors to join us.

Words for the songs are on the Hearst website under the student activities link. Children are asked to wear "dress-up" clothes, no shorts, sneakers or T-shirts. Boys should wear a nice shirt and pants or suit and girls may wear pants, a skirt or dress. The 4th & 5th grade chorus should arrive between 6 and 6:15pm, 2nd & 3rd grade between 6:15-6:30 for designated seating and some positioning on the stage. Kinder and 1st grade will sit with their parents anywhere in the auditorium until their turn on the stage, so these families should plan to allow time to settle into seats and be good listeners by the 6:45pm start time.