​Dear Silver Springs School Families,  
As we conclude 2022, and break for the winter holiday, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to all who help make Silver Springs School an amazing place to be. In the spirit of this holiday season, I want to extend my thanks to all of you for everything that you do for our school. 
I thank our staff, both teachers and support staff, for their continued dedication to this hard work, their ability to connect and develop relationships with our students, their special way of bringing the curriculum to life for our students so that they learn to love learning, and for the caring learning community they help to build in their classrooms and our school. 
Parents, of course, you are such a critical part in helping to accomplish all that we hope for at Silver Springs School. I am grateful to you for all that you do as parents and acknowledge that you take on the hardest, but most rewarding and joyous job of all. Thank you for entrusting us with your most precious gifts.  
I am grateful to our wonderful, kind, creative, inquisitive, optimistic, and caring students. Often, they make us laugh, sometimes they make us cry, but always they make us think. Most of all, they make us better.  I am so proud of their hard work and the way they create a special sense of belonging at Silver Springs School.  
Sincere gratitude to all our families and staff members who showed such generosity in purchasing gifts or gift cards from our Giving Tree. Through this initiative, we were able to help six of our own school families have a happy holiday. Here are some of their thanks: “Thank you so much for the support.  I was overwhelmed by the kindness of the members of the community!  It was so meaningful to pick up that box yesterday.” And “I wanted to express my gratitude for the gifts I picked up today for us. I'm thrilled to be able to make our family’s Christmas extra special. Thanks to our school community for supporting us this Christmas.” 
I want to acknowledge the hard work of the School Council parents who organized the return of the Santa’s Workshop event. We were astounded at the generosity of the families who donated so many wonderful, gently used “gifts” for our students to choose from. We also want to share our deep appreciation to all our other parent volunteers who gave up their time to sort items, wrap, and clean-up our Santa’s Workshop. We hope you enjoy the presents your children picked out just for you. We also want to celebrate that we were able to raise $496.55, which has already been donated to the Calgary Food Bank. 
It is also during this time, that I am reminded of my own good fortune to serve as the proud principal of Silver Springs School. Indeed, my career as a public-school educator has afforded me vast, varied and richly rewarding opportunities to teach and to learn from young people. Of course, I believe the faces of our children best express the true meaning of this special season. They radiate a sense of unbridled enthusiasm, untainted hope and unabashed joy for life and the opportunities that await them.  
As we enjoy the upcoming holidays, it is my wish that each of you receives and returns the seasonal bounty of blessings and good tidings that make these days truly special. We look forward to what lies ahead for us as a school community in 2023 - new learning experiences, new challenges, new opportunities and the joy that it will bring. To our families and friends of the Silver Springs School community, please have a safe and joyous holiday season. 
Please click this link and enjoy a special seasonal greeting.  
Respectfully,  
Michelle Ryskamp, Principal