Today is the holiday-season occasion known as Giving Tuesday – with the spotlight on donations. We feature giving opportunities year-round on WSB, including the list of donation drives in our West Seattle Holiday Guide. But we received two requests for Giving Tuesday mentions, both coincidentally on West Seattle’s Puget Ridge, so we’re sharing them with you:

SANISLO ELEMENTARY: The Sanislo PTA wants you to know that even a little gift will make a big difference for their small-but-mighty school:

Sanislo Elementary School is one of the smallest schools in Seattle Public Schools, and it is right here in the heart of West Seattle. We know our tiny school escaped the chopping block for this next year’s school consolidation push, but we are trying to prove that our tiny school (fewer than 200 students) is an important part of our community.

The Sanislo PTA is doing a GIVING TUESDAY fundraiser, and we are hoping for just $2,000 in donations from at least 30 donors. It’s a modest goal, but these funds go a long way with our small school. Our PTA funds everything from afterschool activities (improv classes, Ultimate Frisbee team, movie nights, and cultural celebrations) to basic classroom necessities (snacks, reading materials, classroom supplies).

We are a Title 1 school, which means a considerable majority of our students are from low-income families. Sanislo is certainly one of the under-resourced schools described by the district, but that doesn’t mean we can’t offer our students the support, community, and education they deserve. We believe that all students should have the opportunity to create, learn, and grow within the community that supports them.

So, help us support them. Anyone can contribute to our fundraiser at our Member Planet Donation site. memberplanet.com/campaign/sanislopta/givingtuesday_34 or through our Venmo Platform — @Sanislo-Pta .

Small schools are on borrowed time in Seattle, and we want to prove that because we have strong roots in our community and are willing to water our potential with our own generosity, our students will grow and thrive without uprooting them and transplanting them somewhere new.

The Sanislo PTA’s gardening analogy fits with the fact that the other fundraiser we were asked to share is for a garden so big it’s a public park – Puget Ridge Edible Park has a donation drive going today:

(WSB file photo)

Our story started with a Seattle City Parks acquisition levy that passed with big voter support. Our Puget Ridge neighborhood organized to apply for a grant to acquire a 3/4 acre parcel that is one of the last standing undeveloped agriculture-based land. For the past 8 years this land has been regenerated through permaculture techniques to provide free, self-harvest food to the public.

We also distribute food through our farmstand and to food banks. It is our goal to share the methods we had set forth to make this project a reality. Organizing the community to have open communications on a variety of topics through an email group was the first step to our success. Finding a few motivated gardeners with some knowledge and background was not hard. Starting awareness events and work parties began to gel a core group capable of making great progress over the years of development. The park has been a learning center for local backyard gardeners as well as schools. We have also seen similar projects started from this project. Our only real financial support has been the Seed Money Campaign.

Donate to PREP here.

Puget Ridge Edible Park is at 18th/Brandon.