COOKEVILLE, TN — The Capshaw PTO is celebrating another record-breaking Teacher Appreciation Week after spending $40,000 on the event, a number committee members called “a real reflection of how much we care, visually.”
Each of the school’s 30 teachers received a $5 coffee gift card, presented on a tiny gold easel beneath three custom balloon arches. The remaining budget covered the arches, a flower wall, a photographer, a videographer, a drone, matching cream sweatshirts for 60 moms, and a professional content creator who produced a 45-second Reel set to Taylor-adjacent music.
“The gift card is really more of a symbol,” said Hospitality Chair Tinsley Crawford-Hale. “The real gift is being appreciated. Publicly. On my grid.”
The week kicked off Monday with a catered breakfast for the volunteer moms, followed by a Tuesday “thank-you walk” in which the moms paraded through the halls clapping while teachers tried to take attendance. Wednesday was themed “Self-Care Day,” and featured a visiting aesthetician who did lash lifts for the committee in the library.
One second-grade teacher, who asked not to be named, said she was grateful but had mostly hoped for printer ink. Her request was forwarded to the committee, which responded by adding an “Ink Appreciation Moment” to next year’s itinerary, with a balloon arch.
At press time, planning for next year’s event had already begun, with a proposed budget of $55,000 and a proposed gift card value of “still five, we’re not made of money.”