My children attend the Idaho Arts Charter School in Nampa, Idaho population 85,000. For the past three years the 541 student body of IACS has made due with the existing playground equipment which consists of wooden structures and chains to create swings etc. I am the PTO President of the school where approx. 50% are on free or reduced lunch program. With the hard work of parent/student involvement last year through cookie dough fundraisers and the like, the PTO recently wrote checks totally $7000.00 to help cover the $33,000.00 needed to provide the kids with updated playground equipment. I was introduced to Neos from the PTO Today website a few months ago. We want to participate in the grant but we are waiting for the new grant info. to come out. After contacting a local dealer, he suggested we contact you to be considered for the Neos give away. Our school building is under construction so your giveaway is perfect timing! We will have an actual playground that can accommodate our needs. The cool thing is that not only will IACS students benefit but the location of our school is located in an older part of Nampa where less fortunate neighborhood children in the community would share in your kindness to pay it forward! I would love to share photo’s of our existing playground and what the kids have used because a picture is worth a 1,000 words but I don’t see that option to include photos. Wouldn’t it be appropriate to give the potato eattin kids a chance to have the Neos…I think you would like the focus of our school - check it out www.idahoartscharter.org We are holding our 2nd annual Idaho Festival of the Arts next year to earn money for a much needed auditorium for performances. Have fun deciding who to give the Neos to…we would make you proud Ellen, just give us a chance!

Patti Neuroth
PTO President
Idaho Arts Charter
Nampa, Idaho

Ellen,
I work at an elementary school in Livonia, MI. Out school is a little unique in that it's one of 3 in the district that houses only 5th and 6th graders. I work the before and after school program. I really enjoy working with these age kids, attitudes and all. :) But, some days it's difficult to keep them entertained, especially when our lovely Michigan weather keeps us indoors. We try to keep the kids as active as possible, and the only video game we currently have in our room is Dance Dance Revolution. Your neo game would be a great addition to our program and school to keep these kids active and having fun. Please consider us! Thanks.
Jen Galatis

Dear Ellen,

I've had such a great time watching you and your guests play the NEO game. What a great invention. I am writing to you to explain why the elementary school, at which I teach, would beneit from that game. I teach at a small country school in which a great deal of the children come from broken homes, economically challenged homes, or foster homes. Some are lucky to have eaten before coming to school and some are lucky to wear clothes that are clean and fit. We are a school that was unable to pass our school operating levy this past year and now are looking at losing some valuable teachers for the next school year. Money is extremely tight and for that reason, the children suffer. The state built us a new school building, but with many costly errors. One of the last things to get all of it's equipment was our playground. We actually brought the equipment from our old school so the kids would have some things to play on. They have been trying for the past few years to improve our playground, but when there is no money for that improvment, then they suffer. Please consider us for the NEO game...I would LOVE to share the GOOD news that we won something so great!
I am a faithful viewer and you make everyday a good day when watching your show! Thanks for all the laughs!!!

Dear Ellen,

We at the Buford Ellington 4-H Center serve all counties in West Tennesseeand all kids from different social and economic backgrounds. This year our theme is "Lights, Action, Fitness". We think our kids would benefit greatly from the NEOS game!! What a great idea to incorporate physical fitness with what kids love the most, electronics!! The more we can keep kids active, the better and happier their lives will be. The Buford Ellington 4-H Center is committed 100% percent to help achieve this goal for our future leaders. Thank you for considering us and thank you for paying it forward. We hope to do the same.

Sincerely,
Kim Perez
Buford Ellington 4-H Center
Milan, Tennessee

Dear Ellen

I work as a Physical Education Instructor at a K-12 school for students with emotional impairments or severe behavioral problems. In April we held our first Health and Wellness fair to promote general health and wellness through educational materials, demonstrations, and participation in a fun, family oriented atmosphere. Our goal is to provide these students and their families with ideas to eat healthy, exercise, and suport positive recreation choices. The Neos would be "a hit" with the community to assist in our goals of health and wellness. We are always looking for new ways to stimulate and engage our students.

Thank you for your consideration. The laughter you bring to your viewers is a welcome addition to our days!
Sincerely, Tracy

Hey Ellen!

First off, let me say that I think it is a truly amazing idea to give the NEOS to a worthy home, and I have the absolute perfect place.

Currently, I am a student at the University of Missouri and recently took part in an Alternative Spring Break program offered through the college. 13 students from Mizzou, myself included, made the 18-hour trek to The Big Apple - New York City, to do service work for underpriveleged schools and after-school programs. I was deeply touched by The Boys & Girls Club of Madison Square Garden. It was a sincere blessing to work with such amazing kids. Housed in Brooklyn, it offers an after-school program to those students who have nowhere else to go. They do the best they can with what they have, but these kids deserve so much more. The Club has one gym where everyone is expected to play at once. There are a few game rooms, but many of the board games are missing pieces or are too battered to be played.

For three days straight we volunteered at the Club and we were amazed by how fantastic these children were. Just by watching them play, you could tell they really wanted to be there, and we did too. When they weren't showing us their breakdancing skills or defeating us in impromptu games of soccer, the kids simply wanted to know everything about us and really learn. Every night when it was time to leave, we were bombarded with hugs and sayings of 'See you tomorrow!' The amazing staff is so generous and kind, and really cares about the kids' best interests. After our last day, we were saddened to think that we would not see this kids again, but hopeful that we made some impact.

Thus said, I believe the NEOS would absolutely help and make a different at the Boys & Girls Club of MSG. Just to think of the possibilities makes me elated for their program. Not only would it bring fitness and exercise, but 100% pure joy and fun. When I left NYC, I deeply wanted something more to give, but on a college student's budget, of course I was limited. This NEOS is my chance to give back once more, and you, Ellen, could be the one to help me. I am amazed at what you do every day and it gives me chills to think of what you could provide for this program. I know you have many wonderful options to think about giving the NEOS to, but I hope the Boys and Girls Club of MSG is at the top of your list.

All my thanks!

Dear Ellen
my teacher Ms. Neben was telling us about neos and we all thought it was really cool. I go to St. johns lutheran school in orange, california . Its so cool that you want to give us this game and i want to get it so bad for the whole fifth grade. some of my freinds may have written because we want it really bad so please Ellen give the St. Johns fifth grade neos Please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love
Bailey Jiminez
San Clemente,California

Dear Ellen,
I think that it is wonderful that you want to donate the Neos to a worthy group. I believe that my school would be the perfect fit for the Neos!
I am the 2006 National Physical Education Teacher of the Year. I teach P.E. at Hamilton Elementary School in Port Angeles, Washington to students in grades kindie through 6th.
Physical Education is NOT the same today as our grandma's P.E. classes were! The focus today is on teaching students the skills and knowledge that they need to lead healthy and active lifestyles-----not dodgeball, pushups, and climbing ropes!
There is an obesity epidemic in our country! Children are not physically active like we were in the past. Fitness testing at my elementary school documents that 26% of our students are considered obese (>25%BMI). This is in line with nationwide statistics.
I am constantly looking for new and innovative ways to get my students active! This is difficult to do with an annual budget of $50. Recently I spent my own personal money on exercise equipment that I found at a well-known secondhand store. The equipment was $10 each!!! I purchased enough equipment to provide 16 exercise stations for my students. They absolutely love it!!!
The Neos would be a great addition to our program at Hamilton Elementary School. It would be used as a PE activity, for schoolwide fundays, and as a fundraiser to increase the measley P.E. budget.
As National PE TOY (that's Teacher of the Year----I love being a TOY), I give presentations and workshops around the country. The Neos would be a great tool to grab participant attention and demonstrate the possibilities for getting our students active.
Thank you for considering Hamilton Elementary School for the Neos. All of the students at Hamilton are P.E. Winn-ers and deserve a chance at this fun activity! let's help prevent couch potatoes while they are still small fries (or tater tots)!!
Krista Winn
2006 National Physical Education Teacher of the Year

Hello Ellen,

It was great fun watching you play the Neos on your show, and thank you for the wonderful idea to donate the Neos to a worthy school or community. Please consider Murch Public Elementary School in Washington D.C. as one of the many worthy schools, in your decision.

Murch School enrolls approximately 480 children in the pre-k through sixth grades from across the City of Washington, D.C.. The school is very diverse economically, culturally, and ethnically. Students and teachers come from over 30 different countries!

Although Murch is rich in its diversity and commitment to education, the physical environment is in dire need of improvement. The school is housed in a building built in 1930 which is long overdue for modernization and renovation. Unfortunately, the school system does not have the resources to update its many aging school buildings and grounds, and relies heavily on the parents and school community to help in this effort. In an urban school district, with an extremely diverse student body, many of these needs simply go unmet.

The heavily used playground at Murch, was installed in the early 1990's,again with the help of the school community after years of fund raising, and is nearing the end of its lifespan. The playground is used every day by the 480 children who attend the school and after school program, plus the children who attend several nearby daycare centers. On weekends, the school grounds serve the larger community as a local park.

The Neos would be well used at Murch. In addition to being used as play equipment on the playground, it would also be used by Mr. Gamble as part of the Physical Education curriculum and could even be used creatively in fund raising efforts. I can feel the excitement and hear the laughter now as the pre-k teachers challenge the 6th grade teachers to a sudden death Neos match!

I know this will be a very difficult decision as there are so many deserving and needy groups that would benefit from the Neos. Please seriously consider Murch Public Elementary school in Washington D.C. where so many children, teachers and parents would regularly benefit from the great aerobic workout the Neos provides while having so much fun!

Hi Ellen, I DVR your show everyday and I just watched your episode with the NEOS. I am not sure if it is too late to email you about the NEOS. I am a special education teacher in a middle school. My students have a wide range of disabilities including Autism, Emotional disorders and Epilepsy. The NEOS would be a fantastic and fun filled way to let them have a little fun and it would be something they could actually "do" and be successful. It would also be a great way to work on coordination. They are a wonderful, inspiring group of kids who bravely face their challenges everyday. They probably teach me more everyday about persistence, love, patience and acceptance than I could ever hope to teach them. Thank you!!!! I love your show!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Ellen,
I record your show every day on my digital DVR. I was catching up on your shows that I had recorded and I just watched the show where you played Neos for the last time.
I work for a continuing care retirement community in New Jersey. It is called Pitman Manor and is part of United Methdist Homes. Our organization is not for profit, has a great reputation, and has been in operation for over 100 years. One promise of UMH is that residents are never asked to leave if they run out of financial resources while living in one of our communities.
Pitman Manor has implemented a new LifeChoices program which focuses on wellness in all aspects of residents and employees lives. We could really use the Neos game to help our LifeChoices program excel to the next level of popularity.
I first saw the Neos game at an International Conference on Active Aging I attended in Orlando this past December. I knew then it would be great for our resident and employees physical fitness, but there is no way we could afford one on our own.
Please consider giving the system to our retirement community. We can then pay it forward by sharing the game with our other 9 communities in New Jersey.
Thank you!
Pam M.

Hi Ellen,
I have a great home for your Neos game. I live in Washington County, Maine. This is the poorest county in our state !! You ask how this ties into the Neos game ? We have an after - school program called The EdGe program. They service seven schools in our school district. I think the children would benefit greatly by the Neos game because it is an excellent source of exercise while the children need to concentrate. Since this game is big space is no issue because the building where the children gather has a generouse amount of space. You ROCk Ellen ! Please consider us!!!

Ellen!
I have the most perfect idea for the giving away of the Neos game and it would involve turning your attention to sunny Southern California.
Casa Youth Shelter is a unique, non-profit shelter for runaway, throwaway and at-risk youth and is located in Orange County, CA. In addition to providing housing, food and other basic necessities, Casa funds individual, group and family therapy for its residents who face life crises such as drug and alcohol dependency, physical/emotional/sexual abuse and homelessness.
Now, you can imagine how important it is for these kids to have a safe space to let off steam and enjoy the lighter side of life. We have been working on an outdoor recreation area for our residents and wouldn't you know it, there is a space with the EXACT dimensions of the Neos game system, just waiting to be filled (can you believe the coincidence?)!
This year, we will celebrate Casa's 30th anniversary. What started as a vision in the late-70s has become a reality and there are now over 10,000 lives that have been touched by Casa's warm interior. Despite three decades of uncompromised community involvement, our budget does not often allow for splurging on the extras. But with your help, we can ring in Casa's 30th birthday in style - with the Neos game!
Thanks so much, Ellen, and keep on dancin'!
Karen Klabouch, Board Member

G'day Ellen!

My name is Ruth I am 15 years old and I am from Adaminaby in the snowy mountians in Australia! In winter it gets pretty cold down here (hence the name Snowy Mountians). Alot of my friends and I ride horses, live on farms and do alot of outside activities. In winter when it is snowy and cold it isn't so pleasant to do alot of outside activites but we are very active hard working people. we end up going stir crazy!

A game like neos it just the answer! It would be greatly appreciated if you chose our community to donate the neos game to.

There is a wide array of people who would enjoy the neos game, from cocky's (farmers) to, well, more cocky's. lol.

I do hope you consider our community for the neos game.

Cheers
Ruth

p.s. I love your show!

Dear Ellen,

Neos - What a great idea! We love your philosophy of "paying it forward" and strive to do the same. So let me tell you a little bit about us. We are The Luke Vincent Powers Foundation. A non-profit organization that raises money for children in need located on Cape Cod. Our mission is to provide opportunities for children in need by funding programs that enhance and protect their lives by creating Hope for their future.

It is exceptional to find a playground in a community that is barrier-free. Built so that all children, with and without disabilities, can engage in productive play. The National Center for Boundless Playgrounds is the first national non-profit dedicated to helping communities create extraordinary playgrounds where all children, with and without disabilities, can develop essential skills for life as they learn together through play.

We here at the Luke Vincent Powers Foundation believe in this concept so much that we are currently raising funds to build such a playground in our community in West Barnstable, MA. It will be named "Luke's Love" a Boundless Playground. The budget for our playground is $300,000 of which we have raised $60,000 so far. We have no doubt that we will reach our goal and think that the addition of the Neos would only add to the enjoyment of this wonderful playground. Please join us in our quest to bring all children, no matter what their abilities,
to a place in our community where they can
play, grow, learn and laugh together. Please visit us at www.lukeslove.org

Sincerely,
Suzanne Duffy-Savage

Ellen,

In our community we had parks that were not updated and felt that we had nowhere to take our kids that was safe. I am a member of a community group that decided to get together and update a park. Through much hardwork we were able to raise enough money to update one park in our community with new play ground equipment. Money is now being raised for a shelter. It is great to now see everyday the park full of kids able to enjoy all the love that was put in the park with this communities hard work and determination. It would be great for our community to have a neos for the kids to play. I feel that this would be a great game for our community to enjoy!!

Beth

Ellen,
What a wonderful thing you are doing for our children, whomever may get the NEOS. I am from a small town, Hinsdale, NH.
I have been president of our PTA, and now vice president again. Our playground is over 20 years old and we are in desperate need of a new playground for our children. We have had several fundraisers to help with our cause. Pancake breakfasts, dances, raffles, etc. Several children have been hurt on our outdated playground and at one point it was shut down.
We WILL eventually get to our goal of $80,000 to build a new playground, although the money is not adding up as fast as we'd like for our children, but what a wonderful start this would be if we were to get the NEOS.
Thank you for your concideration,
Deborah Spindler

Ellen,

It amazes me how many children in our country could gain so much positive use out of your NEOS game. Unfortunately, there is only one game to give to so many deserving children. However, everyone that has posted a comment on this game system is hopefully grateful for your extreme generosity to all. I have recently been put on a medical leave of absence from work which has allowed me to enjoy your show on a daily basis. Daily, you amaze me over your generosity. As mentioned, I am aware that there is only one NEOS to give, so allow me to explain why Garfield Montessori School in Decatur, Illinois is worthy of such an amazing gift.

My name is Theresa Merold. The upcoming school year I will be VP of Garfield's PTA. I have two nephews and a niece that have attended Garfield for a few years now. For various reasons, I have had several opportunities to visit the inside and outside of Garfield Montessori. Garfield is the only Montessori School in Illinois that is not a private school. Most Montessori schools are private and have normal private school tuition costs to attend. Garfield however is not privy to regular Montessori funding.

I am quite aware that everyone has "their" story or reasoning why they should be chosen. I am no different. I just believe in being an honest upright person instead of just focusing on things that can potentially have a negative impact. The main priority I have now and will have this coming year being involved with the PTA is the children. What is our world going to be like as we grow old and it is up to these same children to take our current places in the world? Unfortunately, I see to often our children not having all the positve energy and attention that they so deserve. You may ask what this has to do with you blessing someone with the NEOS system? The answer for me is simple, that game is so full of positve energy and enjoyment.

Allow me to share some things with you about Garfield Montessori School. Garfield has a preschool program and also has grades K-8. Their is just not a lot of funding from the public school system for different aspects of this school. There is a very small outdated playground on the grounds that all of the children are required to share. The couple of basketball hoops are also outdated and need to be replaced. These students do not have a gymnasium at their school. All of the athletic teams usually end up practicing at other schools because the equipment is just not available to them at their own school.

One of my goals as a new active member of their PTA charter is to help provide these children with the athletic equipment they need and are so well deserving of. I have watched your show on several occassions and seen how much positive energy and enjoyment any one of any age receives after playing the game. To some degree, it seems unfair to ask you to consider one more school. You have such an unbelievably difficult decision in front of you. However, I know you will make the decision you feel is best and I only hope that it is for Garfield Montessori School in Decatur, Illinois. Thank You for taking the time to read this.

Kids we got em
NEOS we don't
Fit kids we want em
That's no joke

Tots we got em
2 1/2 to 5
School age we got em
200 kickin into overdrive

How do you decide
Who gets to play
NEOS up and NEOS down
Moving everyday

Tweens we got em
Tudes and all
Smile we want em
They'll have a ball

Teens we want em
High school next door
Dangers we got em
No teen should explore

How do you decide
Who gets to play
NEOS up and NEOS down
Moving everyday

Passion for all of em
Ellen you groove
Parents we want em
To cheer as you choose

Decisions you got em
Good luck with that
Moves you can flaunt em
To you we tip our hat

How do you decide
Who gets to play
NEOS up and NEOS down
Moving everyday

I am a supervisor of a Community Center in Eugene Oregon. We are "renting" NEOS for the upcoming USATF Olympic Trials in Eugene Oregon and know that this piece of equipment would truly impact our programs. I am also a Singer/Songwriter for SONGS OF LOVE (you really should research that - it is amazing) and have written over 130 fully produced songs for kids who have experienced medical traumas. (The organization just completed
its 15,000th song - all free) So, I sent you a song to request the NEOS. Thanks Ellen - you truly ROCK!

Hello Ellen, Great Neos. I live in a little town in Hinsdale, NH I have two children who
attend the Hinsdale Elementary School. We have had the same playground for 6 Years plus. Unfortunately, it is old and needs to be updated. We have had several children get hurt and have had to close the playground down so the
children have no where to play. The children are
very sad as well as the parents, teachers, and
administration. I am involved with the PTA and we have started a playground committee to help
raise funds to have a new playground. We have had bake sales, bottle drives, we are planning
a breakfast and spaghetti dinner among other things to help raise money. Unfortunately it has
been tough people do not have the money to spend
on extras with the increasing gas prices and the
economy in such a slump. We will keep plugging
along, we won't stop until we have enough money
for our playground. The Neos would be a good
start. Thank you for your consideration and all
that you do for the world. Jo-Ann Handelman
Hinsdale, NH May 3, 2008