MOUNTAIN BROOK, AL — Sisters, we all remember where we were during last winter’s two-hour delay. Thirty-eight of us had to reschedule hot yoga, Pilates and at least one very important lash appointment. Never again. This week Cappa Cappa officially launched Snow Is a Mindset, a campaign to make sure Superintendent Christopher Queen fully understands what is at stake every time he looks at a weather map.
“We’re not saying the children aren’t important,” said PTO President Blakely Whitmore-Vance, standing on the school steps in a puffer vest and leggings while the snow very cooperatively melted on contact with the sidewalk. “We’re saying Vinyasa Flow is at 9:15, and it fills up. Those are two different things, and we can hold space for both.”
We kicked things off with a 14-slide presentation, hand-delivered to Superintendent Queen’s office in a monogrammed leather folio. Highlights include “What Is Ice, Really?”, a side-by-side comparison of Mountain Brook and Minnesota, and a pie chart showing that 91 percent of our members drive vehicles with heated seats, all-wheel drive, and at least two kinds of cameras. The data speaks for itself.
We have also formed a Weather Advisory Committee, which meets at 4:30 a.m. any morning the forecast mentions precipitation. Members drive the carpool route in their pajamas and report road conditions to the group chat using our approved emoji system. One snowflake means “school should open.” Two snowflakes also mean “school should open.” We’ve found this keeps reporting very consistent.
As a gesture of partnership, we presented Superintendent Queen with a $900 weather radio, a custom snow gauge engraved “It’s Just Pretty,” and a standing invitation to the 9:15 class so he can see what he’s taking from us.
The Cappa Cappa Grammas are fully on board. “I drove to school in the Blizzard of ’93 in a Volvo station wagon with three children and a casserole,” said Grammas President Mitzi Whitmore. “Everybody turned out fine. One of them is a dermatologist.”
Chad Whitmore-Vance has generously offered to clear the entire school parking lot himself with a shovel “as a WOD,” and has asked that it be timed. Several of us have already volunteered to watch.
During our planning meeting, Becca from the zoned district asked whether the real concern might be the buses getting up the hills safely. Such a unique perspective! Her question has been held for a future agenda.
Superintendent Queen responded with a brief statement saying he will keep making weather decisions based on student safety and road conditions. We hear him. That’s why our second presentation will have a balloon arch.
The forecast currently shows a 20 percent chance of flurries Thursday. Three of us have already pre-booked the 9:15. Stay positive, sisters. Snow is a mindset.