What the Educators, nurse Teachers, decease Parents, and Children are saying about Judi The Manners Lady™ & The Canadian Project for Manners & Civility
Toronto Star
“She’s got a hundred-watt smile and energy to burn. But beneath Judi Johnston Vankevich’s trademark sequined cap lurks a simple message for parents and children: Manners are important, regardless of your age.”
Zig Ziglar
“The Manners Lady comes along at the right time with the right information. In a loving, exciting and inspirational way, she “sells” manners, then teaches them! Judi’s CD needs to be in every home in America!”
Armand La Barge, Chief of Police,York Regional Police, Newmarket, Ontario Canada
“Judy, just a note to say how much I enjoyed your Manners Club Party with the kids and families in Aurora last week. The kids were excited throughout the entire 2 hours and regardless of their age, they couldn’t wait to get up on stage. As the Chief of Police for a community that has in excess of 800,000 citizens, I want to add my voice to your growing legion of supporters. Your work is important to the future of our country and our society and I want to thank you for so kindly allowing me to participate in the event.”
Boston Globe
“Judi’s course goes far beyond just table setting and thank yous. It takes a page out of the old schools of decorum and comportment, stressing life skills and values such as respect, empathy and self confidence.”
Greg Strom
“My 5 year old son, Lucas, has been developing quite an “attitude” problem, but after a day and a half of listening to your CD (at his insistence), my wife noticed that Lucas started obeying “right away without delay” and he is wearing his “happy eyes” and he is helping to set the table. He even asked his mother, “Is there anything else I can to do help?” Your CD is wonderful!”
Peter Fassbender, Mayor, Langley City
“I wanted to send this letter of support for your project to work with School District #35 to begin to help focus on the entire issue of manners and civility in our community and society in general. I am a strong believer that we can not do enough to reinforce the value of everyone having respect for those around us. We can show this by how we treat them and interact on a daily basis. Politeness is, in my opinion, not just a nice thing to do when we feel like it, but rather a quality that should be an integral part of our DNA. In saying this, I am also a firm believer that we may have seen an erosion of some of those qualities over time and we are now seeing the fruit of that erosion in some of the social issues that our communities face. Anything that we can all collectively do to remind each other of the importance of manners and civility will have significant positive spin offs in the future. Also, anything we can do to help challenge our young people to think about how they treat others is a very positive step to seeing beneficial changes in our community. I want to personally encourage you to continue to work with our local schools as the starting point for such an initiative. I know that if you can begin by engaging a few of our schools that the program will grow to include many other aspects of our community. I wish you all the best and will do what I can to help carry the message forward and support the projects that are developed.
The Right Honourable Stephen Harper, P.C., M.P
“I read with great interest about ‘The Canadian Project for Manners and Civility’ and would like to take this opportunity to commend you for the creative approach you have taken to promote positive family values. Thank you also for the gift of your CD. My children, Ben and Rachel, also pass along their thanks.”
Kurt Alberts, Mayor, Langley Township
“On behalf of Township of Langley Council, I would like to wish the Canadian Project for Manners & Civility much success with the launch of National Manners Month. As a community, we appreciate the importance that good manners and civility play in improving the quality of life for our residents and enhancing Langley’s community spirit. We wish you a terrific National Manners Month, all year long!”
David Mainse, Crossroads Communication
“The Emily Post of the 21st Century!”
Joe Easingwood, Radio Talk Show Host, CFAX Radio, Victoria, B.C.
“Judi’s one hell-of-a-guest!”
Smiley Blanton, Psychiatrist
“80% of my patients would not be in my office if their parents had taught the manners.”
Ken Thomson, The Woodbridge Company, Ltd.
“Manners are indeed very important. Your CD will get excellent usage among our three grandchildren. Congratulations on the success of this project, and more importantly on your family life and all your successes. Your record of achievements is really quite commendable.”
Al Kasha, Academy Award winning Composer, Los Angeles
“I listened to your childrens’ album and do believe you will be the next Raffi. I thought the work was quite professional and had excellent values. All around, it was a terrific piece.”
Mary Olszewski, Grade 2 Teacher, Dr. F.J. McDonald Catholic School, Ottawa, Ontario
Just a note to let you know that my Grade 2 class did a fantastic job singing “The Five Fabulous Phrases” in our gym last Friday. They were smiling and enthusiastic and they certainly had “Happy Eyes”. I am enthusiastically looking forward to playing excerpts from your CD to my class every day.
Nasima Nastoh, mother of bullying victim, Hamed Nastoh Anti Bullying Coalition.
Dear Judi, You were fantastic yesterday. Your words and music inspired so many people. Please accept my deep appreciation for taking part in our forum. You are incredible. You really care for children and their safety.
Sherisse Wormell, Child Life Coordinator, Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, Portland, Maine
“Thank you so much for visiting the children at The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital. Our patients and families had a great time! Your show was so interactive, which was just what our children needed. It was incredible to see the smiles on their faces and how your songs kept their attention. Our parents appreciated that your program was educational too. It was a pleasure to have you and hope you can come back again sometime.”
Carol White, Director, Discovery Station Preschools, Langley, BC
At Discovery Station Preschools it is our goal to boldly present the truth of the Bible and its application within our curriculum. The Manners Lady CD is a valuable tool to support this goal. The upbeat music along with the relevant words help us to present to the children and their families practical and reasonable expectations for behavior. Our favorite songs are “Everybody Needs Good Manners”, “The Golden Rule Rap”, “Obey your Mom and Dad” and “The Five Fabulous Phrases”. Not only do we use these in the two weeks we dedicate to teaching manners and values but they continue to filter into many other themes throughout the year. There is no better time to reinforce obedience than for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Grandparents Day. During Community Helpers themes Judi’s songs remind the children how to respond in a social setting like a restaurant or shopping mall. The R-E-S-P-E-C-T Song is also a big favorite and we use it each year on Father’s Day in our musical presentation. We also like to offer to our families the opportunity to purchase Judi’s CD to assist them at home in this area. The CD has been widely appreciated. It was very exciting to host The Manners Lady concert, which was “Sold Out” and once again talked about by the children for months—an event we plan on doing again.
Rebekah 4 Years Old, Ontario
Dear Judy: My name is Rebekah Friesen. My Daddy works at Fair Havens and I saw you there a few years ago. I just wanted to let you know that I am listening to your CD right now and I am being very kind and polite with my Mommy. We are cleaning the house up- and your music makes us dance when we work. This makes cleaning so much fun!! Thank you for making such nice music! I want to tell you that I love you very much! My music CD is wearing out- it has some scratches on it- but we still listen to it! We just skip the song that has scratches. I think we need a new CD… I want you to come over to my house. We will play together and play house. You will be the Mom. I will be the kid- and I will use my manners every time! Can you come to my school? I know my friends at school would love you very much! I go to Lady MacKenzie School in Kirkfield, Ontario. You can talk to my Mommy Lisa if you can. Well, we have to go and finish our tidying up. Please email me sometime! I want to hear from you. Thank you!
Sandra McLatchie, Home School Mom, Mission, B.C.
Dear Judi, Thank you SO MUCH for giving us a copy of your CD at the hockey game on Saturday night. Since then, we have listened to it 7 times!!!!! My girls keep asking, “Mommy, can we please listen to Miss Judi Woodi Oodie?” You did an incredible job putting those songs together with such catchy tunes that you have our whole family singing them throughout the day. Now It’s neat to see all of my kids keeping each other accountable for their manners.
Second Grade Teacher, McDonald Catholic School in Ottawa
“Hi Judi, I got your CD from the library and wanted to let you know that my Grade 2 class did a fantastic job singing “The Five Fabulous Phrases” in our gym last Friday. They were smiling and enthusiastic and they certainly had “Happy Eyes”. I am enthusiastically looking forward to playing excerpts from your CD to my class every day.
David Spady, Director of News and Public Affairs, Salem Communications
Judi The Manners Lady has a gift for reaching children. Her contagious joy and exciting music inspires children to honor their parents, respect their elders and live by The Golden Rule as they learn the vital social skills they need to be first-class citizens. My three kids love Judi’s music. Her CD has been worn out between our car and home. Every school, church and home with young children will love The Manners Lady!”
Giovanna Malito, Grade One Teacher, Maywood Community School, Burnaby, B.C.
“Your show yesterday was FABULOUS and the kids absolutely loved it. They couldn’t stop talking about it, and we will be listening to your CD in our classroom regularly. Your energy and upbeat performance was just what we needed right about now! You presented concepts in a fun and exciting way, the children could really identify and relate. Thanks again from Division 20, Grade 1!”
Renee Pick, Principal, Auguston Traditional School, Abbotsford, B.C.
“I had the privilege of having The Manners Lady come to our school in September. The show was designed to set up our school’s social responsibility goal for the year. The show successfully exceeded our expectations! There was strong, student involvement, solid messages and catchy tunes to carry us through the year. The messages on manners, introducing yourself, setting the table, and appreciating your parents were well explained, loaded with catchy jingles and stories that made sense to our kindergarten to grade five audience. The materials for teacher use were superb. The Manners Lady Show is integral to the Personal Planning curriculum and the Social Responsibility Performance Standards here in B.C. This is not an ‘add on’ show–she covers student objectives from these documents, and accomplishes this in a fun way. Her songs and messages tie a school together with a common language and common theme songs. I highly recommend her to every school.
Margaret Schmor, Director of Development, John Knox Christian School, Woodstock, Ontario
” Our students loved Judi’s exciting music at her concert and at the same time, our parents got a dynamic “how to” parenting seminar! I cannot say enough about Judi and her vision to minister to Children. Her fun, yet strategic resources for parents and teachers to teach our children to love and serve God through character and manners are excellent. We used her curriculum prior to her visit. The children learned all the songs and coloured picture of their bad monsters. Judi’s song about “happy eyes” helped communicate the concept of a “happy heart” to the children. The Bad Manners Monsters helped the children visualize the behavior that is not acceptable… in a fun way! They also learn that they can say “NO!” to the Bad Manners Monsters and learn self-control! The younger children loved and learned from Judi’s Bad Manners Monsters: Grouchy Rouchy, Messy Bessy, Whiney Rhino, Grabba Jabba, Wiggly Jiggly and Slobbo Roo . The middle students were introduced to Princess Spoon and the Handsome Prince Knife as they got excited about setting the table and learned table etiquette as well. And the teenagers loved Judi’s “Manners Boot Camp”, learning cool ways of showing respect. I was most impressed with her program for teens, a tough audience. She won them over in minutes and held them captivated for hours. More than just manners she touched on stewardship, respecting our bodies, controlling what we let influence us (“Garbage in….garbage out”) While she was only with us for one day, we now have a reference point to reinforce their good behaviour. Judi offers support and reinforcement for what we are teaching in our school and in our homes. We felt that Judi’s message would help us develop this theme and deal with issues of bullying, bad attitudes and disrespect. Teaching manners such as character, kindness, respect, putting others first, and honouring our parents and elders all help children learn practical ways of showing God’s love to the world. We also hosted a community concert to share her message and vision with the community. Together with some local churches we were excited to offer quality family entertainment for our city, something that is hard to find these days.”
Navnit Shah, Langley Rotary Club
“On behalf of all the members of Langley Rotary Club, I thank you very, very much. Your presentation to the Club was par excellence. I heard many positive comments from my fellow Rotarians, some examples being “the girl’s got energy,” “if only I had half her enthusiasm,” “she is so talented – an all rounder!”
Heather Knechtal, Peterborough, Ontario
“I received your fabulous kit! George is fascinated by the monster “cards,” as he calls them. He’s beginning to learn the songs, as we play the cd in the car and in the tub. Great music & a great variety of styles to capture their interest, and make their little bodies move. And, I may add, as a fervent hater of rap music, you are the exception – your Golden Rule song rocks!”
William Barneveld, Principal, John Knox Christian School
Our day with The Manners Lady was a memorable one. Judi spent a day in our city making three presentations at our school and performing her city-wide community concert at a local church in the evening. Her program is effective and full of energy. At our school she worked with three distinct age groups and spoke the language of each one. Our students are still talking fondly about the Manners Lady and, more importantly, they still show the good manners she stressed. Her message is wholistic and she underscores the point that good manners are one way of honouring God in our actions. Giving respect to others is in a real way giving respect to God. Her message was a strong support for our school’s mission. The Manners Lady has a way of establishing immediate rapport with her audience, with her smile and her boundless energy. Her strong faith creates a powerful setting to apply the Word of God to every day situations. I would highly recommend school administrators to consider using her talents to bring home the message that good manners are important at any age and in any situation. We were thankful to share her gifts and her message with our students.
Melanie Levinson, California
The Manners Lady CD is perfect! We are working on manners right now with my four year old—and we needed something a little beyond please and thank you. When my daughter heard the little sample part of the song on the web site she came in to the office from another part of the house and insisted that I play it over and over until she could sing it. Need I say more?