Merrimac School Notes
Michelle Pelletier Marshall
October 10, 2008 12:42 am Under the direction of art teacher Louise Brown, all Donaghue School students recently created Pinwheels for Peace to post outside the building in observance of International Day of Peace. The students created the pinwheels, which included their thoughts about war and peace, tolerance, and living in harmony with others on one side, while the other side displayed a drawing, painting or collage to visually express their feelings. Pinwheels for Peace is an art installation project started in 2005 by two art teachers, Ann Ayers and Ellen McMillan, who teach in Coconut Creek, Fla., as a way for students to express their feelings about what's going on in the world and in their lives. Using the pinwheel, a childhood symbol that evokes thoughts of a time when things were simple, joyful and peaceful has proved a great way to spread thoughts and feelings about peace throughout the country. ¢¢¢ An all-new Merrimac PTO Web site is up and running at www.merrimacpto.org. The site redesign was completed with the unveiling of a new PTO logo, created by local artist Mary Rokosz. "The new logo, which is a colorful little schoolhouse, better represents our group and cause and is more family-friendly," said PTO President Tracy Duprey. Visitors to the updated site will find information on fundraising efforts, volunteering opportunities, upcoming events, appropriations, monthly school activity calendar and much more. ¢¢¢ The PTO School Store will be open for business during lunch periods at both the Sweetsir and Donaghue Schools on Wednesday, Oct. 15. ¢¢¢ Progress reports will go home for those in fourth through sixth grade on Friday, Oct. 17. ¢¢¢ Six students at the Sweetsir School were the recipients of the school's Jean Connor Scholarships, which were awarded late last year. The students, whose names are kept confidential as dictated by the scholarship, used their scholarship awards for summer programs, including basketball camp, music lessons and a summer theatre workshop. The Jean Connor Scholarship Award is given each year in honor of Jean Connor, a beloved second-grade teacher who taught at the Sweetsir School for more than 30 years. Connor died tragically in June 2005, and the Merrimac PTO and Connor's family wanted to keep her love of the arts alive, so they created the award. The scholarship is used to send a student or students to a camp or lessons that they would otherwise have been unable to attend. ¢¢¢ The schools are looking for new classes to offer in their Afterschool Exploration programs. Courses run for six weeks, and topics can be about sports, arts and crafts, music or another specialty. Volunteers and paid instructors are needed. For more information, contact Lisa Linnehan at llinnehan@merrimacpto.org. Michelle Pelletier Marshall reports on the Rowley and Merrimac elementary schools. She can be reached at marshallsinmass@comcast.net.
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