Page 3 - Priorities #49 2011-April/May

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DFROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL Dear Priory Community,
Lenten season is here and our students and staff discovered some very creative ways to use their special talents to raise money to help underwrite the renovation of the home of Flora Hurd a resident of East Palo Alto. The Priory, for the past 18 years, has partnered with Rebuilding Together, a one day home renovation project at the end of April.
The students’ energy and enthusiasm for the day is contagious and as the eight-hour day progresses, they are able to see dramatic changes and improvements to the exterior and interior of the house. When they leave, the students have pride in what they have accomplished.
In a similar way, Lent is very much like this project. We focus for 40 days on ways we can improve certain aspects of our life and how that change can benefit the community we live in. Lent calls each one of us at the Priory to reflect on our values, perceptions and attitudes, and use that insight to become a better person.
I just returned from Washington DC, where three other chaperones and I travelled with the 8th grade to experience the sights and sounds of the nation’s capitol. I love visiting that city – everywhere you look you see memorials, museums, government buildings that remind you of the great history of this country and the significant individuals who stepped forward to direct and guide our destiny. The students were able to sense the importance around them and, maybe for the first time, understand what being a citizen means.
They were quiet as we walked through the Korean and Vietnam Memorials, they were awe-struck by the expansiveness of the Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials, and they were proud when four members of their class placed a wreath on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery.
In the Capitol, they witnessed a lively debate on the floor of the House about home mortgages and while at the National Cathedral heard the thunderous sound of its pipe organ. At Mount Vernon, they saw the home of George Washington and heard stories about his passions, strong sense of service to country, and his love for the land he called his own. This class experience is one they will remember for as long as they live.
I just returned from Washington DC where three other chaperones and I travelled with our current 8th grade to see and feel the sights and sounds of the nation’s capitol.