BOARDMAN Pupils surpass goal; school isn't as hairy

One male teacher dyed his black hair blond.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Three teachers went bald Friday at Glenwood Middle School.
A teacher also got a new hair color. And three school employees got smacked in the face with pies.
And it was all done for charity.
Three middle-school teachers told pupils they would shave their heads if more than 1,500 nonperishable food items were collected for the Salvation Army.
Another teacher said he would dye his hair, and three more school employees agreed to have pies thrown in their faces if the goal were reached.
By 9:30 a.m. Friday, all seven of those faculty and staff members were lined up in the school gymnasium ready to fulfill their promises in front of a student body that had collected about 4,000 nonperishable food items to be donated to the SA.
Teachers Bill Coler, Nick Colla and Carlo Cordon sat quietly covered with an apron as student council adviser Jennifer Dravecky -- who has no hair-cutting experience -- put clippers to scalp. In the end, all three men did have a trace of hair left, but most of the locks they walked in with lay on the floor at their feet.
Principal Anthony Alvino said Coler, who has a receding hairline, had a head start on the other two teachers and should therefore be required to loose more hair. Coler agreed to also have his facial hair shaved away.
"As you can see, I don't have a lot to loose," said Coler while pointing to the top of his head.
Their end of the bargain
Social studies teacher Vince Carnevale, usually sporting a crown of black hair, dyed his hair blond. Dravecky, student council adviser Kristina McGovern and custodian Ron Grope allowed whipped-cream pies to be thrown in their faces as promised.
Alvino said the student body collects canned goods and other food items for the Salvation Army every year, usually bringing in about 400 items.
He said because of the shortage of donations in the area this year, teachers wanted to challenge pupils to bring in more items and have fun at the same time. "It's nice to help people and also have some great fun," said Alvino. "That is what this is all about."
The middle school pupils had fun collecting the food items, but Maj. David Lyle of the Salvation Army said the donations add up to serious help for the organization.
"This is a great contribution for the holiday season and also throughout the year, as we provide food through our three food pantries," he said.
Maj. Lyle estimates the food items donated by the pupils at the school will be enough to feed about 80 families over the holidays.
He said the donations are coming at a good time. The number of people receiving assistance is up about 30 percent over last year, but donations have been down about 25 percent over the last year.
jgoodwin@vindy.com