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Kirkmere, Harding host friendly family dinners
YOUNGSTOWN
Linda Daniels, Discovery at Kirkmere third-grade teacher, gives her students at least one stress-free Thanksgiving dinner.
Crockpots, foil pans, dessert trays and more lined the tables Tuesday afternoon down Discovery at Kirkmere’s third-grade hallway.
Daniels’ smile and welcoming attitude would make one question who enjoyed this event more – the students or their teacher.
“I just want to make sure [the students] have a nice Thanksgiving regardless of a situation at home,” she said.
Drew Scott, parent of Elisha Hargrove, 9, agreed.
“It’s good for the community and something different to have the kids join their parents and have at least one good Thanksgiving,” he said.
About 60 total – third-graders and family members – were fed a meal of turkey, Spanish rice, macaroni and cheese and lots of desserts.
Also Tuesday, a huge dinner was served at Harding Elementary School. About 400 students and their families lined up for the holiday meal. It was the first time the school has served so many, said Principal Timothy Freeman. He also invited some community stakeholders.
“We cooked the turkeys Sunday and Monday,” Freeman said.
The mashed potatoes, corn and green beans were prepared Tuesday morning for the meal. Lunch for 400 means 16 turkeys and 100 pounds of potatoes.
The food was served in shifts based on students’ grade level. Each adult and
student went through the line set up in the school cafeteria where Freeman and his staff spooned out the Thanksgiving fixings onto each plate.
“It was a success,” Freeman said. “The parents enjoyed themselves. The students enjoyed themselves.”
Desserts for the holiday meal were donated by Karen and Walt Angelo, parents of Courtney Angelo, a third-grade teacher at Harding.
Also at Tuesday’s pre-holiday meal, three students won bicycles for selling the most candy in a school candy sale. Those winners are Riley Echols, a first-grader, Gabriel Adams, a third-grader, and Aubrey Dennis, who is in fourth grade.
At Kirkmere, Daniels said the dinner has been happening for three years now, and that opening up the schools for such events coincides with the Youngstown City School’s academic recovery plan. One goal of that plan is to increase parent involvement in the schools. “The children enjoy it, and it’s nice to see their excitement of getting their parents here,” she said. “The family attendance shows them the value of family and how to be thankful.”
The so-called Youngstown Plan has the district being led by a chief executive officer and overseen by a state-appointed academic distress commission, although its elected board of education remains in place.
Betsy Johnquest, leveled literacy tutor, said despite the dinner being specific to third-grade students, the whole school gets involved.
“We all try to work together and [Daniels] takes the lead and we try to jump in and help as much as we can,” she said.
Daniels said beyond the obvious reasons to enjoy her students and their families for a holiday meal, she appreciates getting the chance to talk with parents in a non-instructional manner.
“This just gives the opportunity for staff and families to get together in a social environment with no reports, no behavior discussion, or anything like that,” she said. “You get to see teachers, students and families in their natural habitat.”