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Houston Center's FACES of Change pen pals said farewell today (5/25/05)

Children and mentors played and socialized before enjoying lunch from Chick-fil-A. Some kids took their mentors on a tour of the school, sharing their favorite places and stories throughout the school. The children also performed their Japanese songs from the recent international festival.

This years pen pal program was administered through Mrs. Whiteley and Rachel Giuliani. A very special thank you to all of our wonderful volunteers: Angela Polansky, Melissa Wleczyk, Stephanie Olszewski, Kevin Foster, Sandy Collet, Anne Janis, Dawna Calderon, Holger Frehde, Amy Popp, Linda Kay Cook, Nikki Watson, Debbie Doyle, Valeria Hope, Clarissa Parker, Cory Fein, Frank Staats, Terry Ramirez and Kelly Marco.

Pictured: (Left to Right, adults only) Rachel Giuliani (FACES Coordinator), Paula Whiteley (4th grade teacher), Clarissa Parker (Crescent - Houston Center), Frank Staats (Crescent - Houston Center), Linda K. Cook (Jackson Walker), Melissa Wleczyk (Startrust Federal Credit Union), Angie Polansky (Griffis & Associates - Classroom sponsor), Stephanie Olszewski (Startrust Federal Credit Union), Kelly Marco(Crescent 2 Houston Center), Sandy Collet (Four Seasons), Amy Popp (Four Seasons), Dawna Calderon (Four Seasons), Holger Frehde (Four Seasons) & Anne Janis (Four Seasons)

Oprah Grants 100 First Graders' Wildest Dreams (5/24/05)

Oprah Winfrey will help make dreams come true for the first grade children of Crockett. One hundred first graders and their parents and teachers will be treated to a trip to Disney Land, all compliments of Oprah's "Wildest Dreams" campaign. Mrs. Quinney, the physical education teacher, wrote to the program's producers on a whim and Oprah responded with a resounding yes!

"I only asked for her to help because the children are not able to truly enjoy their childhoods. Some of our kids have to worry about so many things and they can't just be kids and go out and have fun," said Mrs. Quinney.

The show was filmed on Thursday, May 12 and aired on Tuesday, May 24, at 4:00 PM CDT.

Starbucks Volunteers help prepare the Pond (5/21/05)

Starbucks hosted a Make Your Mark volunteer day at Crockett Elementary on Saturday, May 21. Volunteers re-graded the pond area by the new observation deck, removed rocks and debris from underneath the pond liner, trimmed existing rose bushes, picked up trash and painted doors.

Starbucks plans to host more volunteer days at Crockett this summer and upcoming fall to help the school with beautification projects including the Butterfly Atrium, painting, mural art and the completion of the school yard habitat.

The Starbucks Foundation is dedicated to enriching the lives of youth in underserved communities. The Foundation's mission is to create hope, discovery, and opportunity in communities where Starbucks partners live and work.

Associated Landscaping Completes the Deck for the Nature Center (5/20/05)

Associated Landscaping started the construction of the observation deck on Friday, May 13 and finished it up on Friday, May 20. Complete with wheel chair access, break-away observation panels, and an arbor, the deck will help finish the School Yard Habitat project. Associated Landscaping also donated plant material and fill dirt for the project, along with the expertise advice of Mr. Bob Buckner and Mr. Jason Harrison.

The habitat project will be completed this summer and will include a natural pond, replete with native plant life and animals such as frogs, fish and lizards. The deck, with its break-away observation panels will allow the children to interact within the habitat without disturbing the animals or plants. Also, the habitat will house a geology garden in which indigenousness rock can be studied by the students.

The habitat project is a work in progress with many contributors. The Office of James Burnett donated their time for the design of the area; Walter P. Moore donated their time and expertise to engineer the deck for structural soundness and ADA compliance; the fifth and sixth graders will help plant the area as part of their graduation project this week; and many more have helped make this dream a reality.

Thank you to our dedicated volunteers.