Berlin Elementary Day designed to ‘make school cool’
As part of Community Day at Berlin Elementary, Myron Stutzman, left, and Shanda Houston from Weaver Leather brought in nearly 20 different types of leather to talk about with the students, including some exotic leathers.
Community service is a big part of what drives Holmes County, and what better time to introduce the important role community service plays than to the elementary-age students.
On Monday, Dec. 18, several community members came to Berlin Elementary to talk about their respective roles in the community during Berlin Elementary Community Day.
This marks the first of four times these community members will come to the school, and according to Berlin Elementary Principal Darren Blochlinger, it is part of the rubric for becoming a Lighthouse School that is part of the Leader in Me program.
Leader in Me is designed to help schools and districts build leadership and life skills in students and staff members by creating a high-trust culture and to accelerate academic achievement. Blochlinger said the program has been in place several years, and it is an important part of what the school wants to accomplish in teaching. The children not only get the educational part of growing up, but also how to integrate themselves into the community and work with others while building up their character.
“I have a staff leadership team and a student leadership team that put this together, and one of the goals of Leader in Me is to go out into the community and bring the community in to connect with the kids,” Blochlinger said. “We live in such a great community that thrives on community service, so we didn’t have any problem finding people to come in and speak with the kids.”
The four different sessions included Holmes County Sheriff officer Brent Bernhart, who serves as the school officer monitor, and his brother, officer Brian Bernhart, who brought along with him his partner of three years, Diego, a German Shepherd who is part of the county’s K-9 unit.
“I enjoy getting out into the community and especially the kids to let them know what a K-9 unit does on a daily basis,” said Brian Bernhart, who works with Diego every day. “I think it’s important for the kids to see various aspects of our community, and for me, it’s good for them to see that, at the end of the day, we as law enforcement want to keep our community safe and we’re here to help.”
The gymnasium was filled with the sounds of laughter as Laurel Miller and Emme Wallick of Peak Physical Therapy and Wellness of Berlin had the kids participating in numerous cooperative games.
“Community members being involved in the community is one of the pillars of why we’re here,” Miller said. “Sports are a big part of our area, and it starts at a young age, so it’s great for us to get into the schools to show the kids how important it is to stay healthy and be active. We really value getting involved and giving back and serving the community we love, and there’s no better time to promote community service than at this age because our purpose in life is to offer our gifts and to help others.”
In the cafeteria Shanda Houston and Myron Stutzman from Weaver Leather brought in nearly 20 different types of leather to talk about with the students, including many exotic leathers.
“This is a lot of fun,” said Houston, who taught preschool for six years, so she knows how important these types of events are for the students. “I love the interaction, and we‘ve been looking forward to this because Weaver Leather enjoys connecting with and supporting the schools and community.”
On the second floor, Darby Sherman, Holmes County Soil & Water District conservation specialist, talked to the kids about the many traits of soil and water.
Over the four different visits throughout the year, all of the students will have an opportunity to experience all four of the presentations, with each of the businesses or organizations committing to return for all four sessions.
“This is such a fun and unique way to get the community involved with the school,” Blochlinger said. “These types of partnerships are invaluable, and the kids seem to really enjoy it because it is a bit of a break from the norm. Since COVID we haven’t done as many assemblies, and when we have those, we pay a lot to have someone come in while our community members are more than happy to volunteer their time because they understand the value of teaching kids about not only what they do, but the importance of community service.”
Blochlinger said without question when the kids get home after school, the topic of discussion will be about their leather bookmarks, or how soil erodes, or the many things Diego the K-9 dog can do, or the fun they had ripping around the gymnasium.
“Academics are the most important, but we also want to create memories for these kids through these types of things,” Blochlinger said. “I guess it’s kind of making school cool.”