September 22, 2005

SCHOOL SCENEin Almaden Valley

Graystone serves up $3,000 at Take-and-Bake

Proceeds from bake sale, donation jar and Home &
School club donation total $5,000

Clockwise from lower right, volunteers Sarah Kirby, Tanera van Diggelen, Kristin Salah, Alison van Diggelen, John Markham and Alexandra Kirby help parents choose from a variety of sweets.

As images of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina filled the airwaves, the Graystone Elementary School community wondered what it could do to help. They came up with the idea of a Take-and-Bake, where families would bake goodies for the back-to- school night crowd in exchange for donations to the American Red Cross.

The fund-raiser brought in well over $3,000, thanks to the generosity of hundreds of the families who baked, volunteered and donated cash to take home a treat. Every single baked good down to the last cupcake was scooped up by an enthusiastic donor, according to Sheree Kirby, Graystone Bake-and-Take Coordinator.

The proceeds from the bake sale, along with money collected in classroom donation jars, and a gift from the Home & School Club exceed $5,000 and will be donated to the American Red Cross to help Hurricane Katrina evacuees.

“There is a lot of spirit here,” said a proud Kirby of the Graystone community.

Students at Simonds join in cross-country sing-along to ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’

On Sept. 14, 1814, Francis Scott Key penned the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Nearly two centuries later, the National Anthem Project celebrated this patriotic moment by calling for students across the country to step outside their classrooms and sing it in unison at 9 a.m. on Sept. 14, 2005.

Mr. Greg Winslow’s third grade class sang the national anthem on Sept. 14, the anniversary of the song, in support of the National Anthem Project.

Over 600 students, teachers and community members at Simonds Elementary School agreed to participate in this historic patriotic event, which was led by the students in Mr. Greg Winslow’s third grade class.

The National Anthem Project is a multi-year effort to re-teach Americans the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Two out of three Americans don’t know the words, according to a Harris Poll. The campaign to restore America’s voice launched on the steps of the United States Capitol in Washington D.C. on March 10, 2005, and is led by the National Association for Music Education (MENC), the world’s largest arts education association and the only one that addresses all facets of music education. Laura Bush serves as Honorary Chairperson of the program.

The organization is calling on its 120,000 members, including music teachers who reach 52 million American students in elementary, middle, high school and college, to turn the spotlight on the importance of music education, as this is where most Americans learn the national anthem and other patriotic songs. In addition, mayors around the country are issuing proclamations to declare September 14 “National Anthem Project Day” in their towns and are actively encouraging their constituents to learn the words to “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

“Our goal is to have millions of patriotic voices rising in unison around the country,” says John J. Mahlmann,
Executive Director, MENC. “We want people to stop whatever they’re doing—whether they’re at the office, at home or at school—and join this effort. We hope this program reminds people of the importance of learning our national anthem, and school music programs where we learn the music of our heritage. Let’s restore America’s voice!”

“The Star-Spangled Banner” was written by Key, a Washington attorney, during the War of 1812. On the night of Sept. 13, 1814, he watched an attack by the British navy at Fort McHenry. When dawn broke, Key was expecting to find Baltimore under British control, but was stunned to see a battered American flag waving in the sunrise. He was so inspired he wrote the poem “In Defense of Fort McHenry,” which later became known as “The Star Spangled Banner” when it was set to an adaptation of the tune, “To Anacreon in Heaven,” attributed to John Stafford Smith. It became America’s national anthem in 1931.

For more information about how to get involved and support the National Anthem Project and school music education, please visit www.thenationalanthemproject.org.