SCS Students and Staff
The 4th Grade Game
After months of meetings, planning, revising, adjusting, creating, tweaking, and praying the day finally arrived for Saipan Community School's first ever Eco-Karnival. The objectives for this event were to raise funds and awareness for our school. The funds are needed to help replace a roof over the lunch room and office and to purchase a new fire alarm system. The awareness part was to educate our students and the community on the importance of being good stewards of our world. Our theme was the 3R's: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
As with most things of this nature, there were a few bumps along the way. My bumps began early on the morning of the carnival. Bump #1: A miscommunication with a parent left me "abandoned" at my classroom waiting for someone to help me load up the 4th grade game and supplies. Frustration level begins to increase. Fortunately, I was rescued by Rommel who drove back to the school for a final check to make sure all was well. Coincidence? Divine intervention?
Bump #2: After Rommel and I loaded the game and supplies we headed to Kalili Beach Park to set up. Upon arrival there I discovered that someone else had set up the exhibition booth in the tent that was designated for 4th grade. And there were no extra tents available. Frustration level is increasing rabidly at this point. Breathe Terry. I don't handle frustration well. I know this is a weak area of mine. So, right there in the middle of the park while everyone is busy setting up their booths, I paused to pray and ask for a calm spirit.
God came to my rescue this time....and Tracy, the main organizer of this event. She saw how ''uptight" I was getting about not having a tent and she made a few adjustments and within minutes I was on my way to calmness. We found a tent and I began setting up our game. Thirty minutes later we were ready to go. And I'm happy to say there were no more bumps the rest of the day for me. Frustration dissolved and was replaced with peace, joy, and pride.
I have never been so proud of being a part of Saipan Community School as I was for this event. We are a small school that pulled off a big event thanks to parents, students, the staff, and the community. It was well organized, well set up, and well attended. I do not know just yet how much money we raised for this event, but regardless of the amount, we brought the SCS community together and the even those with no connection to our school were able to see that education can be fun and a family friendly affair.
I was so blessed to have a host of parents and students work in the 4th grade booth. This allowed me to take a closer look at other booths and even play some games from the other grades. I was so impressed with the creativity and fun these games were, and all from recycled materials! You could see how much fun the kids were having. But the booths were not the only thing about this carnival. There was entertainment. I didn't get to see every performance on the schedule, but what I was able to see brought joy to my heart. Our own SCS band and ukulele ensemble performed as well as local cultural dancers. I filmed as much as I could. It was during one of these performances when the thought hit me, "This is my last year here." A big lump formed in my throat.
I am so proud that I got to be a small part of something so big. I felt such pride for our school. We did it! It will be a sweet memory for me and others for days to come.
This event as any event we put on was covered in prayer. In spite of the bumps, God showed his favor upon SCS and the Eco-Karnival. We are indeed "A Family of God."
