Belmar Elementary gets ready to celebrate centennial anniversary

By Zach Levine

Perhaps one of the most well known landmarks located in the Borough of Belmar is the elementary school, which was built in 1910 and next year will be the 100th anniversary for the school.

To commemorate this milestone, a series of events celebrating the centennial will be held throughout 2010.

The school, located on Main Street between 11th and 12th Avenues, was originally built as a high school, but now serves as a Pre-K through eighth grade facility.

Jeff Brown, a music teacher at Belmar Elementary, as well as the co-chair of the centennial committee, said everyone at the school is quite excited about the upcoming centennial celebration.

“We are very excited about this centennial and the opportunity it gives us to highlight the community what a gem of a school we have,” Mr. Brown said.

He continued to say he was hopeful numerous alumni of the school will come back and take part in the festivities, as well.

“We are hoping to get people who have a relationship with the school and its history to come back, share their memories, and see where the school has gone since their time here,” Mr. Brown added. “If anyone is interested in speaking at the school about their experiences here, or has any artifacts that they would like to loan us for the centennial display in the front lobby, please call the school’s front office and leave a message for me.”

Mr. Brown said one of the first things the centennial committee did earlier this school year was hold a competition among eighth grade students to design a logo for the celebration.

The winning design by Siani Henriques, which featured the school’s mascot, an eagle, will be used on the students’ diplomas, in banners promoting the centennial and in other centennial publications.

The school’s art students also hope to decorate store windows along Main Street with the logo, as well as other scenes relating to the elementary school.

Specific events have also been planned for the upcoming year as well. So far, this list includes a pep rally in January for the students, as well as a “100 Penny Challenge,” where each student will be asked to bring in 100 pennies.

The money raised will be used to buy something special for the school as a gift from the “centennial students” to future classes.

During the month of February, the featured centennial event will be the celebration of the 100th day of school in the 100th year. A dance for the younger students is planned, the PTO will be handing out commemorative pencils to the students and there will be an assembly focusing on the history of the school.

Mr. Brown said at that assembly, he hoped to do something special which the children in attendance would remember for a long time to come.

“We would love to have a speaker for each decade of the school,” he said. “I am hoping that we can find someone whose parents went here and who can relay some memory of the school’s early history.”

On March 19, graduates, former employees, and residents of Belmar are invited to an open house where they will be able to tour the school.

Later in the spring, the school hopes to hold a “Hands Around the School,” where residents, students and employees will form a circle around the school. The school is also in the midst of a “100 Books for 100 Years” book donation drive, as well.

Mr. Brown said the book donation could be used as a way to honor special faculty members who students have interacted with at the school.

“We have heard so many stories about people who had a favorite teacher here, and this would be a great way to honor him or her,” Mr. Brown said.

To make a donation to the effort, visit the school’s website, http://www.belmar.k12.nj.us/index.asp. To locate the form, from the home page, click on “School Services,” “Our Library,” and then “Build Our Library One Book at a Time.”

Anyone who would like to take part in the centennial celebration can contact Mr. Brown at 732-681-2388.

More Belmar news, plus full coverage of southern Monmouth and northern Ocean counties, can be found at starnewsgroup.com.

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