The Keystone Elite Club visited first graders at Franklin Avenue on Wednesday.
WESTFIELD – The Keystone Elite Club, a leadership group ages 14-18 at the Greater Westfield Boys & Girls Club visited Franklin Avenue Elementary School on Wednesday, accompanied by Kellie Brown, Boys & Girls Club director of operations and Keystone Club advisor Ashley Orris. They came to see the flexible seating they had purchased for Mrs. Wendy Bard’s first grade classroom, which arrived a few days earlier.
During the sub-zero weather a few weeks ago, a pipe froze in the classroom, flooding the room and leaving water damage. The first grade class was displaced, and they lost materials.
First grader Levi Libanan sits on a wiggle stool.
“We heard about Mrs. Bard’s explosion in her classroom, and we felt really sorry and wanted to help,” said Brown. They decided to use $900 of the money they raised throughout the year from bake sales, a holiday “Build a Bear” project, a Veteran’s breakfast from which they received donations, and raffles to buy flexible seating to furnish the room. They purchased Yoga ball chairs, wiggle stools and Big Joe bean bag chairs for the class, among others, to allow for a more inclusive learning environment for the students.
As the high schoolers entered the class, they saw the students using the new chairs.
First grader Stella Haley on a yoga ball chair.
First grader Levi Libanan was sitting on a wobbly stool. “It’s so wiggly, and it helps me with my work,” Levi said. Franklin School Interim Principal Chris Tolpa and Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski tried out the Big Joe bean bag chairs. “I might need help getting out of them,” Czaporowski said.
After meeting the students working at their tables, Mrs. Bard called them over to their reading corner, where Westfield High School senior Delilah Hubeny, the Keystone Club president and WHS sophomore Chris Renaudette read books which they donated afterwards to the class. The children then sang to the high school students.
WHS senior and Keystone Club president Delilah Hubeney reads to the class.
“Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity,” said Tolpa to the Keystone Club. “Some of you when walking through these hallways of your old school had loving memories. Now you are part of those memories,” she added.
“It’s unbelievable how it ended up,” said Bard at the end of the visit. She said as a class they decided to find some of the good that could come out of the flood.
Franklin Ave Interim Principal Chris Tolpa and Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski on bean bag chairs.
She said they learned that a lot of the kids in school cared about their classmates, as well as people in the community. “It was heartwarming that so many people cared,” she said.
“I feel like this experience has taught the kids to be flexible,” Mrs. Bard said.
