Graduation students get tour of hospital; end of year events set

During this past week, April 28-May 2, middle school students tried out for the middle school football/basketball cheerleading squad and the high school football/competition cheerleading squad. Over the past week, they practiced jumps, cheers, chants, agility, a dance, and tumbling. The 2008 W-WMS cheerleaders are Kelsey Brooke, Chelsea Burse, Sarah Echols, Madison Hall, Ashley Hearst, Debriah Lee, Gerica Sims, Calneisha Smith, Macie Smith, Shaina Spence, Tenise Starks, and Veronica Williams. The high school cheerleading squad will be chosen on Monday, May 5.

From Friday night to Saturday morning, May 2-3, Wilkes County held its annual Relay for Life at the Parks and Recreation Center. Relay for Life is an organization sponsored by the American Cancer Society that raises money for cancer patients and survivors. It also memorializes those who lost their lives fighting against the disease and those who defeated it. A large number of Wilkes County citizens participated in the effort to raise money for cancer relief, and the middle school faculty and student body were well represented.

Many W-WMS teachers and students donated to the cause. Some incentives were offered such as dress-down for teachers who paid $5.00 per day or $50.00 to the end of the school year. Students could wear their shirttails out, hats, sunglasses, and/or slippers for $2.00 per day. The end result totaled over $1500.00, and we are already considering ways to compete with other schools in our system next year in an effort to raise more money for a worthy cause.

Amethst Wynn took a group of graduation coach students Friday, May 2, to Wills Memorial Hospital for an interesting tour to further educate the students and help them make intelligent choices about the various options available to them in the field of medicine. The group of 17 ate lunch in the Thomas C. Nash Memorial Library, listened to speeches about health care, and visited each of the departments, such as the business officeand the specialty clinic. The students also got a peak at the new emergency room equipment and learned to take blood pressures and listen to heartbeats. At the end of the tour, the students were treated to an "ice cream social," along with a raffle,souvenirs, and a photo session. "We extend thanks to our bus driver, Coach Rob Jackson, and Mrs. Boatwright and staff for preparing our boxed lunches," said Wynn and her students. A special thanks was extended to the staff of the hospital for its efforts to make the experience informative and memorable.

Mrs. Kalla will be hosting a computer night at W-WMS on Tuesday, May 13, from 6-7:30 p.m. in room 107. The purpose is to allow students to show parents something they created, demonstrate new skills learned, and to give the students an opportunity to show parents a new trick on the computer. To facilitate the availability of computers, it is requested that sixth grade parents visit from 6-6:30, seventh grade parents visit from 6:30-7 and eighth grade parents visit from 7-7:30 that evening.

Honor's Day for the sixth grade will take place on May 19, seventh grade on May 20, and eighth grade on May 21, with each beginning at 8:30 a.m. The Accelerated Reader field trip will take place on May 22 and the AR cookout will be the final event of the year on May 23.