St Valentine’s Day Project Kicks Off The 2010 Effort At Reed

By Eliza Hallabeck

A long list of visitors to Reed Intermediate School waited inside the school’s cafetorium on Monday, January 4, as students made their way in for a schoolwide assembly, kicking off this year’s St Valentine’s Day Project.

Project Chair Donna Monteleone Randle said, after the event, the response from the students was incredible.

“They were just so pumped,” said Ms Randle, explaining how students reacted to entering the cafetorium. Ms Randle said some of the sixth grade students now at Reed Intermediate were at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2006, when the project began.

She called the event uplifting and phenomenal. Assistant Principal Anthony Salvatore agreed.

“It was a phenomenal experience, and, as we add more community support and legislators’ support, we are seeing it branch out across the state,” Dr Salvatore said.

The St Valentine’s Day project began as a class assignment in 2006 to a second grade class at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Ms Randle’s son was in the class at the time, and the letter writing project grew to include sending Valentine’s Day letters to troops overseas.

Since 2006, Ms Randle said parent volunteers have helped send out a growing number of letters each year by proofreading, helping gather contributions, and put together care packages for the troops.

This year all of Newtown’s public schools will participate in the project, along with St Rose of Lima Church, Trinity Episcopal Church, New Hope Congregational Church, and multiple scout troops and student-related clubs.

“I think it was fantastic,” said Dr Salvatore, by phone about the schoolwide assembly. “The kids are all still talking about it.”

Ms Randle said donations of DVDs, men’s pajama pants, toothbrushes, and hard candy are being collected at all the schools in the district, the Newtown Municipal Center, and at the Governor’s Horse Guard.

Reed Intermediate School chorus members sang for the event, and Dr Salvatore said Gary Davis, World Wrestling Entertainment vice president of corporate communications and Newtown resident, was there to support the event.

Dr Salvatore said WWE is working to promote the effort of sending letters to troops overseas nationally.

Board of Education member Bill Hart, who was the only school board member present for the event, said it was good to see representatives from around the state there for the kickoff.

“The important thing is, did the kids get anything out of it?” Mr Hart said after the event. “And I think they did.”

When the school board changed its school year calendar to include students attending school on Veterans Day, Mr Hart said part of the reasoning was to increase awareness among students, and, he added, the St Valentine’s Day Project furthers that idea.

Ms Randle’s son, Nick Randle, whose second grade class began the project in 2006, said he has written multiple letters to troop members overseas since the project came together.

Nick said in his first letter in 2006 for what would become the St Valentine’s Day Project, he wrote about the Yankees, because that was a common interest he had with the serviceperson he was writing to.

“Then I started explaining who in my family was in the Army, Navy, and Air Force. My mom was in the Signal Corps, for I don’t know how many years,” said Nick for a video interview with The Bee this week, “ and both my grandfathers served in World War II. And after that I said, I hope you do well and thanks for serving America.”

Other members of Nick’s second grade class also spoke about their experiences with the St Valentine’s Day Project since 2006 for the video. The video is available at NewtownBee.com.

“We are hoping to get other towns set up [with the project] this spring,” said Ms Randle, “and get them started this fall in joining the program.”

Donations to add to the letters, which schools, clubs, and organizations in town have been working on since the kick-off at Reed Intermediate School on January 4, are still being accepted. Parent and resident volunteers are also still being sought, according to Ms Randle.

Ms Randle said students responded positively to a presentation during the kick-off ceremony by Newtown resident Command Sergeant Major Arthur Fredericks, who has been active with the St Valentine’s Day Project since 2007 and was the guest speaker for the event. Other guests at the event included First Sergeant Paul Mazzara, Sergeant Carl Bergquist, Specialist Dylan Borst, Second Company Governor’s Horse Guard Major Gordon Johnson, Newtown’s State Representatives Christopher Lyddy and DebraLee Hovey, Fairfield’s State Representative Kim Fawcett, Beacon Falls, Ansonia, and Seymour’s State Representative Theresa Conroy, Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, and Congressman Chris Murphy’s aide Stephanie Podewell.

Hard candy, beanie babies, men’s pajama pants, and gently used or new DVDs can be donated to the project by students at Sandy Hook School, Reed Intermediate School, Hawley School, or by residents at the Sandy Hook Hair Company, the Newtown Municipal Center, and the Second Company Governor’s Horse Guard through the third week in January. Gently used and new DVDs can also be dropped off at Charter Communication’s site on Commerce Road. Toothbrushes were also donated to the project by local dentists Joshua Baum, Bryson Filbert, and Mark Renzi.

While Charter Communications was present at the assembly to video the event, no date has been scheduled yet for the program to air.

Ms Randle said letters to the troops will be sent to Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Japan, England, and to ships at sea this year.

“This has become a community event,” said Ms Randle.

If parents or residents wish to volunteer with the St Valentine’s Day Project effort, or have questions regarding the project, they can contact Ms Randle at ndrandle@charter.net or valentinesfortroopsnewtown@gmail.com.