To the Editor:

I heard from my parents that at the Board of Education meeting, Dr Erardi suggested closing Hawley School. I think differently.  Put yourself in Mary Hawley's shoes. Your mom just died, there were no schools left in town and everybody was fighting.  Then one of her friends from Newtown Savings Bank came and told her that she had a huge fortune and wondered if she could use that fortune to reunite the town, to bring everybody together again.  She helped people heal by building that school and it still stands today and is well maintained.

I was a Hawley student and the building is beautiful.  It has just the right amount of historic and modern pieces in it.  And now Mary Hawley, looking down from Heaven, seeing another conflict, seeing another fight and worried that her gift might soon not be well maintained.  Not that piece of love, not that piece of care, not that piece of beauty.

The school is beautiful. It is one of a kind.  I doubt there's many schools in the world that were donated by an extra special person, to do an extra special thing in a time of extra special need.  It's one thing being in a school, there's a lot of those.  It's another thing being in a gift.  Mary Hawley would like to see more kids go to that gift.

I just graduated from Hawley School and it felt sad to leave.  It wasn't the same as leaving any other school.  Next year I'm going to Reed; it's a nice school.  It's beautiful but it's not the same as being in a place that was made by generosity, working together and kindness.

Hawley School is a piece of the town.  Newtown needs it because it always brings people together, even for little things.  When I was in 2nd grade I went on a walking tour, and I learned from one of the people on our tour that the clock up on top of the school was once the only clock in town and people would rely on that to keep on schedule.  Then electric clocks came out and that clock was no longer the only one but still the best and still standing out even though it was getting older and older.  Even though the school is getting older, people are still maintaining it, just like they did that clock.  Do the same for Hawley School and don’t let it close down. It will be a piece of once beauty, then crumbling bricks.  No one would like that to happen, especially to a gift.

I encourage you to keep Hawley School open, having that love go on and on for years to come.  

Mary Hawley built this school because she loved Newtown.  Now I'm writing this letter because I love Newtown and I don't want to see love and generosity falling to pieces.

Sincerely,

Kevin Brennan

Rising 5th Grader

7 Fallen Leaf Lane, Newtown                      June 22, 2015