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Blue Springs, MO —
Sam Kenney sat in a chair at the front of Patti Schollmeyer’s kindergarten classroom. The students were listening intently as the St. Mary’s senior read from the pages of “If You Give a Cat a Cupcake.”
“It is really fun to read to the little kids,” said Kenney, a member of the St. Mary’s football team. “They really enjoy it, and so do I.”
St. Mary’s High School has participated in a Reach Out and Read Day for several years. Selected members of the football team visit five Catholic schools throughout the day, reading to kindergarten, first and second graders.
What made this year different was the addition of football players from Archbishop O’Hara High School. In 2015, St. Michael the Archangel High School will open in Lee’s Summit. At that time both St. Mary’s and O’Hara will close, combining the student populations at the new high school.
“With the plans to merge the two high schools, we are looking for ways to begin merging our two communities now,” said John O’Connor, principal of both St. Mary’s and O’Hara. “This seemed like a great opportunity to do that.”
The group of 12 students, six from each high school, visited St. John LaLande in Blue Springs; Nativity of Mary in Independence; Our Lady of Presentation in Lee’s Summit; and Holy Cross and St. Regis in Kansas City. After reading to the classes and answering questions, the high school students passed out T-shirts that said “Reach Out and Read.” Below the words, were the mascots of both high schools.
“I think this is a great program for our students because so many of these younger kids look up to them as role models,” O’Connor said. “For our students, it is a chance to show the younger ones that they can be well rounded in both sports and academics. They show the importance of being involved as a high school student.”
Eero Johnson, a senior at O’Hara, said he enjoyed visiting the different schools during the Reach Out and Read event. He said he felt like it was an important step to do the activity with his counterparts at St. Mary’s.
“I really enjoyed spending the day with these guys. They are awesome,” he said. “They will be joining our schools together in the next few years, so this is a good start to making that transition now. It is also nice to spend time with these little kids. Everyone has a lot of fun.”
Sam Kenney sat in a chair at the front of Patti Schollmeyer’s kindergarten classroom. The students were listening intently as the St. Mary’s senior read from the pages of “If You Give a Cat a Cupcake.”
“It is really fun to read to the little kids,” said Kenney, a member of the St. Mary’s football team. “They really enjoy it, and so do I.”
St. Mary’s High School has participated in a Reach Out and Read Day for several years. Selected members of the football team visit five Catholic schools throughout the day, reading to kindergarten, first and second graders.
What made this year different was the addition of football players from Archbishop O’Hara High School. In 2015, St. Michael the Archangel High School will open in Lee’s Summit. At that time both St. Mary’s and O’Hara will close, combining the student populations at the new high school.
“With the plans to merge the two high schools, we are looking for ways to begin merging our two communities now,” said John O’Connor, principal of both St. Mary’s and O’Hara. “This seemed like a great opportunity to do that.”
The group of 12 students, six from each high school, visited St. John LaLande in Blue Springs; Nativity of Mary in Independence; Our Lady of Presentation in Lee’s Summit; and Holy Cross and St. Regis in Kansas City. After reading to the classes and answering questions, the high school students passed out T-shirts that said “Reach Out and Read.” Below the words, were the mascots of both high schools.
“I think this is a great program for our students because so many of these younger kids look up to them as role models,” O’Connor said. “For our students, it is a chance to show the younger ones that they can be well rounded in both sports and academics. They show the importance of being involved as a high school student.”
Eero Johnson, a senior at O’Hara, said he enjoyed visiting the different schools during the Reach Out and Read event. He said he felt like it was an important step to do the activity with his counterparts at St. Mary’s.
“I really enjoyed spending the day with these guys. They are awesome,” he said. “They will be joining our schools together in the next few years, so this is a good start to making that transition now. It is also nice to spend time with these little kids. Everyone has a lot of fun.”
