Published: November 20, 2009 05:15 pm      

Kindness at local schools benefits students and a fine young lady in need

Not many days ago the fine folks at Bluefield College welcomed some 150 juniors from Tazewell High School as part of a group to see a production of Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible,” which we had studied in class as part of the Standards of Learning instruction that Virginia schools have to do. A splendid cast performed well on a first-class stage set.

The show was coordinated by the BC Theatre Department led by Rebecca McCoy-Reese and Charles M. Reece.

We were charged a very modest admission price and had excellent seats in Harman Chapel.

Our THS students behaved so well, were very well dressed and made all the teacher-chaperones proud to have them on the trip representing our school. Their conduct and appearance could not have been better.

Our Tazewell area bus drivers, all five of them, were so professional in their driving to and from the play. Not only that, they went out a few minutes early just so the buses would be warm because it was a raw, windy day when we made the trip.

We were truly pampered by our chauffeurs of the big yellow taxis with Tazewell County Public Schools on the side.

As it turned out, the fun was just beginning once the play ended. We made our way over to Shott Hall and a buffet set up for our group. I had a chance to work with cafeteria manager Jenny Phillips, who along with Donna Irwin, Barbara Harris, Liz Whitt, Chandayle Griffin and Staci Bowlin provided an out-of-this-world lunch for us.

Once again, we were charged a modest price for what tasted like home-cooked food. The kids absolutely loved it and we were made to feel so welcome.

Once the lunch got going, chaperone Jerry Smith and I made our way back to the chapel to get a playbill to make certain we had a momento. Thanks to Lisa Moxley for her help in locating one.

Later, we also had a chance to congratulate Donnie Bales (John Proctor) and Caleigh Keith (Abigail Williams) for their terrific efforts in the two leading roles.

All the dramatists were superbly entertaining and their group is just one more community outreach program that makes BC such a valuable part of the Bluefield area.

It was a wonderful field trip all around and made us once again appreciate the college atmosphere in Tazewell County.

We are blessed to have two outstanding schools, including Southwest Virginia Community College, which we also often work with, and both institutions are outstanding members of our local communities.

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I think this is Teacher Appreciation Week. Certainly, educators like Cindy Young at Tazewell, along with folks including bookkeeper Melissa Coleman, who are working to help conduct a benefit basketball tournament at Tazewell High today for student Kendra Bowman, are to be congratulated.

In addition, the employees of Pocahontas State Correctional Center with guidance from Warden Stanley K. Young and Lt. James Koger, among others, are working wholeheartedly on the project.

PSCC has long had a motto of “Professionals Serving the Community” and a strong belief in promoting education for the inmates of the facility. They take that commitment a step further by helping with various worthy projects including Kendra’s situation. She has been battling Stage IV Hodgkin’s Lymphoma since diagnosis in mid-June, and has received treatment at Niswonger Children’s Hospital (an affiliate of St. Jude’s) in Johnson City, Tenn. The medical and travel expenses are considerable.

Today’s tournament features games beginning at 8 a.m. at the THS gym and admission is only $2 with the proceeds going to help the Bowman family meet some of these financial obligations.

Come on out and enjoy the festivities for a truly worthy cause.

Larry Hypes is a teacher at Tazewell High School and a columnist for the Daily Telegraph.