Past and present community members converged for the bittersweet send-off of Creemore’s 96-year-old school building on Caroline Street West last week.
Principal Heather Birchall opened the staff-organized event on June 19 by welcoming everyone to “our humble celebration of the grand old lady.”
Simcoe County District School Board (SCDSB) Chairperson Peter Beacock summed up what many were feeling in the crowd, saying, “It’s happy to celebrate but hard to say goodbye.” He then went on to thank the custodian, Malcolm Morrison, for taking such good care of the school. “It takes more expertise and passion to manage due to elements such as the hardwood floors,” Beacock said.
Area 5 Trustee Caroline Smith addressed both positive and negative elements of the event. “It’s sad that it’s closing, but it’s good that we got money and are adding to the upper site. The decision to consolidate was good for the community.”
Kathryn Wallace, Director of Education, called the building a piece of living history, adding that “history keeps marching on.” Superintendent of Education Jackie Kavanagh agreed: “You walk into this building and you see the history. You think about who has been there.”
The speeches were followed by a Sound of Music serenade from Mrs. Amy Greppmayr and Mrs. Jennifer Floyd’s Grades 1 and 2 classes singing, “So Long, Farwell.”
Birchall then unveiled a painting of the school in winter created by longtime Educational Assistant Bev Stableforth. She also read a poem about the school by Stableforth titled, “A Grand Old Lady.”
At that point, all faces lifted to the bell tower to see the school bell ring. The Annex will close its doors for good when the term ends this week for summer vacation.