Valley Grange and Penquis to host Smart Starts for Students fund-raising supper Aug. 16

    GUILFORD — Valley Grange and Penquis are again teaming up to raise funds for the Penquis Smart Starts for Students project fund in a way that’s smart for both organizations, according to Sheree Brown, project coordinator.
    “Valley Grange has been a Smart Starts supporter for several years, but last year we found an even smarter way to help our kids by informally partnering to offer folks in the area another way to help,” Brown said. “The resulting Italian buffet was a huge success because people love the Smart Starts program and people love Italian food! So we have to repeat this winning combination!”

    Walter Boomsma, program director for Valley Grange, notes that this is just another example of the collaborative spirit that exists in the Guilford-based Grange. “We’ve had a focus on kids for some time now,” he observed. “We’re probably best known for our Words for Thirds initiative which takes us into three school districts, providing personal dictionaries to third graders throughout the area. So it does make sense for us to work with Penquis on an initiative that provides kids with school supplies.”
    Boomsma explains that, “The best programs we do are the ones that give us contact with the kids.” Volunteer Bookworms from Valley Grange visit Piscataquis Community Elementary School to read with second- and third-graders during the school year.
    Boomsma says he developed a real appreciation of the need for the Smart Starts program a few years ago while in a second-grade classroom. “The kids were working on drafts of a report and I bounced from desk to desk to share ideas, do a little editing and correct spelling. I confess it took a while to stop reaching for my pen as I worked. Second-graders work in pencil for a reason. While finding a pencil wasn’t too difficult, finding one with some eraser left was! I asked no one in particular ‘Where do we find a pencil with an eraser?’ The kids are usually great at helping a guest find his way around the room, but there was a notable lack of response to my question. Eventually one little guy dug into the back of his desk and with a secretive smile presented me with his cherished possession—a pencil with a few millimeters of eraser left on top. Since a lot of our volunteer work with the school is about empowering kids, I found myself considering the idea that a simple pencil with some eraser left could mean a lot in a classroom where a lot of mistakes have been made in the course of learning.”
    Brown agrees, “Kids’ needs are often simple but simple doesn’t mean unimportant.” The Smart Starts project represents a school supply assistance program for the greater Piscataquis area by providing starter backpacks of new school supplies for families in need throughout SAD 4, 41, 46, RSU 68 and Union 60 (the starter packs include erasers!). Last year nearly over 400 kids benefited from the program and early indications are the need will be even bigger this coming school year.
    “This dinner happens to fall on the evening Piscataquis Pomona Grange installs officers at Valley Grange,” Boomsma further noted. “Our hope is that Grangers from around the area will join us for the buffet before the installation ceremony begins at 7 p.m.”
    The buffet will be served on Saturday, Aug. 16 starting at 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. or until the food runs out—whichever comes first. Diners get all they can eat of a variety of traditional Italian dishes. The Valley Grange is located at the corner of Butter Street and Guilford Center Road. Additional information regarding the dinner is available at the Valley Grange website: http://valleygrange.com. Additional information regarding the Smart Starts program is available at the Penquis website: http://www.penquis.org or by calling Brown, 564-7116 ext. 2440 or 1-800-215-4942.