Briefs: Center School Arbor Day, Spring Fling Event at Shawsheen Tech

Did you plant your white spruce sapling?

The third grade class at the Center school participated in a long standing tradition – meeting with Yvonne Hall, Pam Meroski, Tammy Ministeri, Trisha Keddie and Susan Young of the Tewksbury Garden Club for the annual Arbor Day program on Friday, April 26. Each year, members of the TGC meet with the current third graders for a tree focused session. Before they all get together, the children are given the opportunity to participate in a tree themed poster contest.

Last year the Center School celebrated Tewksbury’s very first Tree City Arbor Day by planting three native trees in their courtyard – an American Redbud tree, a pussy willow and a flowering dogwood. This year, the children were asked to draw a picture of their favorite of the three trees. All student participants received a recognition ribbon. The teachers of each classroom receive a tree related book which is then given to the school library as a donation from the classroom. Finally, all third grade students received a white spruce sapling to plant.

The Arbor Day program is supported in part by a grant from the Tewksbury Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

Spring Fling at Shaw Tech
The Billerica Substance Awareness and Prevention Committee is hosting an event at Shawsheen Valley Technical High School, 100 Cook St., on Saturday, May 11 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to promote awareness and prevention about substance use. Tewksbury residents are invited to attend.

The event is geared toward all ages — there will be face painting, cookie decorating, pictures with Elmo, stories with princesses, a bouncy house, an inflatable obstacle course, music from a DJ, food trucks with lots of delicious options, wellness offerings (massage, Pilates, Reiki, etc.) educational resources (stress management, mental health, and substances, etc.), coloring station, bubble station, snacks, lawn games, contests (limbo, hula hoop, balloon toss), a staged DUI car accident, and more than 50 AWESOME CRAFT FAIR VENDORS!

“Oh, and we’ll also have a raffle table with some wonderful prizes, including over $500.00 in Market Basket gift cards and a variety of gifts,” said organizer Angela Caira. “Perhaps the best part about the event is that admission is FREE because it’s so very important for us to spread the word.”