Chapter 10: Sustained Commitment to Enrichment & Cultural Events

September 2007-August 2008

The school year got off to a good start with Micah volunteers again helping on the first day. The climate at Woodville was improved over the previous year, when so many new students were entering from other elementary schools. Mrs. Taylor returned as principal, with Betsy Carr in her role as Outreach Coordinator, and Phyllis Moyer as On-site Coordinator. Buford Scott continued as head of the St. Paul’s Micah Committee.

The Seal Team returned for another week with fourth grade students focusing on physical fitness and team-building.

Betsy Carr was elected to a four-year term on the Richmond School Board.     

November brought tragic news to us all. After a valiant battle with cancer, our On-Site Coordinator, Phyllis Moyer, passed away on November 6. Phyllis’s selfless dedication to the children of Woodville and their families and her warm and effective way with volunteers made her an invaluable leader in all of our Micah efforts. We celebrated her life at a beautiful memorial service on November 11 at Camp Hanover, with many from Micah speaking to Phyllis’s extraordinary impact on every life she touched. Phyllis will always be an essential part of Micah’s heritage and history.

Happily, Carol Sabatino joined us, part-time, as our new On-Site Coordinator on November 5, meeting with the Micah Committee on November 26 for the first time. Carol began immediately to orient herself to Woodville and the Micah program and through her efforts no progress was lost. Carol’s transition was seamless with the committee changing her status to full-time in June, 2008, based on her excellent work.

In the winter, the J2A group of St. Paul’s Youth Group began offering a Saturday morning program, called Saturday Sisters, for Woodville fourth and fifth-grade girls to complement the program for the boys at St. Christopher’s School. Eight girls participated. After the morning session with the youth, the girls went on field trips to St. John’s Church, Valentine History Museum, Black History Museum and James River Park. This became a very successful program and accomplished one of the Micah committee’s goals of bringing on St. Paul’s youth as mentors to the Woodville students.

Responding to a request from Mr. Roselle, Assistant Principal, The Micah Committee matched funds from the P.T.A. to allow four student officers from Woodville to attend the state S.C.A. convention. A St. Paul’s Transformational Grant provided the funding for a performance of Hugs and Kisses, for all students. This play sensitively presents the concepts of “good touch—bad touch.”

In March, Carol Sabatino reported that there were currently 93 total volunteers at Woodville—33 from St. Paul’s.

Scholar Trips for this school year included the following: Full-year Scholars and parents went to Virginia Beach, limited to second through fifth graders for safety due to large numbers.

First through 3rd graders and their parents visited Gardenfest of Lights, the Main Library (3rd), Children’s Museum Birthday Party, and Mad Science at the Science Museum. The 4th and 5th graders visited the Capitol and Executive Mansion, Maggie Walker House or Black History Museum, Pamplin Historical Park (4th), Federal Courthouse and Science Museum (5th), James River Park hands-on. 209 students and 73 parents participated in the trips and 29 volunteers assisted and chaperoned.

Class Enrichment Trips for this school year, selected by the teachers, included:

All grades, except first, either went to a Theatre IV production or saw one at Woodville through a special gift.

Page Luxmoore, a leader in the Micah Ministry, was named one of the YWCA’s Women of the Year in the area of Religion, because of her amazing contributions through Micah summer camps and enrichment activities to the children of Woodville and their families. Many members of the committee attended the luncheon in her honor.

Kindergarten volunteer team Phil Huss and Lew Holley took Ms. McDowell’s class to Brandermill Lake in the spring for a picnic and day of fun.

SUMMER 2008

A free health-clinic was held again this year in April at Woodville Presbyterian to conduct physicals for students attending residential camps and to assist parents in completing necessary paperwork. Micah volunteers and camp representatives made this possible.

The donation of a second van to St. Paul’s made transporting campers easier this summer. Brenda Rogers came on as a part-time driver. Mary Banks returned as our primary driver and Eric Doctor, member of Woodville Presbyterian Church, was our intern. This was our first time to have both a Micah partner and a young, African-American male and role model as an intern. 180 campers enjoyed 327 camp experiences, attending 29 different camps (10 residential, 19 day camps). Sixty-three volunteers made this possible.

 OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:

•  On-going volunteer training continued with The Virginia Mentoring partnership.
• Saturday Academy at St. Christopher’s continued for 4th - 7th graders, providing enrichment activities. Four sessions in the fall, winter and spring were held. Ten to 12 Woodville boys participated.
• The Holiday Dinner was a big success, as always, with Micah volunteers serving and assisting in the evening and Micah funding the food.
• Nan Ellen Ritsch headed the Put Happy on a Face campaign again this year. Over $10,000 was raised to support Micah Summer Camp 2008.
• The Martin Luther King, Jr. service was held at Good Shepherd Baptist Church on January 27. At that time, we remembered Phyllis Moyer, her life and gifts to Woodville. Ananda Lockett, vice-president of the S.C.A. read Harriet Tubman, in tribute to Phyllis. Teacher Ms. LaChaunne Perry, assisted Ananda in preparing the reading.  
• Volunteers participated in Read Across America Day.
• The Bald Head Island trip was repeated with seven boys participating, and the Washington, D.C. trip included 8 students. This year, students visited the Capitol and U.S. Representative Bobby Scott’s office, saw monuments, the Natural History Museum, the National Zoo, rode on a canal boat, and stayed overnight in a hotel.
• Other enrichment activities included three students attending the SPARC weekly classes, with Adrian Luxmoore as their driver. Three students were active in the Greater Richmond Children’s Choir, attending weekly rehearsals and camp for a week in the summer. Volunteer drivers included Virginia Cowles, Elizabeth Smith, Pat and Larry Rock, and others. Families attended performances. In the spring, 6 girls attended a Girls Leadership Program at Orchard House School.
• Carol Sabatino did a wonderful job organizing the annual Volunteer Appreciation event, this year an after school ice-cream social. Volunteers invited the students they worked with to join them.  The Micah Committee funded the food.
• Micah volunteers helped with planning, decorating and serving at the Fifth-Grade Dinner at the end of the school year.
• The annual Outreach Committee spring celebration was held at Betsy’s clubhouse and pool at the Warsaw condo complex.

OTHER CHALLENGES:

• The committee still sought to quantify our work at Woodville, and heard from Tim Davies of VCU’s School of Social Work in October.
• We continued to struggle to attract new volunteers to our program. Volunteer recruitment, maintenance and nurture remained a priority.
• This year, because of Richmond Public Schools (RPS) budgeting constraints, the Micah Committee paid for bus transportation for enrichment/cultural events.
• We were discouraged about students who signed up for camp but then wouldn’t go or who attended day camps irregularly. Plans were made for more stringent requirements and sign-up rules for Summer 2009.