Cedar Park students remember soldiers

Marci Milfs’ kindergarten class at Cedar Park Christian School in Everett recently collected Christmas gifts to send to troops in Iraq.

The students also made Christmas cards and decorations for the soldiers.

Students in other classes donated as well, and students at Cedar Park Christian High School organized a bake sale to earn money to send the gifts to Iraq.

The project, called “Christmas Gifts for Heroes,” was designed to teach children of the importance of showing appreciation for the sacrifices soldiers make.

Milfs’ nephew, Marine Lance Cpl. Patrick Martin, is serving in Iraq.

Lincoln Hill students spread holiday cheer

Students enrolled in the independent study program at Lincoln Hill High School in Stanwood recently spent a few hours going door to door at the Stanwood Senior Center to hand out gifts and offer holiday greetings to residents.

This is the second year that students in Penny Buse’s class from the alternative high school have delivered gifts to their neighbors at the Stanwood Senior Center.

The students knocked on each resident door, introduced themselves, and offered their small gift and a “Happy Holidays!” greeting.

@3. Headline Briefs 14 no:State recognizes two schools for gains

Voyager Middle School and Explorer Middle School in the Mukilteo School District have been recognized by Gov. Chris Gregoire and Terry Bergeson, the state’s superintendent of public instruction, for earning honorable mentions for the 2007 state superintendent’s Learning Improvement Award.

The schools were honored because of the gains students had achieved in WASL scores last year.

Snohomish Jr. ROTC fares well at event

The Snohomish High School Marine Corps Jr. ROTC performed well at Marysville-Pilchuck High School during its first competition of the year earlier this month.

Color Guard No. 1: Cadet staff Sgt. Deryk Machado, cadet staff Sgt. Tiffany Carey, cadet 2nd Lt. Oksana Craig, and cadet staff Sgt. Maggie Smelser took first place.

Color Guard No. 2; Cadet Cpl. Siera Countryman, cadet Sgt. Steve Galioto, cadet Sgt. Kelsie Smith and cadet Lance Cpl. Tyler Minkel took second place.

The Unarmed Drill Team placed second. It was commanded by cadet Capt. Elizabeth Macpherson, who also placed second in the Unarmed Drill Team Commander category.

The Armed Drill team placed third. It was commanded by cadet 1st Lt. Sarah Winks, who also placed sixth in the Armed Drill Team Commander category.

In the dual exhibition, cadet Sgt. Andrew Jacobs and cadet 1st Sgt. Andrew Wesley took first place.

In the rifle team competition, cadet Sgt. Taylor Hackel took sixth place and third place in the expert shooting category, and cadet staff Sgt. Caitlin Malrakey took fourth place for the sharpshooter category.

Cadet Cpl. Naomi Wright took fifth place in the unarmed drill down.

Board members help state organization

Three Stanwood-Camano School Board members are taking their leadership to the next level with important roles in the Washington State School Directors Association.

Roger Myers, school board president, has been elected to serve a three-year term as Area One director for the WSSDA Board of Directors.

Julie Dean was elected to serve a two-year term as the WSSDA Area One legislative committee representative.

Darlene Hartley will continue to serve her two-year term as the WSSDA Area One nominating committee representative.

Area One includes all school districts within Northwest Educational Service District 189, which covers Island, Snohomish, Skagit, San Juan and Whatcom counties.

Marysville musician scores well for solo

Chris Wall, a senior trombone player, received the outstanding soloist award from all three judges when the Marysville-Pilchuck High School Jazz Ensemble recently performed at the Northshore Jazz Festival.