By Tina Jenkins Bell
BAPA School Liaison
I have the pleasure of living in close proximity to Christ the King and Kellogg Schools. One day as I left my home to travel to BAPA, I saw a long line of preschoolers very dutifully singing nursery rhymes and avoiding the cracks in the sidewalk.
“Don’t step on the cracks,” one bright-eyed youngster shared with me.
“I won’t,” I promised.
I got in my car and drove down Longwood and somewhere around 101st, I saw a group of youngsters in red sweatpants and masks, playing outside responsibly. Nelson Mandela once said, “Children are a greatest treasure. They are our future.” Mandela was absolutely right because though we’ve made different levels of progress, such as eating in at restaurants, business openings, and transitioning back to working in the office, the greatest signs of life are the high pitched lilt of children at play and the sight of filled school parking lots.
Culture
Hats off to St. Barnabas School students for raising approximately $26,000 for St. Baldrick’s, an annual campaign to raise awareness of children’s cancer. Their efforts are a beautiful thing to see. Visit St. Barnabas Facebook page for a video that chronicles their participation.
St. Walter School participated in the Shamrock Our Blocks, sponsored by the South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee in lieu of the parade, which was cancelled due to the pandemic. The front of St. Walter School was decorated with the slogan “Lucky to be part of the 19th Ward!” Each student created a shamrock with their name and traditional Irish symbols, and junior high students made shamrocks with the names of area businesses.
Our Kids
Barnard School is excited. In March, Barnard 8th grader Jhia Smith came in 3rd place in the City-Wide Spelling Bee.
Morgan Park Academy’s Teddy Bernard was selected as Chicago History Museum’s student of the week Mar. 11. Teddy won the museum’s attention with his passion for film making and interest in crime stories, including the role of Beverly/Morgan Park in the Prohibition era.
Morgan Park High School Career Fair
Morgan Park High School will offer its students a virtual career fair, complete with speakers who represent various fields from banking, technology, coaching, public health, business, and judicial system.
Curbing liter and pollution
BAPA has been licensed to use the Litterati app, which encourages participants to pick up and photograph litter. Once the litter is archived, the app analyzes it for the type and locations, and the information can be shared with organizations, like BAPA or neighborhood groups. These groups can use this kind of intel to request more garbage cans in certain areas or alert restaurants that their take–home containers are often becoming street trash. The 5K By May campaign being hosted in April by BAPA, the 19th Ward and the Morgan Park Beverly Hills Business Association, is an excellent opportunity for high school students in need of community service hours. See page 22 for details.
Teachers Appreciation Coming Soon
BAPA has been raising funds to support teacher appreciation at local schools. Proceeds raised by the Love Where You Learn t-shirt store gave us a start, and now we are planning an event to honor the teachers at each of the 13 local schools. Our teachers work beyond the call of duty to ensure our students received quality instruction, be it remote learning, face-to-face, or hybrid. Let’s show them our appreciation in a big way. Stay tuned for ways you can assist. Have ideas? Contact me at tbell@bapa.org.
