COVID-19 upended our routines and forced us to make so many changes and adjustments to stay safe and healthy. We took them all in stride and found ways to stay open and modify the way we teach but not give up on our ideals. Rather than cancel our Strawberry Festival again this year, we decided to Stay Rooted and find a way to keep the tradition. Our incredible coordinators (Katlyn, Liz and Melanie) were able to reimagine the event and Branch Out by using the Leap Kitchen for berry cleaning and moving to the Berglund Center with a drive-through shortcake booth. They critically analyzed, problem-solved, collaborated, innovated, and took a leap of faith that all would work out. When the gates opened on Friday, we found that lots of people in Roanoke wanted a return to normalcy and were so grateful to have us run the festival and offer our delicious strawberry desserts once again. We appreciate all of our parents, students, grandparents, staff, alumni, and friends of the school for their participation. It was their expertise, stamina, generosity and most of all their Community School spirit that made this a fun, well run and very successful event. As middle school student, Max J. astutely observed, “…Roanoke may have a lot of small festivals, but this is truly the heart and soul of Roanoke’s festivals.”
Thanks for helping us reach out to our community and spread the love!
-Linda Roth
