Practice makes perfect
Virginia State Police co-hosted an interactive traffic safety event for the Rappahannock County High School student body on Monday, just ahead of the annual prom. Accompanied by a state police trooper, students among other events and activities had the opportunity to maneuver a customized state police vehicle through an obstacle course of orange cones, while at the same time being exposed to a variety of distractions. The exercise was designed to demonstrate the dangers of distracted driving.
The public is invited to a performance at Hearthstone School in Sperryville — “After the Storm: Kindness, Creativity and Courage in Puerto Rico and Madison” — to be held Friday, March 29th, at 7 p.m.
Hearthstone's middle school students will use drama, photography and art to share stories of kindness, creativity and courage from their March 6th service trip to Puerto Rico.
Guest artist and former Rappahannock resident Laurie Marshall will come from California to help the students weave their experiences into an informative and imaginative piece. It will be designed to help children and adults be resilient in the face of massive weather events.
On the Puerto Rico trip, Hearthstone middle school students helped renovate an abandoned school which currently houses ten families who lost their homes in the storms. Hearthstone parents and grandparents restored the building’s solar power system. The students learned directly about the impact of severe weather while helping victims with repairs.
Those middle school students who did not go on the trip researched acts of kindness and community spirit related to flooding in Madison County. Both of these field trips are part of Hearthstone’s Main Lesson Block on Maps, Tides and Weather.
The research of both groups of students will be shared with the public at the March 29th presentation. Making a performance about a community hit by big weather events builds on Hearthstone’s play last year — “The Flood of KindnessInspired by Hurricane Katrina.” The play was based on the book of the same title by child author De’Ante Webster of Indianapolis, which was produced and illustrated by Laurie Marshall.
“After the Storm” will be videotaped and sent to the Department of Education in Puerto Rico, and will also be available for schools in the United States and Puerto Rico.
PROM SAFETY
With prom being held at the end of the week, Rappahannock County High School, in collaboration with the Youth of the Virginia Speak Out About Traffic Safety (YOVASO), Rappahannock County Sheriff’s Office, and the Virginia State Police, hosted an interactive traffic safety event for the student body on Monday, March 18th.
While accompanied by a Virginia State Police trooper, students had the opportunity to drive a State Police golf-cart simulator through an obstacle course of cones. Students had to safely maneuver through the course while being exposed to a variety of distractions. The exercise was designed to show the dangers of distracted driving. In addition, the use of “DUI goggles” allowed the students to safely experience the dangers of driving while impaired.
In a recent press release, Mary King, Program Manager for YOVASO, explained the benefits of the simulator exercise. “The simulator shows teens the consequences of risky driving behaviors. It creates a unique opportunity for students to talk with each other and law enforcement about driver and passenger safety.” The YOVASO program is funded by a grant provided by State Farm.
According to RCHS Senior, MacKensie Clark, “It (the simulator) was really helpful because it shows you how easily you can get distracted and hit something or someone.”
Fellow senior, Serenity Cortez added, “It was a great experience. It reminded me that driving is a privilege and you have to stay safe on the road.”
Later in the afternoon, the RCHS student body heard from Colonel Gary T. Settle, Virginia State Police Superintendent. Colonel Settle, an RCHS alumni and Rappahannock native, spoke to the students about the importance of traffic safety. During the moving presentation, he shared a handful of tragic stories of young lives lost due to distracted driving or driving under the influence. At the conclusion, Colonel Settle stressed to the students the simple motto “Be smart-Be safe-Be sober.”