Editor:
On behalf of Harford Friends School, its faculty and trustees, we want to express publicly our great appreciation for, and admiration of, the many individuals who made our recent blueberry festival such a tremendous community celebration and success.
On July 16, hundreds of area residents joined our small school community for the 13th annual festival held at Deer Creek Friends Meeting on Main Street in Darlington. The excellent turnout may be attributed, in part, to the wonderful media coverage the event received, including mention and follow-up photos in The Aegis. We appreciate Harford County Councilman Chad Shrodes' attendance as well as the traffic control service provided by members of Darlington's Volunteer Fire Company, particularly the organizational efforts of Don and Kay Cassett.
The a cappella singing group Rendezvous Quartet featuring HFS science teacher and parent Cheryl Foley and HFS alum and Calvert Hall student John De Mey provided wonderful music. We owe a great debt of thanks to HFS trustee and volunteer auctioneer Aimee O'Neill of O'Neill Enterprises for her outstanding work with the auction.
Paul Babikow, one our school's founding board members and owner of Babikow Greenhouses, once again shared his business' bounty with festival guests by providing beautiful plants for sale. The many vendors who presented their crafts added greatly to the experience this year and we were glad to include them. We are also tremendously grateful for the wonderful relationship we have with Deer Creek Friends Meeting which gave to us their fundraiser seven years ago to use to help support and grow our school. Thank you, Friends!
Our deepest appreciation, however, is reserved for the families of our school community – past, present, and future! Through the combined efforts of our Home and School Association and its officers and event coordinators including Dawn Tridone, Lisa Shue, Alisa Kazmierczak, Melissa Chaney, Laura Russo, Mary Morris, Heather Hege, Lori Dibelka, Cheryl Foley, Sarah Buchanan-Wollaston, and Terry Baker, the school moves forward strengthened by the financial success of the event as well as the joy and fulfillment in the knowledge of a job well done. Thank you.
Lois Kissinger Kelly
Chair, Harford Friends School Board
Jonathan Huxtable
Head of School