It may be cliché, but with the Holiday season upon
us, this truly is the most wonderful time of the year. And by ‘wonderful’ I am
really referring to the many amazing things happening at West Genesee Middle
School that bring us together as a community. I’m also talking about our staff
and students; how they walk through the doors each day with enthusiasm, how
they support and encourage one another, and how they strive to continually
improve. Last but not least I am referring to our parents and the West Genesee community
at-large. The support and involvement that we receive is tremendous and it
truly is something that we are all very thankful for.
Here are a few of my favorite things from the last
two weeks at WGMS:
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| Packing them in at the HS |
Middle School Concerts
All of our different performing groups held Holiday
Concerts over the last two weeks at the high school. Performances were amazing
and all of them were held in front of a packed house. In fact, for one of the
concerts every seat in the auditorium was filled and we had many people
standing and some with obstructed views. That’s a good problem to have when so
many people want to come out for a concert to support our students.
Raising Money for Those in Need
Over the last few weeks our Student Council has been
selling candy canes during lunch to raise money for local families in need. To
date, we have raised enough money to support four of our own West Genesee
families in need to help make their holiday
season a little brighter this year. In
addition, we have made a donation to Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Galisano
Children’s Hospital on behalf of WGMS. Each lunch period erupted with clapping and
cheers when they were told just how much money was raised and the impact that their
contributions would have in the local community. Our students rise to the occasion
when given the chance to help others.
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| Movie Night at WGMS |
Movie Night
Put on a great movie, throw in some warm popcorn on
a cold night and I’m there! So were about 80 of my good friends who turned out
to watch Despicable Me 2 on a Friday night last week. Admission was an
unwrapped toy or clothing item for children in need. We collected just about 100
items to be distributed to local children this holiday season. This is another
example of our students stepping up for others.
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| WGMS Students Have talent |
Dance Performances
We have fun at the middle school! That is a
statement I will never apologize for. Our students and staff work incredibly
hard, but we mix in smiles, laughter and fun as often as possible as well.
During our lunch periods this week some of our students have been performing their
student-created dance routines for their classmates. Amazing stuff from our kids! The
cafeteria has never been so quiet!!
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| WGMS Holiday Concert |
Holiday Concert
Today was the first Holiday Concert during the
school day at WGMS that I have experienced in my 15 years here as a teacher and
administrator. It was awesome! Our 7th grade band, 7th
grade chorus, 7th and 8th grade orchestra, 8th
grade chorus and 8th grade band all performed to a full house of all 695
students and our staff. The gym was rockin’ with some classic holiday tunes as
well as an epic performance of ‘Thriller’ by our 8th grade band that
featured a staff-wide flash mob of dancing and zombie-like behavior; memorable
to say the least!
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| The finale from the chorus risers |
The holidays are all about getting together with friends and
family, and what better way for us to go into our holiday break than having our
entire West Genesee Middle School family come together to celebrate.
Wishing all of you a wonderful holiday season and a
happy & healthy 2014!
Continued Success,
Steve
Dunham
@Sdunhamwgms
sdunham@westgenesee.org
