On June 15, East Andover Village Preschool (EAVP) celebrated the end of the school year with a program that included song and dance by the children, reading of a story called A Friend Named Mr. Don, and a special recognition of two board members, followed by a picnic for over 100 people. To add to the festive mood, the weather was beautiful. We would like to thank AE/MS for loaning us a sound system for the event.

A plaque and bag were presented to our Advisory Board chair, Jill Jones Grotnes, and Treasurer, EB Perry. Both have served on the Board for many years, beyond even their time as parents of children enrolled at the school. We are profoundly grateful for their service to the school and for their support of our program this year.

The now-dedicated Don Gould Memorial Playground Garden is filled with trees, bushes, vegetables, flowers and much more. The birds and the insects will have the space mostly to themselves until Monday, August 29, when school is back in session for the 2016-2017 school year.

Amy Rheaume, EAVP director, shared these words with those attending the event as an introduction to the children’s portion of the program: “We have chosen three songs to sing to you tonight in celebration of the friendships we have made this year; our playground garden, which has played a large role in our curriculum; and our recent investigation of what it means to be a superhero. We have concluded that each of us has super-powers to be kind and helpful and to make the world a more wonderful place.”

The children learned American Sign Language to the song, What a Wonderful World, as their finale.

The summer break will allow time for EAVP teachers to complete projects around the classroom in preparation for next year’s students.

We look forward to seeing you out and about this summer. Watch for the EAVP float in the Fourth of July parade, and come to the Andover Historical Society’s Old Time Fair on Sunday, August 7, where we will be painting faces. Happy summer!