Lapeer West shuts out Bay City Western to advance to second round of football playoffs

The Lapeer West Panthers shut out the Bay City Western Warriors to advance to the second round of the football playoffs. The final score was 14-0. All the scoring came in the first half on a sloppy field.

Box score.

Some photos.

Geo thermal heating and cooling saves money at new buildings at LCS

Green technology has reduced energy costs at one LCS building by an estimated 62 percent and combined future energy savings at two new middle schools are expected to save the equivalent of a teacher’s salary each year.

Geo thermal technology was installed into the Administration & Services Center when it was remodeled from an elementary school into the administration office in 2007.

A 12-month study showed that the cost of heating the new building was $16,000 or $0.62 per square foot. When it was an elementary school the annual cost was $41,800 or $1.61 per square foot.

The cost savings are more remarkable when you consider that the elementary school did not have air conditioning as the remodeled building has.

“We are projecting that the District will save approximately $40,000 each at Rolland-Warner and Zemmer Middle Schools each year compared to a conventional heating and cooling system,” said Dan Jerome, senior associate at French Associates, Inc., the District’s architect.

The system works by circulating a mixture of water and environmentally safe anti-freeze through pipes buried underground near each of the buildings. With a constant below ground temperature of 51 degrees the pipes and liquid serve as an effective climate exchanger for the buildings.

Maintenance is also simpler with no combustion flames, boilers or outdoor fans or compressors.

“In these tough economic times, it is critical that we save every dollar we can from areas that don’t directly impact on student education,” said Superintendent Debbie Thompson. “We continue to seek ways to trim our budget without affecting the classroom.”

Murphy Elementary participates in "Coats for Kids"

An effort to collect new, or ‘gently’ used, winter coats, snow pants, hats, gloves, mittens and boots will be held at Murphy Elementary School, 1100 Pratt Road and at Rolland-Warner Middle School, 333 DeMille Boulevard, where fifth and sixth grade Murphy students are attending this year.

The collection, part of the “Coats for Kids” program will begin on Monday, November 9th and end Friday, November 13th. All sizes of clothing are needed.

A collection box will be located near the offices at Murphy Elementary School or Rolland-Warner Middle School.

The winter clothing will be redistributed through the Coat-Give-A-Way program at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 90 Millville Road in Lapeer. Clothing will be given out on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon, now through December 19th, except for Saturday, November 28th. Appointments to receive clothing are also available by calling the church at (810) 664-6653.

Anyone with questions about the program can contact Lisa Schultz at (810) 797-5537.

Lynch Elementary thanks businesses for help with Walk-A-Thon fund raiser

Building the Future, One Step at a Time…

That was the theme for our 3rd annual Walk‐a‐thon and that’s certainly what the Lynch students did. The entire school had a wonderful time and walked 2‐4 miles in a 45 minute time frame.

Thank you to all of the families who were able to donate to the school, during these hard economic times. We would also like to thank all of our local businesses for their generous donations and/or pledges. Please support these local businesses, as they have supported our school and community!

GOLD donors: Kohl’s; Elite Feet; Ulmanis Veterinary Clinic P.C; Kohl, Harris, Nolan, McCarthy, Turkelson & Ogden Attorneys at Law and MFT Sports.

SILVER donors: The Farmhouse Family Restaurant; Delynn’s Designs; Castaways; Dance Street Studio; K’s Auto & Truck Service; M3 Graphix; Hofman’s Shoes; Marz Food Service; Burke’s Flowers and McDonald’s (M‐21).

BRONZE donors: Diversified Telecom Solutions; Louie’s Sports Tavern; Starbucks; Springer’s Pizza; Michael Murphy D.D.S.; Wendy’s; Use It Again Tools; Lapeer County Bank & Trust; Tattoos at the Red Room; Smith Refrigeration Inc.; Lapeer Family Dental; Masters of Masonry; Whispering Pines Adult Foster Care Home; The Alley Hair Design; Beckwiths Body Shop; Walmart; Keith Byrd‐State Farm; The Dawg Haus and Thorpe Animal Hospital.

OTHER donors: Boomerang’s Splash‐n‐Bath and Apple Tree Family Dining.

More photos of the event at the District photo gallery.

Mayfield Elementary School kindergartners, Early 5's visit Past Tense Cider Mill

Students in Mrs. Caitlyn Pascoe and Ms. Sarah Haglund’s kindergarten and Early 5’s class at Mayfield Elementary School had a fall field trip to the Past Tense Cider Mill on Thursday, October 29th.

A visit to the apple orchard and cider press was well received by the students.
To see more photos of the trip go to the District photo gallery.

Lapeer West Chemistry students celebrate "Mole Day" with handcrafted creations

Lapeer West students celebrate “Mole Day” with creations.

National Mole Day, which is held each October 23rd from 6:02 a.m. to 6:02 p.m. commemorates Amadeo Avogadro’s Number (6.02 x 10^23) which is a basic measuring unit in chemistry.

Mole Day was created to spark an interest in chemistry. Schools around the country celebrate in their own way, but at Lapeer West, Mrs. Kim Kent asks her students to create a mole creation as extra credit.

Students create the moles and a few had pretty interesting names, “Angelina Molie and Guacamolie.”

If you want the specifics:

“For a given molecule, one mole is a mass (in grams) whose number is equal to the atomic mass of the molecule. For example, the water molecule has an atomic mass of 18, therefore one mole of water weighs 18 grams. An atom of neon has an atomic mass of 20, therefore one mole of neon weighs 20 grams. In general, one mole of any substance contains Avogadro’s Number of molecules or atoms of that substance. Avogardro (1776-1858) discovered this relationship and received credit for this after he died.

For more information on “Mole Day” go to: Mole Day.

Pictured here is "Guacamolie." See more of the student work at the District photo gallery.

Book Fair season underway at District schools

The popular annual "Book Fair" season has begun at Lapeer Community Schools.

Displays are set up this week at Schickler, Murphy and Elba-Seaton Elementary Schools and students are compiling their "wish lists" for the holidays.


Students choose from the newest books and educational offerings and a portion of the receipts go directly back to the school.

Photos from Schickler on Monday are on the photo gallery.

Photos from Murphy.

Photos from Elba-Seaton.

Lapeer High School Drama Club brings 'Dracula' to life on Lapeer East stage

Bram Stoker’s classic book, “Dracula,” will come to life again on the Lapeer East High School Auditorium stage on October 29th, 30th and 31st.

Students from Lapeer East and Lapeer West will treat audiences to a thrilling adventure that’s filled to the brim with romance, bloodlust, and blind terror throughout Dracula’s Castle. The entrancing tale will have the audience clinging to the edges of their seats by the sheer genius of the actors and the surreal storyline.

Ticket prices are $7 for adults. Senior citizens, students and children are $5. Performances on Thursday and Friday, October 29th and 30th will be at 7 p.m. and the Saturday matinee, October 31st, will be at 1 p.m. Tickets are available at the door and will be sold starting an hour before each performance.

Lapeer High School Drama Club cast members include: Lucas Cosens, Matt Schneider, Zachary Fick, Alex Giddings, Katy Peacock, Caitlin York, Haley Ward, Nick Lucchesi, Dylan Dahring, Jesse McKelvie, Bridget Stemm, Miranda Sanborn, Monique Morris, Brittney Walker, and Brennah Donahue.

“Dracula” is co-directed by Jennifer DeWitt and William Spruytte with the help of student assistant director Steven Hoffa, and is generously supported by the parents and staff of Lapeer East and West High Schools as well as the Lapeer community at large.

To see some cast photos from dress rehearsal visit the District photo gallery.

Lapeer West to host Bay City Western in Region 2 Pre-District football playoff game

Lapeer West High School's 8-1 varsity football team will host Bay City Western's 6-3 football squad in a Pre-District football playoff game 7 p.m. Friday, October 30th. (This is a corrected date and time from an earlier posting).