Young author is selected for writer's camp

Seaton Elementary 4th grader Morgan Pierce will get a chance to attend a special summer writing camp in August hosted by author Jonathan Rand, writer of the popular Michigan Chillers mysteries for young readers.

Morgan wrote a 100-word essay to be selected for Rand's Author's Quest Writing Camp. She was accepted and will be attending the camp from August 11-14. She will stay with other writers for three nights and four days and share her writing and learn new techniques to improve her already wonderful stories.

In her essay, she expressed a desire to learn more about similes and metaphors, which will help her improve her word choice.

Morgan says she is extremely excited to be given this opportunity. She is looking forward to meeting the special guest and the attending the workshop.

Photo caption:
Morgan Pierce and her 4th grade teacher Cindy Morris.

Robotics teams duke it out at state competition

From the County Press
Teens from the Lapeer area got to mix it up with the big time last weekend, when the country’s most competitive statewide FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics effort held its competition at Eastern Michigan University.

Lapeer County was well-represented with not one, but two, teams at the state competition. Kids from Lapeer East and West High Schools went as members of the Chimeras team, coached by Tony Diodato. Students from Lapeer County Education and Technology Center formed Galak Tech 3535, coached by Jeff Beatley.

It was the first time for either local team to compete at the state level, and Galak Tech’s rookie year as a team.

The Lapeer area teams held their own in the intense competition.

“Both the Chimeras and Galak Tech battled valiantly in their 12 matches sometimes with and sometimes against the powerhouse teams. The 68 teams are randomly mixed in 3 on 3 matches over the 3 day competition,” said Diodato.

Team Galak Tech picked up 79 points overall, placing 56th, and the Chimeras scored 67, placing 62nd.

“There is no doubt that Michigan is the epicenter of high school and professional robotics in the country,” said Diodato. “In no other concurrent regional event in the country could you score 110 points and still lose the match.” He points out that typical scores outside of Michigan are in the 30s.

“The students were very pleased in that they and the robot had done everything possible to win,” said Diodato of the Chimeras.

Although the hometown teams gave it their all and made an impressive showing, the St. Louis national competition remained out of reach this year. A very supportive Grand Blanc team, the Enginerds, placed 11th in the event, racking up the highest score at the state tournament. They’re among the teams headed to the nationals, as are students from Goodrich High School.


The state competitions mark the end of a frenzied season of non-stop thinking and doing that launched in January for the robotics team members.

“Our season has ended but we are ecstatic about our growth and success this year,” said Diodato. “None of it would be possible without the support of the schools, the community, the parents, local business and our generous sponsors.”

Diodato said there are some off-season events in coming months, and that the teams will be launching their fundraising for the next competition right away “in hopes of having the resources to be one of the power-house teams who make it all the way!”

The state competition finals will be broadcast on television on April 16 at 1 p.m. on ABC.

YFU seeks host families

Youth For Understanding (YFU) is looking for Lapeer host families to host high school exchange students for the 2011-2012 school year.

Host families provide a place to live and three meals a day plus the encouragement, advice and love to help their new family member through a semester or year in a new home.

The students bring their own spending money and health insurance plus the willingness to be a good family member, following family rules and helping out with family responsibilities. YFU local representatives support the students and families to make sure it’s a good experience for all involved. All kinds of families host, with and without children of all ages.

Youth For Understanding is a volunteer-based organization, and they are always looking for volunteers who enjoy working with teens and families to promote intercultural understanding. If you, or someone you know, are interested in being a mentor to an exchange student, they have a place for you!

For more information or to request complete profiles and letters of students, contact Jon McQuinn, YFU Field Director, at (989) 777-4420, or email him at jmcquinn@yfu.org. More information is available on the YFU Web site at www.yfu-usa.org.

'Caught You Reading' launches Book Boosters

Lapeer area families love to read.

Kids and their parents flocked to Zemmer Middle School in Lapeer April 12 for the launch of the Caught You Reading program and Rob’s Books at Lapeer Community Schools. Many of the more than 250 people who attended were actually caught in the act of reading during the event, as they eagerly perused an irresistible array of books made available by event sponsors.

Rob’s Books is the brainchild of Robert and Tami Erickson. It’s a foundation they established to fund books for the schools’ libraries. They are working with area organizations and partnering with Lapeer Community Schools to make it happen.

The foundation is named in memory of Tami’s son, Spc. Rob Hornbeck, who was tragically killed in an accident after returning from Iraq almost five years ago. Rob was a 2001 Lapeer East graduate, and an avid reader. Stepdad Bob Erickson describes Rob, “A really bright kid — just loved to read.”

The Ericksons hope that through Rob’s Books, “fun, new, relevant to the curriculum, fiction books” will be available to kids.

The Caught You Reading event also kicked off an exciting new program at Lapeer Community Schools to help “grow” our stock of classroom and library books.

It’s an innovative online fundraising program called Book Boosters. In partnership with Perma-Bound Books, the District has created a list of titles our libraries need. Many school districts such as ours have been forced to cut back even on essential purchases such as new books. Book Boosters is one way we can fill that gap, helping to improve reading scores and literacy while fostering the joy of reading!

In contrast to other programs, with Book Boosters, 100% of contributions go toward buying books and other materials from Perma-Bound. Many of these books are in Perma-Bound’s patented binding, guaranteed to last over a lifetime of rough use, with an unconditional replacement guarantee.

Giving is easy. Simply log on to http://www.book-boosters.com/caughtyoureading and contribute any amount (of $10 or greater) to the Caught You Reading campaign (in conjunction with Rob’s Books) through Perma-Bound's secure system by Visa® or MasterCard®.

All proceeds will go directly toward the Book Boosters goal. As an added bonus, you can keep track of our fundraising progress in real time using the Book-O-Meter; the stack of books that gets filled in higher and higher as we get closer to our goal—on the web page.

SPECIAL NOTE: MAKE SURE YOUR STUDENT’S NAME AND SCHOOL IS LISTED IN THE COMMENTS/SPECIAL REQUESTS SECTION AS PART OF EACH ELECTRONIC DONATION. THIS WILL MAKE YOUR CHILD ELIGIBLE FOR PRIZES AND SPECIAL RECOGNITION FOR THEIR PROGRAM PARTICIPATION.

There are no phone calls to make, no items to buy, and no forms for you or your child to fill out. And you can rest easy knowing that ALL of your contribution goes toward books and educational material for Lapeer Community Schools. Please join us to make Book Boosters a success!

Photo courtesy The County Press
Photo captions:
Top: Marilee Greene of Perma-Bound was one of the sponsoring hosts at the April 12 Caught You Reading event at Zemmer Middle School. Kids and adults checked out the books and posters, and many took one home with them.

Bottom: Sixth and seventh graders under the direction of theater arts teacher Amber Dillard entertained students and their parents with dramatic storytelling, including such favorites as “The Tortoise and the Hare.”