Health & Fitness
Lemon Ave Elementary Student Olympics Shows International Sports Spirit
Lemon Ave Elementary hosted its 17th annual student Olympics with an international opening ceremony and fun sports competitions for the children.
International culture and the spirit of friendly sports competition was in the air during the recent student Olympics held at Lemon Avenue Elementary. The event, currently organized by parent volunteers Susan Brown and Tom Macsaveny, has been a Lemon Avenue tradition for the past 17 years.
The opening ceremonies were led by bagpipers and drummers from Helix High School. This was followed by a parade of all students with each class or grade representing a different nation complete with flags and other decorations. The ceremonies included a choir singing the Star Spangled Banner, an Olympic torch run, inspirational speeches from Paralympics athletes, student performances, and a white dove release and flyover.
When the opening ceremonies had concluded, students divided by grade level and entered a rotation of athletic competitions. These ranged from the traditional relay races, to basketball shooting, tug of war, jump rope, and even hula hoops, among many others. Smiles and laughter were easy to find as the children enjoyed the different Olympic stations.
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Principal Jennifer Luibel noted that when she joined the school several years ago, she first visited on the Olympic day and knew immediately what a cherished and important event this was for the school. She also mentioned that the parent volunteers and enthusiastic staff support are what makes the student Olympics possible year after year.
