Starr elementary’s annual Winter Carnival returns Saturday, Jan. 28, aiming to bring the community together for some fun
The carnival also has the more serious aim of raising money for learning experiences and classroom materials. The carnival will be held at the school, 601 School Drive, in Plainwell from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Open to the public, the Carnival will feature a silent auction with an opportunity to win a wide variety of items donated by local businesses.
A variety of athletes, dancers and musicians will perform, including Plainwell students, as well as community members, and students from USA Tae Kwon Do, the Patti Hern School of Dance and Dance Kraze.
Kids will also have the chance to participate in face painting and a Home Depot workshop, as well as earn prizes at traditional carnival games such as a cakewalk. Concessions such as Biggby Coffee, cotton candy, slushies, pizza, and hot dogs will be available.
With school funding cut significantly in recent years and 50 percent of Starr’s student population on the federal free and reduced lunch program, students have had to miss out on once in a lifetime experiences such as field trips and teachers have had to supplement classroom materials from their own pockets.
The Starr Parents Association aims to raise enough money with the carnival to fund a fifth grade trip to the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit, donations to Starr families in crisis and classroom materials such as free books to each child.
The SPA is a non-profit group whose mission is to enrich the lives of Starr students, educators and the surrounding community by funding supplemental learning experiences and materials.
It also routinely makes donations to local scholarships such as the Plainwell Education Foundation and community service projects, including the Warm Kids Project and the Plainwell Christmas Project.
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