In the first week of June, nine Woonsocket students, nine chaperones and Superintendent Dr. Rod Weber all traveled to Washington, D.C. and New York City in a trip organized by school staff. While they were in the nation’s capital, the group got to meet the Senate Majority Leader of the United States, South Dakota Senator John Thune. It was quite an experience for the kids because they got to see how the Secret Service had to canvas the area before Senator Thune could even walk out to greet them and then how they continued to do their job to keep the senator safe in addition to getting to meet the senator in person. 

During their trip to both cities, they got to tour and see many famous landmarks and sites that they had only read about, learned about in school or seen on TV or social media prior to the excursion. The trip lasted five days filled with activity from early morning until late evening, and for some, was the chance of a lifetime to experience the “big city life.”

…See a picture in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal!

The last 10 days of the school year were busy with so many activities it would be difficult to list them all, but they kept the kids engaged and focused as best they could with educational and team building projects, along with some physical activity.

To start, Justin Enfield, Pheasants Forever Biologist, and Carter Sargeant, Pollinator Coordinator for Pheasants Forever, visited both schools and conducted indoor-outdoor hands-on activities to teach about the importance of pollinators and their role in our ecosystem, along with other animals and their affect on our environment. The weather was too rainy for the outdoor activities in Woonsocket, but they made the most of it in the new school shop.

Next, the students at Sanborn Central who met their reading goal set for their class this school year earned the privilege of celebrating with the school’s annual Book It party. They participated in many outdoor activities to acknowledge their accomplishment, including beach ball races, frisbee fill races, sponge fill/toss, ball pong, tic-tac-toe with five-gallon buckets and recess balls, a pool toe dive and mosquito tag that uses pool noodles as stingers. They planned this afternoon of outdoor fun perfectly, as it fell on the one day last week with no rain.

Both schools also held field days but had to improvise and have the activities in their respective gyms due to the wet, rainy conditions Sanborn County experienced for much of the past two weeks. 

Finally, the Woonsocket Elementary Parent Club sponsored their annual Walk-A-Thon on the last day of school. The weather was nice enough for the kids to walk around Lake Prior a couple times and get a popsicle treat to finish the school year with some fun. 

…Read more details and see pictures in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal!

In memory of his son, Sutton Senska who was a member of the Woonsocket Class of 2025, Scott Senska surprised the seniors from Woonsocket and Sanborn Central High Schools with a road trip on Monday, May 5, to Dave and Busters in Sioux Falls for food, arcade games and fun. About a month prior to the trip, Senska reached out to the parents of the seniors explaining his plan and to get permission to take the students out of school for the day for what he coined the “It’ll Buff Tour 2025.” Senska even got the schools involved with a bogus assignment to make sure that all the seniors were in class the morning of the trip. For the event, he chartered a bus for transportation to Sioux Falls, had t-shirts designed, provided game tokens and food at Dave and Busters, and coordinated the attendance of chaperones, photographers and a videographer to capture the memories. Senska wanted to give his son’s class a special gift, and he certainly accomplished that as it was an exceptional day of connecting, reminiscing and fun that the Class of 2025 will never forget as they hold their friend and classmate’s memory close. 

…See a picture in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal!