Week of June 22, 2022
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Community bids farewell to Nate Perry Elementary
Amisha Kohli
Students, staff and families both past and present reminisced about Nate Perry Elementary at the school’s June 16 goodbye gathering. The school is closing and has been sold as part of the Liverpool Central School District’s Education 2020 reconfiguration. By Amisha Kohli Contributing Writer In spite of heavy rain, community members of Liverpool gathered June 16 to celebrate the end of an era. After 65 years, Nate Perry Elementary (NPE) is closing its physical doors, but it is clear the school’s spirit and the camaraderie built will prosper within the hearts of Liverpool. Current and former students, staff and their families were welcomed to celebrate
the school’s closing. The Liverpool Central School District has sold NPE as part of its Education 2020 initiative, which involves a reconfiguration of grade levels and buildings. Smiles, laughter and tears filled the hallways as community members reminisced upon the school’s history and reunited with their friends and colleagues. Around the school, memorabilia, pictures and celebratory posters honored the community’s history
NOPL News
‘Read Beyond the Beaten Path’ at NOPL this summer By Alexander Schulz NOPL Communications Intern With the end of the school year comes the beginning of the 2022 Summer Reading Program at the Northern Onondaga Public Libraries (NOPL). This year NOPL’s Summer Reading Program will center around iRead’s theme of “Read Beyond the Beaten Path.” This theme aims to combine camping, adventure, and skill development. By following this theme, kids can relate what they read to other fun summer activities. Some examples of middle grade books that follow “Read Beyond the Beaten Path” include the “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series by Rick Riordan, “Bridge to Terabithia” by Katherine Paterson and “Lumberjanes” by ND Stevenson. For younger audiences, try the “Magic Treehouse” series, “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak or “The Berenstain Bears Go to Camp” by Stan and Jan Berenstain. Persons of any age who read books over the summer and log them in the NOPL Summer Reading Logs will be eligible to win weekly prizes like gift cards each week. The Summer Reading Log can be picked up at a local NOPL branch or downloaded online. NOPL
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since its opening in 1957. “We love you tearchers evry ware!” read one student-made sign posted above the lockers. Chris Frye has been involved with NPE since he was born: his mother, Susan Frye, taught first grade for 32 years. A graduate of the class of 1988, Chris Frye spent years at NPE as a child, prior to being enrolled, and then spent time volunteering at the school until his mother retired 20 years ago.
“One of the nice things about [NPE] is that it was very much a neighborhood school. A lot of creativity was fostered between the art, music and reading areas,” Frye said. “I remember it to be a very friendly place where you could get a lot of guidance in different areas, but socially it was very fun. Everyone seemed to know each other, it was a very friendly school.” That affability permeated the building. Activities included bounce houses,
henna, face painting and Jeff the Magic Man were around for families to enjoy. Food trucks were available for all to enjoy outside the building. In the cafeteria, time capsules from 1984 and 2009 were opened, and special tributes honored former principal Lillie Fields and former student Andrew Sleeth. After serving as an educator in Syracuse for 25
years, Fields became the first Black principal in the Liverpool Central School District in 1989. For eight years, she led Nate Perry Elementary. Though Fields retired in 1997, her presence was sustained by a spirit committee she created. “She wanted children to love coming to school, to love to read, to love to serve, NPE
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Willow Museum battles powderpost beetles By Russ Tarby Contributing Writer
When members of the Historical Association of Greater Liverpool (HAGL) performed their annual spring cleanup of the Liverpool Willow Museum on May 29, they found dime-sized piles of a sandy substance littering the museum floor. Above the powdery piles, various woven willow artifacts were observed to be dotted with small round holes. After consulting with Ray Aldrich, an experienced insect exterminator from All Pest of Syracuse, it was determined that the museum is infested by powderpost beetles. On May 31, Aldrich fumigated the museum which was donated 30 years ago by the Hurst family. The building had functioned as the
Hurst’s willow workshop located behind their Oswego Street home since the 19th century. While developing, powderpost beetle larvae spend months or years inside wood, or willow branches, feeding mainly on the starch content. Their presence is only apparent when they emerge as adults, leaving behind pinhole-sized openings, often called “shot holes.” An adult beetle is about the size of lead on a pencil tip. “It’s hard to believe that something so tiny could be so destructive,” said HAGL Vice President Yvette Hewitt. “When Ray started spraying, the little beasties came running out of their holes. They’re a wee bit larger and darker than cat fleas. They’re in the picture frames, the stool, bench, the blocks of wood holding up the soaking bin.”
YVETTE HEWITT
Powderpost beetles destroyed several exhibits at the Liverpool Willow Museum including a three-legged stool which looked sturdy until it was found to be completely disintegrated from the inside out. HAGL Secretary Joan Cregg first discovered the damage at the cleanup. “The entire willow exhibit is at risk,” she said,
“as are all the other wood products in the building.” Several willow pieces — Beetles
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Volume 130, Number 25 The Star-Review is published weekly by Eagle News. Office of Publication: 2501 James St., Suite 100, Syracuse, NY 13206. Periodical Postage Paid at Syracuse, NY 13220, USPS 316060. POSTMASTER: Send change of address to Star-Review, 2501 James St., Suite 100, Syracuse, NY 13206.
Libraries: Liverpool Public Library celebrates Let’s Read, Liverpool! for a second year.
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History: Do you recognize this building?
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Calendar �������������������� 7 Editorial ��������������������� 6 Obituaries ������������������ 5 Pennysaver ���������������� 8