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Proud to be Zachary’s only locally owned, managed, and staffed newspaper. Zachary Post • Tuesday, May 28, 2019 • Vol. 15, No. 21 • Published Weekly • Circulation 16,000 • zacharypost.com © 2019
Publisher’s Notebook
A Walk Along Main Street By Daniel Duggan, Publisher
School’s Out - Slow Down and Savor the Summer
Zachary Schools finished another successful year this past week, students are out and summer break is here – to the universal delight of children and somewhat more qualified joy of parents, who tend to have a stronger “Buddy Bench” Donated To The Hug Your People Community Park... An anonyappreciation for the inmous 33-year-old from Zachary, who felt compelled to construct a “Buddy Bench” protrinsic value of learnmoting friendship and anti-bullying, donates bench to the new Hug Your People Coming (not to mention the munity Park. A Buddy Bench is a bench dedicated to helping all children feel included school year’s structure, on playgrounds. The basic principle of the bench is that if you are feeling excluded or routine and “childlonely, you can go sit on the bench and someone will invite you to play with them. The minding” function). buddy bench idea works in conjunction with these two simple rules: If you see a friend After months of earsitting on the bench, invite them to play, walk or talk; and, if you choose to sit on the bench, you must say yes to the first person that invites you to play, walk or talk. ly mornings, homework assignments and classroom lessons, Zachary’s children have the time and space to follow their own interests Daniel rather than a set school curriculum – whether that is through a jam-packed schedule of summer camps and lessons, traveling to visit family and unfamiliar places, local church activities, or simply “hanging out” with friends, exploring one of Zachary’s many neighborhood parks or getting lost in a book. Education, of course, should be every child’s priority. Attending school, absorbing lessons and completing assignments are, effecThe Hemba family looking at the many bricks, which signify donations by members of tively, their “job.” But little minds the Zachary Community to help finance the Hug Your People memorial, with Frances need time to rest and wander, too. Nezianya and his wife. Little bodies need to run and jump and play. Summer’s brief pause (or Hundreds of people filled the died in a January 2018 boating ac- rather, a downshift in gears) in their Zachary Historic District last Satur- cident; and Deputy Fire Chief Chris ongoing education can help expand a child’s sense of self, of community day morning for the unveiling and Lawton. dedication of the new Hug Your Immediately following the park and understanding of the world. It is a special time to sit back, rePeople city park. The city owned dedication, the City hosted the anpark, located on Lee Street behind nual Maypole Celebration. The lax and allow nature’s rhythms to rethe City Hall, is dedicated in honor Maypole Celebration featured enter- assert their authority over clock and of five Zachary residents who died tainment from the local dance com- calendar. Research clearly shows in a matter of months of each. Ve- panies, local bands, and featured that unscheduled time for free play ronica Waldrop died of cancer in the crafts and baked goods by Zachary is critical to a child’s development, contributing to their physical, social, fall of 2017; Darrin Vince, Madeline residents. See MAYPOLE on page 8 emotional and cognitive growth. Hemba and her young son, Joseph,
Park Dedication and Maypole Celebration
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Even non-parents have reason to celebrate the end of the school year – at minimum, because it brings a much-anticipated easing of the much maligned Zachary traffic, which is noticeably lighter than when kids are being ferried to school by car, bus and minivan. As I have opined on a number of occasions, whether you happen to have school-age children or not, every member of society is invested in making sure the next generation receives the best possible education. Zachary’s Duggan schoolchildren are tomorrow’s community and business leaders, elected officials, coworkers and neighbors. In that respect, they hold Zachary’s future in their small hands. Soon enough, the children of the Zachary Community School System will be dusting off their school uniforms again, hefting loaded backpacks, and filing into classrooms. So during this glorious summer (and remember, for a child, every summer is glorious), slow down and savor the days that stretch ahead – and make this Summer break from school a safe and happy one.
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