NEW SHARON – Her face was scrunched in frustration and she was having trouble walking after the new snowshoes were first strapped to her feet.
But after a few seconds in the snow, Cape Cod Hill School kindergartner Rebecca Bradley’s face broke into a grin, as she began moving fast atop the snow.
Bradley, along with four other students, was among the first to use some of SAD 9’s 131 pairs of snowshoes Wednesday.
“They arrived just in time for the snow, which is starting up again,” said Mike Jones, of Aardvark Outfitters in Farmington.
The almost $19,000 in snowshoes were purchased for SAD 9 students with the help of MBNA Excellence in Education grant money, donations from Keyes Insurance of Farmington and Melissa Yeaton, the district’s school health coordinator, plus a big Aardvark Outfitters discount.
SAD 9’s new snowshoe program is the brainchild of physical education teacher Jacob Gerrie, who was looking for ways to keep area students active in winter.
“As we know in Maine, we have a lot of snow during our winter months,” he wrote in his grant application. “When the snow gets deep, our outside activity area becomes smaller. We feel that if we have snowshoes, our students will be able to run, play and have a greater level of activity during this time.”
As he wrote, “In our profession, we are teaching students to become lifelong learners and follow and active lifestyle.”
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