Memorial donation brings bike helmets to Monticello students

By Karen Donato
Special to the Pioneer Times
    Planning is a common task for educators, so as Wellington School Principal Cindy Peterson was setting up her spring agenda for students at her school she included a Books 4 Bikes program. The more books a student read and reported on, the more chances each had to win a new bike. This program, while incorporating reading goals would also emphasize bike safety.
    As the topic of bike safety was being developed, Peterson realized the need for helmets for the Wellington students. Now was the challenge of how to come up with the resources to fund the project.
Photo by Karen Donato
WINNERS — These four students from Wellington School in Monticello were the winners of new bicycles. From left are, Debbie Nichols, Gage Folsom, Summer Violette and Damien Sullivan. All Wellington students also received new helmets from Chuck and Stephanie Daly of Houlton.
    First she made calls to local organizations that were known to support bike safety, but for a variety of reasons found that there weren’t any that could support the project this year. Her next avenue was to research grants, but the grant cycles she looked into were already closed.
    Peterson’s next idea led her to post her request on Facebook. She wasn’t looking for money, just a source to find organizations that may support her quest for helmets. Through networking she not only received information, she received a response from a former classmate, Chuck Daly. He and Peterson had attended Hodgdon schools as children and now he is employed by a local non-profit organization.
    Daly informed her that he and his wife, Stephanie wanted to donate money to purchase enough helmets for all the Wellington students. This donation was a gift given in memory of Stephanie’s uncle, Steven White of Smyrna Mills. White died unexpectedly March 27 of this year at the age of 59. He was the captain of the Smyrna Mills Fire Department and known to lend a hand to anyone who asked. He would fix things the “White” way and he took great pride in his work with the Gerald Pelletier Logging Company of the Millinocket area.
    To carry on the “White tradition” of giving, Daly and his wife generously gave a special gift to 62 youngsters.
    Debbie Nichols, Gage Folsom, Summer Violette and Damien Sullivan’s names were drawn to receive new bikes from the Wellington P.T.C. and the Wellington School staff for participating in the reading challenge.