Dear Visitor,
As you may have heard, The Gifford School suffered the loss of The Fenn Center on December 23, 2009. The building contained our kitchen, gym, nurse's office, computer lab, greenhouse, and several other classrooms.
The great news is no one was hurt!
We are tremendously grateful to the 60 firefighters from ten communities who worked tirelessly to stop the fire from spreading to the other buildings.
We have also received an outpouring of support and offers to help to which I am both comforted by and grateful for. On behalf of The Gifford School, thank you so very much!
To be honest, while we all loved The Fenn Center and feel its loss tremendously, we are looking at ways in which the fire has created an opportunity for us to make some positive changes when we rebuild. In other words, we may have been handed some lemons but we're not just going to make lemonade, we're going to make a lemon chiffon pie! (a quote from Charlie Conroy)
We will be updating our website frequently in order to keep the cogs of communication working smoothly. We have also have created a PayPal account (to the right of this page) if you would like to make a donation.
For more information about what we've been up to and other Post-Fire Updates, please go to the School Life section of our website, by clicking on the button labeled "SCHOOL LIFE" on the above banner.
Again, thank you for your support!
Mike B.
The First Day Back and Kids' Reactions to the Fire
Gifford School students and staff came back to school after the holiday break on January 4th, as planned. Everyone was somewhat shocked to see the space where The Fenn Center had been and the charred remains of the building.
The Lower, Middle, and High Schools began the day with Town Meetings for all to talk, ask questions, and/or just share the loss that everyone was feeling. Many shared their concerns about how it would impact the rest of the school year. "Where will we eat?" "Where will we have assemblies?" "Where will we play basketball?"
Students had many questions as to what had happened and what the School's plans were for temporary classroom spaces. One thing, among many, that is impressive is that students have proven that they are invested in their school community and are dedicated to supporting one another with a very positive first week back.
Students also have communicated their appreciation of the firefighters from the 10 communities who saved the rest of the buildings, and everyone is thankful that no one was injured or harmed.
Wil Fredian, High School Assistant Principal
Some memorable quotes from The Gifford Community:
"They will rebuild the structure, but as they do, they will teach the students how to turn tragedy into triumph." Deb, parent
"Buildings don't make Gifford; people make Gifford!" Dan, staff
"The community is being built back up, little by little." Kevin, student
