All Saints Students See Animals Close Up

Thu., Sept. 23, 1999

Carlos Acevedo Staff Writer

If you can’t bring kids to the petting zoo, then bring the zoo to the kids.

All Saints Elementary School children were treated Friday morning to a presentation courtesy of Northwest Seed and Pet that included birds, bunnies and lizards.

A store representative was on hand to speak briefly about each animal, after which the kids were allowed to pet them.

Every kid’s hand went up in unison when the rep asked for a volunteer to help feed two hungry Piones bronze-winged parrot chicks, who cawed constantly for more food.

The lizards seemed to be a big hit, too, if a little frightening at first.

When the representative, after some struggle, managed to wrestle a muscular boa constrictor out of its container, some of the kindergartners ran away screaming.

They recovered quickly, however, and lined up enthusiastically to pet the large, docile snake.

As one kindergartner said later, “It felt dry, but I thought it would feel like silk.”

Come home to Wilson

Wilson Elementary is hosting an open house next Thursday to show off the summer construction project that neighbors and parents are calling spectacular.

The school will be open from 4 to 7 p.m. with a dedication ceremony at 5:15 p.m. Spokane School District 81 board Chairman Rocco Treppiedi and Superintendent Gary Livingston will be on hand to help commemorate the occasion with Principal Janet Gores.

The $1.3 million project added a new wing that replaced the old annex and also added a new library that doubled the size of the old one.

In particular, the wing was designed to match exactly the delicate terra cotta patterns of the main building.

Wilson Elementary won praise from the Eastern Washington State Historical Society, which commended the school in a letter for the “careful attention to detail.”

Eastern chorus holds auditions

The Eastern Washington University Girls’ Chorus is holding auditions for the 1999-2000 academic year.

The musical group is made up of girls ranging in age from 9 to 15. The girls work with EWU music faculty and students on voice and ear training and sight reading.

Rehearsals are held weekly, beginning Tuesday, and the Girls’ Chorus performs several times during the academic year with Eastern’s choirs, at Eastern convocations, Christmas Tree Elegance and other civic functions.

For more information or an audition appointment, call 359-2330.

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