Sacajawea celebrates near completion of library

The eighth graders at Sacajawea Middle School don’t know what it’s like to have a library at the school.

Early on Sept. 8, 2006, three former students set fire to the library before many of the students even had a chance to use it.

The eighth graders had just begun their middle school years and have made do with donated books, finding them in any room that was available at the time, crossing their fingers that they’d find the book they were looking for.

After more than a year, their new library is almost finished, and the shelves need to be stocked with the boxes and boxes of books that are sitting on the tables waiting to be opened.

To celebrate its completion, school leaders organized a special assembly last Friday to commemorate the first book placed on the shelves of the new, state-of-the-art library.

Nancy Stowell, superintendent of Spokane Public Schools, and Tammy Campbell, the executive director of teaching and learning, also attended.

“I just saw it, and it looks amazing,” said eighth-grader Audrey Connor, who is also the school’s ASB president.

Connor said that she came to see the library the day it burned down, and it looked like a war zone. She said she is excited for the new library to finally open.

“I’m a serial reader,” she said.

Last week’s assembly included a symbolic passing of two books. Each student held the books and passed them along to the student sitting next to them, much like how people pass a book on to friends to read when they find one they like.

When the books passed through all of the students sitting in the gymnasium’s bleachers, the students from the four home base classrooms located next to the library raced them from hand to hand to the library doors. The books were handed to school librarian Dinah Coble, who placed them on the shelves while the students clapped and cheered.

The books, “Stuck in Neutral” and “7 Days at the Hot Corner,” were from local author, Terry Trueman, who spoke at the event.

Trueman said that he was honored to be asked to speak to the students. His son, Jesse, now 25, attended Sacajawea. Father and son had been collecting autographed books over the years, and they decided to donate some to the library in honor of its opening.

Trueman spoke of the importance of libraries and books and what they meant to him growing up.

He told a story about going to the library to study for school but was often distracted by the many magazines, books and newspapers within his reach. He also mentioned the importance books have on his life as an adult.

“Books for a writer are everything,” he told the students.

The writer also took questions from the students, who asked him how long it takes to write a book and where he found the inspiration to write them.

He also excited the crowd – he pointed at different sections of the gym and the students yelled, “Reading rocks!”

The students and staff of the school also got an extra day of Halloween, since many dressed as their favorite characters from literature.

Principal Paula Ronhaar was Cruella deVille, from “101 Dalmatians” fame, and Assistant Principal Robert Reavis was Mark Twain. The two stayed in character when speaking to the students.

Coble was dressed as Sherlock Holmes, and there were many more Cat in the Hats, Things One through Six, and if you looked closely, a Where’s Waldo among the staff.

Students dressed as Ponyboy from “The Outsiders,” Little Red Riding Hood, Junie B. Jones and Pippi Longstocking.

The official open house of the library will be Nov. 28. Until then, Coble will be busy stocking shelves with books and setting up the library, which has ergonomic chairs, a media production room, meeting rooms, lights that turn on automatically when someone walks into the rooms, and more.

The librarian said that she will have lots of help to stock the shelves. There will be six to eight parent volunteers, five student aides and more.

“I am overwhelmed,” Coble said. “It is absolutely beautiful. It’s been a dream.”