Dear Harbor Families,

As you head into the long weekend capped by a day of recognition for the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., consider making Monday “a day on” not “a day off” for your family. 

MLK Day is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service. In 1994, Congress designated the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday as a national day of service in 1994 and charged the Corporation for National and Community Service with leading this effort. During the last quarter-century, the MLK Day of Service has grown in size and impact as more Americans embraced the idea that citizenship involves taking an active role to make our communities better. Serving on MLK Day can establish a habit of volunteering and build connections that can last a lifetime.

In this spirit, on Tuesday afternoon of this week, our first and second graders took a trip down the road to visit our friends at the Brookdale Senior Center. Organized by music teacher Yuki Wilson, the students performed for the residents in their community room, and then enjoyed time working in small groups with them to create a winter craft together. That afternoon, as I watched one interaction between a first grader and one of the residents as they negotiated colors and shared crayons to create a colorful design on their shared snowflake, I couldn’t help but smile. It was heartwarming to see the two generations interacting naturally, and impossible not to recognize that both the children and the Brookdale residents gained insight and took pleasure in spending time together. 

This Monday at 3 PM, Harbor is working with A Wider Circle, an organization whose mission is to support people to rise up out of poverty and, according to their website, “to bring dignity, stability, and hope to people who have lived far too long in the appalling conditions that poverty brings”, Harbor families will come together in the gym to organize and put together “market bags” of personal and household products for those in need. Just like the students’ visit at Brookdale Senior Center, our focus that afternoon will be one of compassion and understanding. 

If you haven’t yet, you still have time to bring in full-sized products for our market bags (the list is below). Feel free to drop them off at the front desk tomorrow or bring them with you on Monday at 3:00! And remember, whether or not you are able to join us for the afternoon of service, all are welcome at Matchbox Pizza in Rockville for a Harbor Community Night on Monday.

Thank you to Dana Wancjer, Regina Tranquillo, and our wonderful Parents Association for organizing a new and important tradition for Harbor. We hope to see you on Monday at 3:00!

Warm regards,

Leah Musico

Head of School

The Harbor School