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December 26, 2020By Tanya Connor | The Catholic Free Press
All Saints Academy students have been rubbing elbows in high places.
On Nov. 30 three youngsters from this Webster school exchanged elbow bumps with First Lady Melania Trump when visiting the White House to see replicas of Christmas ornaments they designed.
That’s right. The president’s home was decorated for the holiday in part thanks to the creativity of Catholic school students from Massachusetts.
All Saints was one of 56 schools whose students designed ornaments for the National Christmas Tree display on the Ellipse in President’s Park. Their ornaments grace one of the 56 trees representing each state, territory and the District of Columbia in the America Celebrates display, a collaboration of the U.S. Department of Education, the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation. This year, students’ ornaments are also displayed inside the White House.
The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education chose All Saints Academy for this honor, said Ellen Tagg, the school’s business and marketing director.
David Perda, superintendent, said DESE contacted him and he recommended All Saints, thinking of their art and art teacher.
“I was so impressed with the amount of research the students did and the unique designs they came up with,” said Beth Crowley, the art teacher. The students, about 100 in all, had a week to create representations of Massachusetts, and they worked through lunches and recess.
“It was heart-warming to see these students take such pride in their work,” said Joan Matys, head of school. “They represented not only All Saints Academy very well, but I believe our entire state too.”
She said teachers and art lovers chose 12 of the ornament designs, which were sent electronically to the U.S. Department of Education.
The 12 student-creators could apply to walk through President’s Park with the First Lady, Mrs. Tagg said. In the end, given COVID-19 restrictions and inclement weather, three All Saints students went to Washington on Nov. 30, and met Mrs. Trump inside the White House, which they also toured.
“When we went to the White House, we all (about 30 students total from around the country) lined up … and then the First Lady came and I got to elbow bump her,” said fourth-grader Malcolm Parmentier. His ornament depicted a rocket representing Robert Goddard, father of modern rocket propulsion, who, in 1926, successfully tested the first rocket using liquid fuel – in Auburn.
What was it like meeting the First Lady?
“Very cool” because Mrs. Trump is the president’s wife “and the president’s a pretty big thing.”
“The best part of the trip was being invited into the White House,” Lyla Meehan, a third-grader, told The Catholic Free Press in an email. “We saw all of the Christmas decorations and they were so pretty. I was also able to meet the First Lady. Mrs. Trump greeted us with an elbow bump and was so nice. I showed her my ornament on the tree and she said she really liked it. She asked me to tell her our state motto, and I did.”
Lyla’s ornament represented frontline workers and heroes, with the state’s motto, “By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty.”
Kendyl Fales, grade 5, said she found her ornament on the inside and outside trees.
“I did the ornament because the Mayflower is our state flower, and I thought it would be cool to add the Mayflower ship,” she said, explaining her design.
“We walked up to the White House and there was a band playing,” said her mother, Kristyn Fales. She said the students looked back at their parents as if asking, “Is this for us?”
“The First Lady came walking out to meet them,” she said. “She was stunning. She gave everybody elbow bumps and they got their picture taken with her.”
That wasn’t all. The 12 students whose ornaments were displayed in Washington met via Zoom with Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito on Dec. 15.
Kendyl said she told the lieutenant governor about her ornament and her favorite part of the trip: “meeting the First Lady.”
The young travelers were also impressed with a gingerbread rendition of the White House. Lyla wrote in her email about other parts of the trip too.
“We got to climb the Washington Monument, it was so high up,” she wrote.
“We also went to Arlington Cemetery and saw the JFK memorial and the tomb of the unknown soldier. I learned that there is always someone guarding that tomb. They told us on September 11th, the guards were told to evacuate and they refused to go.”
“It was really a once-in-a-lifetime experience for them,” Mrs. Fales said. “We appreciate the school … for helping us to be a part of it. They really made it special.”“When they got back to the school … they were able to celebrate virtually with their friends,” since they were quarantining because of traveling out of state.
The school made copies of the 12 ornaments “for us to hang on our own tree and to give to our families,” she said.
Mrs. Tagg said they are sending a set of the ornaments to Lt. Gov. Polito, who said they would hang on the Christmas tree in Gov. Charlie Baker’s office.
The other students whose ornaments adorn the Massachusetts tree in Washington, D.C. are: Logan Mueller, grade 8, The State House; Joey Santora, grade 8, The Old North Church; Shayley Szela, grade 6, Webster Lake; George Anne Gajewski, grade 5, Four Seasons of the American Elm Tree; Hayley Giroux, grade 4, The Wayside Grist Mill; Kaylie Bageris, Grade 4, Smile Day and the 7 Hills of Worcester; Fordyce Ruggles, grade 3, Ladybug (state insect) on the Elm; Connor Shelburne, grade 3, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame; Siena Vitale, Grade 3, Massachusetts (the 6th state) - Plymouth Rock 1620 (400th Anniversary).
– Those interested in purchasing replicas of the ornaments to help support All Saints Academy can contact Ellen Tagg at etagg@allsaintswebster.org.
