Top of this Page

Page 2: Divisions

Page 3: Athletics

Page 4: Event News

Attorney Jay Hebert gives Leadership Lecture

The 2009-2010 Upper Division Leadership Lecture Series concluded with remarks by Mr. Jay Hebert, a criminal lawyer and Shorecrest parent. Mr. Hebert spoke about his understanding of "success": be happy, be healthy, and find a job that keeps you looking forward to going to work! He stressed the importance of being passionate about what one does and used a number of Shorecrest students and teachers as examples of people whose passion for what they do has brought them great success.

Headmaster's Message

Book of the Week

This past week I had the pleasure of hearing Stanford University professor Tina Seelig speak on the topic of innovation. Seelig's book, "What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20," was written as a gift to her 20-year-old son. The book details stories of creativity experienced by Dr. Seelig's students in the Engineering Design School at Stanford.

Some of my favorite ideas from the book include common sense concepts about planning for social good before planning financial reward. She is clear that one will follow the other. She reminds us that many of the best ideas ever developed were modifications of ideas that failed. Reminders of the importance of thank you notes, the importance of first impressions and the problem of "burning bridges" in relationships are thoughtful lessons.

The most stimulating elements of the book come from reading about the creative ways the student teams solved problems. Dr. Seelig encourages entrepreneurs to seek problems to solve rather than to avoid them. The biggest gains come from tackling the biggest problems. Her book may be a gift for her 20-year-old son, but I think the lessons are great for all ages.

Cheers!

Three Cheers for...

• First grader Aidan C., who excelled at the Pinewood Derby for Pack 303, which was held February 5 at Shorecrest. Aidan, a Tiger Cub, won first place in his den and then proceeded to win the pack championship.

Alumni Golf & Tennis Tournament

Summer Programs

Registration is open!

Check out the many new programs

• Full/half day Recreation Day Camp for JK-eighth grade
• Lego Robotics
• Reading and Writing Camps
• Counselor in Training — Upper Division
• Parent Camps

Register early and reserve your spot.

Click for detailed information: brochure (PDF) and registration forms (PDF).

Annual Fund

Join our growing list of generous donors!

Please join our generous parents, grandparents, faculty, staff, alumni, alumni parents, trustees, and friends who are making this the best year ever for the Shorecrest Annual Fund.

We thank them for their support. If you have not already made your gift, you may now contribute online.

Thank you for making Shorecrest and your child's education a priority!

Please click here to view the 2009-2010 Annual Fund Donor List

* You may also increase your gift or join the 1923 Society at this time.

For a list of all 2009-2010 Annual Fund donors, click here.

Arts Beat

Instrumental musical excellence

Five Middle Division Concert Band students performed solos at the Florida Bandmasters Association Solo and Ensemble Festival held on Saturday, February 20 at the Pinellas County Center for the Performing Arts. Eighth graders Jade C. and Emily K. both received the highest rating of Superior for their flute solos.

Seventh graders Paul R. and Katherina F. also received Superior ratings for their Alto Saxophone and Bass Clarinet solos. Eighth grader Ricky C. received the second highest rating of Excellent for his trumpet solo performance.

Service Learning

Lieutenant Commander Dr. Shelley Overton and some of the donated boxes for Haiti.

Help For Haiti Update

From the USNS Comfort

This week, we received this update from LCDR Overton as the USNS Comfort prepares to leave Haiti:

"We are getting down to the end of our time here… Yesterday was another mail call, so I received another 82 boxes from Shorecrest… Thank you again for all your wonderful support, and that takes my total boxes of donations to about 330. It's just so amazing when I think about it.

So I had one final wish during my time here and that was to accompany a few boxes to their destination out in town. I mentioned it to a few key people and lo and behold, they sent me off this morning. I flew to a mountain town called Cange, which I hear is a two-hour drive from Port-au-Prince. They have a great hospital up there, which was set up by an American infectious disease doctor. His name is Paul Farmer and he wrote a book about it called 'Mountains Beyond Mountains' which I will have to find when I return. So we took about 20 boxes of goodies from the Shorecrest School and took the 25-minute helicopter ride out there. We landed in a shanty-town area where a little community of people lives. Then we got in a truck and took the boxes to the hospital.

We spent several hours there touring around, and I even saw a patient I had treated on the ship several weeks ago. She had her lower arm amputated and the part remaining was badly injured. She was sent to us to have the rest of the arm removed, but our ortho doctors and plastic surgeons were going to work their magic and try to fix it. Of course I hadn't heard what happened to her, but then I saw her out at the hospital today and she was doing great! Her wounds were all closed up and she was almost ready to go home…

So back to my story… this area of Cange was so unbelievable. It was in the mountains, so the temps weren't as hot as everywhere else, which was nice. There were streams and beautiful buildings everywhere. It was untouched by the earthquake. It just looked like a place of healing! But it was more than a hospital; there were shops and school kids walking around. It looked like a regular day, which was so amazing. The hospital was built as an HIV and tuberculosis center, but when the earthquake hit it was converted into a disaster receiving hospital. The others with me said it is the best facility around, and I can believe it…

Now I'm back to the old humdrum on the ship (and my smile is fading!)… but at least I had a different experience today. I hope this reaches you all well, and I can't wait to be back on land for good very soon! For now, I will have to settle for a little dust on my boots to remind me of the solid ground I was on today."

Thank you to everyone from the Shorecrest community who took part in this effort. Currently, the ship is scheduled to leave Haiti in mid-March. Our student fundraising will continue with Dr. Paul Farmer's organization Partners in Health benefiting from our efforts.