Shawn Nowlin shawn.nowlin@ourvalley.org
East and South Salem Elementary students performing a children’s song.
Salem City students and their parents were invited to participate in the Third Annual Community Family Resource Open House Monday evening at the Salem Civic Center. The event, which began at 6 p.m. and lasted for approximately two hours, attracted roughly 250 pupils and their guardians. Representatives from more than 25 businesses and organizations were on hand to answer questions on a variety of topics.
The main objective of the gathering was to provide an opportunity for local families to come to one location and speak with different representatives while learning about the resources the City of Salem has to offer.
As Director of School Based Services with Intercept Health, Hattie Savage is responsible for managing licensed and licensed-eligible clinicians that provide mental health services within school settings to students ranging from pre-K to high school. It was Dr. Randy Jennings, Salem City Schools Executive Special Education Director, who invited Savage to Monday’s Open House.
David Butler, the Youth Adult Services Manager and Technology Instructor at the Salem Public Library, emphasized upcoming programs to many parents that he spoke to. “It was great to see how many community resources the City of Salem and our great school system has to offer our citizens,” he said.
Salem resident Cindy Wingfield has three kids in elementary school. Her favorite part about Monday’s Open House was seeing her children and their classmates perform a few children’s songs. “Because I’m so short, I had to maneuver around people so I could take some pictures,” Wingfield said with a smile before adding, “It’s important that events like this exist because there is a ton of information available.”
The Salem Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. Assistant Director Alex Burke explained to attendees that the museum holds five floors of interactive, family-friendly exhibits.
“We have been in attendance for the past three years to share with families what we offer to the community,” he said. “We provide our visitors with an understanding of centuries of local history. We make history come alive, and are an important resource for students in all grades.”
Dr. Forest Jones adamantly believes that Open Houses are vital to the community. Said Jones, the Salem City Schools Director of Administrative Services, “I’m thankful to the representatives of numerous organizations that took time out of their busy schedules to come out and support our families and give them information about resources that they may not have known about otherwise.”
