The Prison Mirror

SCF sponsorship report-

Conway School activities now include producing 6-page, monthly magazine

A monthly magazine, written and edited by and for Conway students?

"Impossible!"-some might have imagined.

And, yet, that seemingly airy dream has been transformed into a happy reality for Conway tykes today.

December, 1955, marked the beginning of this new and interesting experience shared by the enterprising youngsters and teachers in the two-room schoolhouse at Conway, Kentucky. That's when the first pages of their magazine began to whirl off the cylinder of a borrowed mimeograph machine.

And it's also the time many pupils there were buzzing to one another, "Gee, just think of that--a real magazine, all our very own!"

There was ample cause behind their beaming pride and amazement, too; for the small frame schoolhouse has never held many up-to-date educational facilities-not even a drinking fountain for the kids, to say nothing of modern indoor lavatories, playground apparatus or more-advanced classroom aids so often taken for granted by city-bred contemporaries.

Simply named School News, the new magazine offers six typewritten pages crammed with accounts of student activities and news reports liberally illustrated by pertinent, free-hand sketches reproduced by mimeo process.

Brightening the top of Page One, a border of hand-colored holly leaves and berries partially surrounds the title of the rural school's publication.

The magazine's Editorial Staff is made up of Sixth Graders and finds Anna Brock as Editor; Donny Kidwell, Make-up Editor; Pauline Brooks, Art Editor; David Huff, Willie Powell and Junior Banks, Reporters; Wayne Ballinger, Sports Writer; Ruth Miracle, Story Writer; and Jean Cain, Proof Writer.

Under a line drawing of Mrs. Holt and Fifth through Eighth Grade students standing in main entrance of Conway schoolhouse, also appearing on the first page, this information has been typed:

"Conway School opened (this term on) Aug. 29, 1955. Everyone was so excited and thrilled that it was a while before we could settle down to serious work. We had one-half day of school on Monday, but met all day the rest of the week. We were so happy to see our same teachers (Mmes. Holt and Stewart) return for another year of work with us. We are looking forward to a successful and happy year filled with new experiences and much knowledge."

A sampling of stories carried in the News could include Conway's Halloween party, or the children's introduction to anti-toxin shots for averting Typhoid Fever and Small Pox. The account of their receiving medical injections, by the way, was accompanied by a drawing of a rather lumpy, painful-appearing arm. Their encounter with "the big shots," as reported by the News, was dejectedly summed up in this understandable vein:

". . . The next morning all the children had to stay in the house because they couldn't play."

Once, since the start of the new term, more than a dozen Conway youngsters joined voices in presenting a radio broadcast ("live") from Station

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WSFC, Somerset, Kentucky. With Bige Towery, Jr., serving as emcee, the group sang songs, read their own essays, or recited poems. All activities on the program had Citizenship as their subject.

Two girls in the Seventh Grade—Georgia Thacker and Bessie Ann Hayes—swept top honors in the essay contest.

Georgia won a Third Place award ($7.50) among high school writers. Her theme was also declared First Prize winner ($5.00) for all Rockcastle County in the Grade school Class.

Remembered her as the young lad who inadvertently broke Conway's beleaguered basketball last year and in whose name men of Stillwater donated to a special fund for new playground articles.

Bessie Ann, for her original essay, received 2nd Place recognition ($2.50) among the Grade level contestants.

Both of the girls had written themes on 'How Forest Conservation Can Benefit My Community.'

One rather brief item in the News tells of 'OUR NEW COALHOUSE—We have a brand new coalhouse this year. We have needed it for a long time. Willie Lamb built the coalhouse this fall. It has made a woodhouse out of one end and a coalhouse out of the other. The eighth grade class is going to whitewash it this spring. We are very happy with our coalhouse.' (The two schoolrooms are heated by single, ancient, pot-bellied stoves.)

Other news items reported the variety of preparations being made for the then approaching Holiday Season; covered several incidents during sports activities and games; gave an accounting of the surprising loss in days-at-school for many students because of heavy chest and head colds; related how visiting teachers conduct Bible classes at the school every two weeks.

Certain to be of special interest to many men here was the article headed GOOD NEWS, and the friendly message which followed: '... We were delighted beyond measure when we received a letter yesterday from the men of the Minnesota State Prison informing us that they were renewing their sponsorship of us. We wish to express our sincere gratitude to these men for being so kind as to sponsor our little rural school at Conway. We truly appreciate all the nice things they have done for us in our past associations and we hope we can find some way to show it.'

Note To Mirror Readers: Conway township is located in a mountainous region of Kentucky hills. It is a farming community where a scattering of lone country wage earners also find employment in small industries or the few local commercial businesses. These economical conditions necessarily minimize the tax revenue available to the school, which serves pupils within a five mile area of the town.

Both full time teachers are earnestly presenting the best educational program possible under their limited school budget. Theirs is a constant search for new opportunities to broaden the education of each student. By patient and friendly counsel, by frequent example, and their individual encouragement, the teachers at Conway have done much to improve all aspects of the school.

Mrs. Holt, fifth through eighth grade teacher, registered Conway with the Save the Children Federation Sponsorship program for needy rural American schools. SCF representatives conducted a thorough check, found a real and growing need for 'outside' assistance.

During the past three school terms, by their regular contributions to SCF projects, men of Stillwater have supplied the school with new window shades and exterior screens; classroom teaching aids such as drawing paper, paints, a pencil sharpener, indoor games and puzzles; a Lamp Master with nine reels of film. Extra funds, aside from the yearly SCF sponsorship cash benefits, have also been sent to the school, specifically for athletic supplies. A semi-annual drive for contributions to assure renewal of this worthy sponsorship will soon get under way here.

Conway School is one of four separate SCF sponsorship projects currently being supported by men of Stillwater. Other sponsorships are Kwang Yang Oh, Korean war orphan; Helen Varthi, Greek war orphan and Willie Morgan, Navajo Indian lad.

Scan A-Uraver plate courtesy Forest Lake Times