www.springborosun.com A Publication of Times Community Newspapers$1.00Thursday, February 2, 2012Vol. 15, No. 18

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FYIFYI

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By DOUG SKINNEREditor

dskinner@tcnewsnet.comSPRINGBORO — World Cup: It’s

More than Just a Game of Soccer!was the topic of a series of presenta-tions made by Leslie Bellar’s eighth-grade French students at SpringboroJunior High School.“I wanted them to see that when

you bring 32 countries together forone reason, to play soccer, itbecomes more than just about play-ing soccer,” Bellar said. “It is achance to grow and learn from peo-ple that are both similar and differ-ent.”The majority of the students chose

to write a short story creating charac-ters that played soccer in the WorldCup, according to Bellar. “These sto-ries incorporated various aspects ofour theme such as language barriersbetween players, racial differences,cultural comparisons and relation-ships on and off the field. Some otherstudents took on the role of a coachand prepared a pep talk that he/shewould give to players on game day.These projects provided an excel-

lent opportunity to get the classinvolved and prove that championscome in all shapes and sizes. A fewof the students wrote cheers that theywould chant to players promotinggood sportsmanship. A couple of thestudents wrote articles that wouldappear in a newspaper and then hadthe task of making the newscast

come alive during class. Lastly, therewas a couple who created their ownproject: one which wrote a comicabout a boy who had a dream heplayed soccer and another studentwho recorded an impressive movietrailer to demonstrate the diversityfound at the World Cup.

Bellar said that many of her stu-dents worked hard on their projects,creating several drafts before thefinal product was ready. “TheirFrench continues to improve, and it isalways a pleasure to sit back andremember that when I first met manyof them, all they knew how to say

was ‘bonjour,’ ‘un, deux, trois’ and‘oui.’ I am proud of the students whoalways give their best and never less.The presentations they did in classallowed these hard-working studentsto showcase their talents and sharewhat they have learned with theirpeers.”

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Springboro Sun photo by Doug SkinnerStudents in Leslie Bellar’s French class at Springboro Junior High School try to toss paper wads into a

waste basket during a game as part of one of her student’s presentation.

SPRINGBORO — A Clearcreek Elementary kindergartenstudent was selected as one of the winners in a calendar contestsponsored by the Dayton law firm of Dyer, Garofalo, Mann andSchultz.Giovanna Roeder drawing was selected for the month of

March.Giovanna and the other 11 winners are featured on the 2012

tiger safety calendar.More than 75 local schools participated by encouraging stu-

dents to draw pictures depicting a safety rule or tip incorporat-ing the law firm’s mascot, the Tiger. In addition to Clearcreek Elementary, students from

Springboro Intermediate School and Dennis Elementary alsoparticipated in the contest.The images in the calendar were chosen from more than

1,200 entries the law firmed received from area school childrenand young people.“We wanted a way to reach out to the schools in the commu-

nity, and an art contest seemed like a great way to get kids

involved, and thinking about safety, plus we can help theschools when they really need it,” law firm managing partnerMichael Dyer said.The winning students will receive a $250 prize, and each of

the winning entrants’ schools will receive a $1,000 honorariumfrom the law firm.“We were overwhelmed and excited by all of the great sub-

missions we received from the area’s talented young artists,”Dyer said.“At Dyer, Garofalo, Mann and Schultz, we recognize the first

step toward making a safer future, is involving our youth insafety advocacy,” attorney Doug Mann said. “We would like tothank all the participating students and schools for their supportwith this project. We hope that everyone in the communityenjoys this calendars much as we enjoyed putting it together,and we want to encourage kids to enter our contest next fall.”Complimentary calendars will be available to anyone person

or group in the community, and can be requested by visitingwww.TigerSafetyCalendar.com.

Kindergartener contributes to calendar;School receives $1,000 honorarium

Students have funwhile learninglanguage

Submitted photoGiovanna Roeder submitted this drawing that was selected in a calendar contest sponsored by Dyer,

Garofalo, Mann and Schultz. The drawing was chosen for the month of March.

By DOUG SKINNEREditor

dskinner@tcnewsnet.comSPRINGBORO — The Springboro

Board of Education voted recently not torenew its membership in the Ohio SchoolBoards Association (OSBA).“This was mainly decided to save

money,” superintendent Gene Lolli said.OSBA provides legal, policy, and labor-

relations services, among others.“OSBA offers a wide variety of prod-

ucts and services to members, includingcustomized training, legal information,superintendent and treasurer searches andevaluations, risk management services,policy and labor relations services,endorsed programs and communicationsupport,” the OSBA website states.In other business:• The board approved the district’s orga-

nizational chart “to accurately reflect thepositions we currently have in place,” Lollisaid.• A board service fund was established

for conferences. “Section 3315.15 of theOhio Revised Code provides for establish-ing a fund for board member expenses inperforming their duties as representativesof the school district. During 2004, theservice fund was established in the amountof $7,500.”

Boardopts outof OSBA

Community content is thedriving force behind theSpringboro Sun. The greatthing about a small, commu-nity newspaper is that readershave a chance to flip throughthe pages and see theirefforts published.The Springboro Sun is

looking for submissions fromlocal residents. No event istoo small. Submissions cantake the form of communityevents, celebrationannouncements, sports itemsand any other general interestnews you think is importantto the community. Don’t for-get photos. We want goodphotos, too. They should be.jpg format and attached tothe email not in the body of adocument.To send submissions, send

your item in the body of thee-mail or attach a text docu-ment and/or photo to dskin-ner@tcnewsnet.com.Remember, this is your

newspaper. Be a part of it.

Contributeto our content

FreelancewritersneededThe Times Community

Newspapers are seeking afew top-notch professionalfreelance writers to help uscover our ever-expanding ter-ritory. Our newspapers covernumerous communities inMontgomery and some sur-rounding counties. Thiscould be an excellent oppor-tunity to be part of an up-and-coming media outlet.In order to be a freelancer,

some prior writing experi-ence is necessary. A writingsample will be required soshow us what you’ve got.Whether you want to contin-ue writing or are just lookingto get published for the firsttime, we want your words tobe part of our product.Numerous events need to

be covered every day, includ-ing meetings, communityevents, education news andathletics. Coverage is notlimited to these things. Feelfree to show us your creativeside and propose ideas andleads. It’s time to see yourname in print.To be considered, please

send a resume and writingsample to editor@xeni-agazette.com ordskinner@tcnewsnet.com.

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Group startingLiving Water Lutheran Church

(located in the old Jonathan WrightElementary building, 40 FlorenceDrive) is starting a Mommy and MeGroup, which will be open to allmoms and their tots in the communi-ty.The group will meet the first and

third Friday of the month from 9:30-11:30 a.m. beginning March 2 in thechurch nursery. A breakfast snackwill be provided and some muchneeded interaction for moms andkids.On the third Friday of the month,

the group will plan an outing either toa member’s house, park, museum,mall play area, etc.Contact Jill LeBeau at sajle-

beau@roadrunner.com or 937-550-4655 if you are interested or for moreinformation.