We Come Together...

I've mentioned many times before how impressive the Rome community can be as it relates to the amount of philanthropy, support, and care for people. Having been part of many different organizations and school districts throughout my career, it is always a pleasure to be involved with a group who can come together in the face of anything at the drop of a hat. Part of being a leader, and a leader of a large organization, is you rarely hear positive thoughts from anywhere; but field a ton of complaints and are always privy to negative news that affects the organization. Along with that comes the responsibility of delivering negative news quite frequently and this weekend was no exception. However, I have yet to have the experience of delivering negative news without the receiving party asking what they can do to help. It doesn't matter the context of the news or the location of the news, people all throughout our organization and community come together frequently to support each other. Regardless of the circumstance or who is involved, there is never a shortage of people willing to help in a time of need. As we keep down the road of improvement, I hope that we can get to the point where we come together all the time, not just in the face of adversity. Many people, including children, are facing adversity on a daily basis that is just not as obvious as when something tragic happens. We need to remember that everyone has a story and each person's individual story has positives and negatives. For children, the factors involved with building a story are much greater because they have very little direct influence of the major factors involved with their story. If we can constantly come together in the face of the adversities we know and see, let's improve our ability to come together in the face of adversities that we don't see. We are a team, we are a community. Let's keep growing to show that support for everyone. Let's come together at all times. 

American Heart Walk/Run

On Saturday, February 24th, from 8:00 am to 11:00 am, the American Heart Association will be hosting their 16th annual walk/run event at Rome Free Academy. The indoor walk also includes an outdoor run! Besides the walk/run, they will be holding a Heath Expo and several “Sydney’s Circle” events taking place in the gym. The American Heart Association has been very active in the Mohawk Valley and in Rome, providing support for many many people over the years. Let's get behind this fantastic cause and show our support. For more information or to register your team for the walk/run, please visit www.uticaheartrunwalk.org.  

RFA Travel Club

On Tuesday, February 13, the RFA Travel Club will be holding an informational session to gauge interest for their 2019 international trip to China. The meeting will be held in room 1310 at RFA beginning at 6:00 p.m. Students currently in grades 8 through 11 are welcome to attend, along with families and Rome staff. The Travel Club takes their international trip each year during the school break in April and more informational will be available at the meeting.

Mid-Winter Recess

Just a reminder that the week of February 19 through February 23 is the mid-winter recess and all schools will be closed for the week. Activities throughout the week will continue as scheduled in the buildings, usually these would be either athletic or music activities. Enjoy the week off everyone as we prepare for our longest stretch.