Lorelei Zech brought homemade pfeffernusse cookies, scented with anise and dusted with powdered sugar to represent Germany. Alex Xie brought dumplings, egg rolls, and strips of beef pounded thin and flavored with teriyaki from the Lucky Fortune restaurant in Damariscotta, a taste of his native China. Olive Pine brought borscht and hot sourdough bread in a nod to her Ukrainian heritage.
There were caprese skewers from Italy, shots of maple syrup from Canada, Scottish tablets, a fudge-like candy made of cream and four cups of sugar that is a favorite treat in Glasgow and Edinburgh, and a multitude of traditional foods from around the world to be found at Great Salt Bay Community School’s first World Heritage Day on Wednesday, March 15.
It wasn’t all about the food, though. Students from fifth through eighth grade researched their own heritage and that of their community as part of the school’s class of 2023 legacy project. They made tri-fold displays to convey the information they found on the history, language, geography, governance, culture, and traditions of their chosen countries. Colorful posters highlighting England, Ireland, Slovakia, Mexico, Israel, Belgium, Jamaica, and even the tiny island country of Sao Tome and Principe from off the west coast of Africa filled the school’s gymnasium and lined the hallways.
The eighth grade class brainstormed ideas and developed their chosen project, starting last November. According to students Olivia Ball and Lily Pinkham, who were key organizers for World Heritage Day, the class liked the idea of bringing everyone together, all different cultures and religions.
The eighth graders reached out to local businesses and institutions for support. They contacted international clubs at other schools and colleges for advice. They coordinated with school administration on scheduling. They set up displays, hung banners, and promoted the event. They learned how to develop an idea and bring it to fruition and the community responded. More than 100 people, including many proud parents and grandparents attended.
Pinkham said she thinks this year’s project may well be the biggest one so far.
The legacy project initiative began three years ago during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Social studies teacher Jewel Galetta envisioned it as a way to enrich the curriculum and to engage students, particularly those in the seventh and eighth grade, at a time when it wasn’t always easy to hold their interest.
By uniting students with a creative and collaborative endeavor that resulted in something meaningful, the legacy project became a boon to the school and to its current and future students. Previous projects revolved around recycling and peer tutoring, though this year’s project is the most ambitious so far.
The goal, according to Galetta, is to continue each legacy project year after year, adding a new one with each class. However, based on the success of this year’s project and the positive feedback from parents, she said the focus may become growing World Heritage Day into an even bigger event and welcoming even more of the community into the school in the future.
As the event wound down and clean-up began, student Sam Wissman took a moment to show Galetta the genealogy scrapbook he had brought, an extensive notebook that included information on his great-great-great-grandfather, who had been a noted bare-knuckle boxer in Ireland.
“Speak up. Be proud of your heritage,” Galetta told him.
“That’s what it’s about right there,” she said.
