Scarselli’s Scholarship Basket raffle goes virtual

For nearly two decades, Scarselli Elementary School has provided a scholarship opportunity for graduating high school seniors who attended SES during their grade school years. The SES Alumni Scholarship has gifted $500 to 4 or more former students each year over the past 18 years. In 2020, seven graduating seniors were recipients of the award.

To raise money for the alumni scholarship fund, SES originally hosted an annual talent show and silent auction. The fundraising efforts then expanded to include a raffle for themed baskets created and assembled by every class throughout the school. The event is now known as Scholarship Basket Night and this year, it’s going virtual.

Starting Friday, visit ses.dcsd.net to preview this year’s basket selections. Available basket themes include: Arts and Crafts, Baking, Camping/Fire Pit, Chocolate Lovers, Easter, Dogs, Gardening, Movie Night, Relaxation, and Tea Lovers.

Raffle tickets may be purchased March 22-25. Families with students attending SES can use the order form that goes home with students in their Pee Chee folders today, and anyone else who would like to participate can stop by the school to purchase raffle tickets. Monetary donations to the scholarship fund are also welcomed. Basket winners will be announced via virtual video on the school’s website and Facebook page on March 26.

Retired Scarselli teacher Janni Gearty was one of the founding organizers of the annual event and expressed gratitude for all those who have contributed to the ongoing success of the Alumni Scholarship fund.

“Over the many years, our Scarselli families have always been so supportive and generous in their donations…the hard work, dedication, and time given by Scarselli’s teachers and staff [have] greatly contributed to honoring and awarding many, many Scarselli alumni graduating seniors,” Gearty said. “I feel very proud to have been part of such a worthwhile cause.”

Fifth-grade teacher Donna Harker added, “We are excited to have a Virtual Basket Night and feel that this year’s seniors deserve to be celebrated and rewarded for their perseverance and hard work.”

Applications for SES Alumni Scholarships will be accepted through April 9, with winners being announced later this spring.

SES is located at 699 Long Valley Road in the Gardnerville Ranchos. Call the school at 775-265-2222 for questions or for more information.

Welcome Spring

The vernal equinox takes place this Saturday, March 20, and with it, the season shifts to spring. The National Weather Service describes the vernal and autumnal equinoxes as the “…two times of year when the Earth’s axis is tilted neither toward nor away from the sun, resulting in a ‘nearly’ equal amount of daylight and darkness at all latitudes” (weather.com). The moment the sun is directly above Earth’s equator marks the precise moment of the equinox.

The word “equinox” descends from the Latin words aequus, meaning equal, and nox, meaning night. “Vernal” is from the Latin word, ver, meaning spring (merriam-webster.com).

This change of season always gets me motivated for planting, and I’ve begun to venture out to plot my gardening strategy for the coming months. It’s wise to temper that enthusiasm, though, because the Carson Valley often experiences a late-spring freeze (sometimes as late as June) and I’ve lost early plantings more than once. For now, I’ll stick to starting some seeds indoors.