Employees of the Newnan’s Bonnell Aluminum company visited all 19 elementary schools in Coweta County this week, personally delivering over 1,600 Merriam-Webster dictionaries to students in every third grade class.
It is the tenth year the Newnan company has sponsored the county-wide donation, which is intended to promote literacy and academic skills among Coweta County elementary students, said school system spokesperson Dean Jackson.
Bonnell Plant Manager Brook Hamilton and Bonnell Senior Credit Analyst Matt Key kicked off the visits to the county’s elementary schools with a visit to Thomas Crossroads elementary on Monday.
“It is important for Bonnell and our employees that we support our schools, and it’s also a lot of fun for us,” said Hamilton. Hamilton noted that the company’s employees enjoyed visiting their children or grandchildren’s schools across the county to hand the books out.
They did, with about 1,640 dictionaries donated throughout the week, Jackson said. Donnell employees played word look-up games with students in each classroom at the schools, handing out Bonnell ‘B’-shaped pencils to the quickest students.
Jackson said the annual tradition has gone on since 2001, meaning that the first classes receiving dictionaries from the company graduated from high school last year.
“It’s really gratifying to know that we’re giving students something that they will use and carry with them for years,” said Hamilton.
Superintendent Steve Barker and Thomas Crossroads Principal Fate Simmons met Hamilton and Key at Thomas Crossroads, and accompanied them on their visits to the school’s several 3rd grade classrooms.
“We greatly appreciate Bonnell for their generosity and support of our schools,” said Barker. “The support and involvement of business partners is extremely important for our schools and our school system, and Bonnell has been just such an active partner with us for many years.”
In the accompanying photo, left to right are, front row, students Lauren Carlin, Emily Hightower, Mackenzie Armstrong, Cameron Maycumber, Hannah Jones, Sierra Flores, Carver Hannasch; middle row Kaitlyn Brown, Dylan Boyd, Samuel Morgan, Warren Robison, Zachary Hubbard, Simone Jennings, Madison Berni, Austin Taylor, Maggie Barnes, Jameson Hugh, Luke McCullough; back row, teacher Jodi Smith, Principal Fate Simmons, Assistant Principal Julie Durrance, Bonnell employee Matt Key, Brooke Hamilton, and Superintedent Steve Barker.
