Copyright © 2004 NLThomas
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News from Cherokee Nation
Copyright © 2004 CNO
LEACH, OKLAHOMA – The Leach community will soon have a new walking track thanks to a dedicated group of students and the Cherokee Nation.
L to R: Leach Public School students; Jesse Rake, R.J. O’Dell, and Eric Sanders gave presentation on the Cherokee Trail of Tears during community relations event sponsored by the Cherokee Nation. 
“We are just so proud of these students for the efforts they are putting into the project,” said Mary Strong, school librarian and project coordinator.
A new walking track will be constructed on school grounds as a result of a service-learning project funded by the Cherokee Nation Learn and Serve program. Through this program, students are learning about history, civic involvement and the importance of physical fitness.
“The program requires schools to develop community partnerships to fulfill service activities,” said Donna Gourd, Learn and Serve program manager. “It is designed to educate students about Cherokee history while promoting civic responsibility and character based on cultural values.”
Leach School has partnered with the Delaware County Commissioner’s office and the OSU Extension’s Oklahoma New Communities Project to work with students in all phases of planning, construction and dedication of the new track. It will serve as a place for students to play and exercise outside during school hours and will be used by the community for fitness activities in the summer and in the evenings.
“Our school grounds sit in a place that just doesn’t drain very well,” Strong said. “Especially during the rainy season, the kids don’t have any place to play that isn’t muddy and wet. The new track will change that.”
“The project’s many activities provide opportunities for students to acquire a number of skills from organizing and planning to research and communications,” Gourd said.
The community recently held a dinner to showcase the student’s accomplishments on the project. During the showcase event, students presented materials that reflected genealogy research, knowledge of cultural traditions and facts about the migration of Cherokee people from the eastern seaboard area to present day Oklahoma.
| Related contact information: |
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Mike Miller, Cherokee Nation Director of Communications Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2210) Fax: 918-458-5580 E-mail: Communications@cherokee.org
Larry Daugherty, Advertising Manager |
Steven Swogger, Agriculture Liaison Natural Resources Department Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2546) FAX: 918-458-7673 E-mail: sswogger@cherokee.org
Bradley D. Peak, Cherokee Nation |