On Friday, November 22 at 2:30 p.m., first grade students at Mark Twain Elementary School hosted a dedication ceremony for a garden they planted in memory of a classmate who was lost last year. The Friendship Garden, as it was named, was dedicated to the memory of Tucker Northeimer, a kindergarten student who was tragically killed in an automobile accident on December 5, 2012.
The Friendship Garden came to be as Jessica Irwin, a student teacher from Otterbein University, was charged with implementing a service project within the school community as one of her student teaching requirements. Early in the school year, Irwin collaborated with Mark Twain first grade teachers Barb Baldrick, Koleen Foley, Carol Louden, and Jude Strain, and the idea for The Friendship Garden was created. Before planting took place, the students were engaged in lessons that focused on what it means to be a good friend and characteristics that we look for in our friends. Tucker was used as a model example of a good friend, and many students shared fond memories of him throughout the lessons. School guidance counselors also talked with the children about how they could be a good friend, and citizen, within the larger school community.
With help and a generous donation from Oakland Nursery, the first grade students planted 200 flower bulbs that will bloom in the spring, including pink tulips and yellow daffodils, along with boxwoods and spirea. Metal sunflowers adorn the garden, which will be replaced with real sunflowers in the late spring. Finally, a granite bench was unveiled, along with 15 stepping stones that the pupils painted in art class.
A poem about friendship was read at the dedication ceremony, which was attended by Tucker’s family, students, staff, and friends. The pupils will be responsible for maintaining the garden for the next four years, until they graduate from Mark Twain.