Dona Lambert, a local woman who has spent more than a decade teaching performing arts to local children in a variety of programs, is the recipient of the 2012 Community Service Award, given by Rockport High School's chapter of the National Honor Society.
When Lambert moved to town about 14 years ago, she ran theater workshops, and later was invited to work with Art Harbor of Cape Ann and The Art Harbor Camp at Windhover, which she directed for five years.
Over the years, she has worked with hundreds of children, some who stayed with her programs for more than a decade and now assist her in current workshops.
She taught the in-school drama classes at Rockport Middle School for four years. She taught an afterschool workshop at St. Ann School in Gloucester for six years. She now runs the Theater Pie Workshops for children, including the Chicken Coupe Troupe.
Lambert said this award from the students was a gift she will always treasure.
"This is a gift that will last forever because it is what we do for each other that is real, and true, and never fades away. We all need to know that we count, that it matters that we are on the planet, that we make a difference, so I thank you for this," she told the students.
'Works well with others'
In noting the traits of incoming Rockport Superintendent of Schools Robert Liebow, members of the School Committee this week especially noted his community outreach.
But some members who helped make Liebow a unanimous choice to succeed Superintendent Susan King cited another qualification as well: Liebow's ability to work with and win the confidence of teachers.
School Committee member Carl Engel said that all of the letters he had gotten from teachers in the Mount Desert Island, Maine, school system, Liebow's current district, were supportive of Liebow, and Engel noted that no grievance had ever been filed against him.
"He's temperate, he's non-emotional, and he uses it to great benefit," said School Committee member Martha Morgan.
"He may have an opinion, but if you lay out the facts and make your case, he will not only change his opinion, but he will also say he was wrong," said School Committee Chairman Michael Kelley.
Marketing Rockport
Did you notice a group of young people making the rounds of Rockport's downtown, and taking down information earlier this week?
All were students in Rockport High instructor Scott Larsen's second-year marketing class, and they were embarking on their economic development project, the class's final exam project.
The students were gathering information on existing tourist-related facilities, and making some projections about areas that could be changed, Larsen said, and they set out on their project after getting some advice from some pros.
Peter Webber of the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce addressed the group on current tourist industry practices in Rockport prior to the teens hitting the streets, Larsen said.
The goal of the project is to present to a committee of Rockporters from the Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Committee and Rotary their recommendations on how to improve the way Rockport is marketed and ways in which the town could be more tourist friendly.
Staff Writer Gail McCarthy contributed to Rockport Ramblings, compiled each week by reporter Stephanie Bergman. If you have a news tip or an item for Ramblings, contact Bergman at 978-283-7000 x3451, or sbergman@gloucestertimes.com.
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