OCM BOCES Deaf Program lemonade stand in 5th year

This past summer, the OCM BOCES Special Education Summer School Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program celebrated their 5th anniversary of holding a lemonade stand to benefit Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. The project began all those years ago when teacher Lisa Austin, was working with her students about money and the importance of giving back. Lisa thought a lemonade stand would be a great way to teach students about both concepts.

Upon researching the topic, she came across the book Alex and the Amazing Lemonade Stand. The book, about giving back and helping others, tells about Alex Scott, a little girl with cancer who set up a lemonade stand to help doctors find a cure for the disease. Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, a national organization, has raised millions of dollars in the fight against childhood cancer...part of that money coming from right here in Central New York!

For the first time, this year’s lemonade stand was turned into more of an event than in the past, expanding to include face painting, bubble activities, games and crafts. Additionally, there was a quiet corner for teachers to utilize and read the story of Alex with their students.

Ms. Austin is especially excited that the students achieved their increased monetary goal, raising $1,000 for the Lemonade Stand Foundation. She said, “This year it was a huge success! We hope to do just as well next summer school!”

Congratulations to Lisa Austin and her students for a job well done! Watch online news coverage of the lemonade stand on WSYR’s Bridge Street program at http://www.9wsyr.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=4177984&navCatId=20640.

For more information on Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, visit their website at https://www.alexslemonade.org/.

Sun shelter at McEvoy Lets ­students experience nature

This past spring in the gardens at the OCM BOCES McEvoy Campus, flowers weren’t the only things starting to grow. A beautiful new sun shelter was taking shape, thanks to the collaborative efforts of OCM BOCES, Racker Centers, two local construction companies and the Tully Rotary Club.

The Children’s Garden at the OCM BOCES McEvoy Campus, now in its 14th growing season, was begun as a group effort by Susan Thomas, Turning Point Day Treatment Program Director, and many students and staff at the OCM BOCES McEvoy Campus. Students were directly involved with garden’s design in order to promote working with nature, health and wellness, acts of generosity and belonging to their school.

Through the years, the need for shade within the garden became evident, as many of McEvoy’s students cannot be in the sun for prolonged periods of time. A collection was started to fund the building of a structure in the garden. After a lot of hard work, the sun shelter was recently erected on a rainy day this past June. In addition to the shade it offers, it is hoped that it will provide a place of reflection and healing for students as they visit the garden.

The vision for the shelter is that it will be therapeutic, fostering healing and promoting learning for students, staff and visitors.

Special thanks are due to Tim Bearup, a local builder and owner of Bearup Construction, Byran Bartholomew, a BOCES construction trades program graduate and local business owner, the Tully Rotary club, and construction trades and Career Explorations students, who all came together to build the shelter.

The OCM BOCES Turning Point Day Treatment Program is a part of Racker Centers Counseling for School Success programs, licensed by the New York State Office of Mental Health. OCM BOCES employs Racker Centers’ mental health professionals to help support their students in the Turning Point Program.