EMF Sends Several to State Track

EMF qualifiers for state track include:

Tyrell Fennell:  100M, 200M and 4 x 100 team

Aniston Meints: High Jump, 300M Hurdles

Mark Milton, Truman Milton and Adrien Mueller - 4 x 100 team

 

New Mural takes shape on Exeter Library

 

A community effort in Exeter produced a beautiful result on the side of the Exeter Public Library.  A local artist and students in Exeter-Milligan art classes cooperatively created a new mural to enhance Storybook Park.

 

The mural on the side of the Exeter Public Library needed a revamp. The last time it was updated was in 2012 when Nina Bartu, librarian at the time, touched up some of the paint.

 

Originally there were two murals that embraced Storybook Park, one on a building that was on the south side of the park painted by UNL students, that was torn down in July of 2016, and the other on the side of the Exeter Library.

 

Current Exeter Librarians Cindy Markowski and Pat Sudrla noticed that the mural “wasn’t looking so good anymore.”

 

“There was no color at the park and we wanted it to be more welcoming.”

 

A local artist (who wishes to remain anonymous) was asked if she wanted to help repaint the mural and Exeter-Milligan art teacher, Lisa Kanode also got involved. 

 

Kanode pitched the idea of helping to her art students and they were onboard, it was just a matter of “coordinating the time with good weather.”

 

It started with a few of the art students power washing the wall and getting it primed before the local artist sketched out a lot of the bones of the mural.  The artist did the majority of the painting of the centerpiece, a book with butterflies coming out of it and the art students embellished and added some of the other book characters.

 

All in, the students have spent close to 30 hours working on the mural.  Some of the seniors have come back to finish it up even after they have graduated.

 

“We hope that the kids really enjoy the space outside the library this summer!  It was rewarding to participate in doing something for the community,” added Kanode.

 

 

Students who have participated are:  Mikey Bartu, Trevin Ronne, Neal Scott, Logan Johnson, Kaylynn Harding, Vae Nemieksis, Brooklyn Oldehoeft, Sydney Engert, Leon Crozier, Liberty Johnson and Kmila Benitez. 

 

The project was funded by memorial money and included a revamp of the entire park.  Markowski and a few helpers planted a new 12’ raised bed along with several trees with the memorial fountain remaining as the centerpiece of the garden area.

Also a few tomato plants were added in the bed with the younger library patrons learning to care for them and eventually be able to give back to the community in the form of fresh garden produce.

Markowski said the library also hopes to “add a canopy to provide a shady spot and some more color in the park.”

The librarians have lots of activities planned for the library and the park this summer.  Markowski noted that Exeter-Milligan will not be having summer school this year with the construction projects at the Exeter campus.  The library has beefed up their summer progam and will meet each Tuesday at 10 am starting in June.

The Exetension office in Geneva will come as part of that program and the library will also have some pop up events.   One special day planned is a program with the Lego man.  This year the theme for summer reading will be “Color our World.”