Engraved commemorative brick dedicated to the community

Diane Cash, PFC Co-president presented a beautifully engraved commemorative brick from the PFC to the school. This brick, which will be the cornerstone of a path to be laid in the outdoor classroom, along with other engraved commemorative bricks purchased by Thornhill families, can be viewed in the school lobby over the next few weeks.

Proclamation from the Mayor's office

Steve McKiernan, Dad’s Club president read a proclamation from Mayor Dellums proclaiming November 12, 2008 as Thornhill Elementary School Day. (Assisted by Dean Swennumson, student council president.

Thank you Barbara Lee

Stella Moore

A letter from Congresswoman Barbara Lee congratulating Thornhill School on its anniversary was read by Thornhill mom, Stella Moore.

Bagpipes lead the way

The ceremony began when Thornhill dad, Rory MacArthur, led a procession of the student council (Dean Swennumson, Matthew Won, Olivia Fishlow, Hannah Fishlow, Logan Sopchak and Caitlen Moser) into the packed multipurpose room bellowing music from the bagpipes. Breath-taking!

Followed by our Sally Foster chair and amazing singer, Carolyn Gregory, who led the crowd in the Star Spangled Banner and was accompanied on piano by Kay Carter, 2nd grade teacher and parent of former Thornhill students.

Classical entertainment from Ms Revelli and students

Classical music performed by Ms Shauna Revelli - 3rd Grade teacher, Mimi Shalf, Gabriel Gartland and Blanca Seiter played in the background while guests arrived for the event.

November 12th 2008 - making history!

Smiling, happy faces as they watch a video of Thornhill through the years.

The Rededication Ceremony, which took place last Wednesday, was held before a standing room only crowd. Students, teachers and parents from the last 50 years were present for the ceremony which included a welcome from 5th grade teacher and past Thornhill student, Rob Wilkins, and principal, Sallyann Tomlin. Dr. Gary Yee, from the Oakland Board of Education and the Honorable Dick Spees, former Oakland City Councilman, both praised Thornhill School for its success in education and for the efforts by teachers, staff and parents in making Thornhill a shining star in the Oakland Unified School District and the whole state of California. What a night filled with joy, happiness and tears as old friends and teachers gathered together all with a common interest - Thornhill Elementary School.

Creature Feature at Thornhill - Friday, Oct 24th 2008

This week our very own Mr Rob Wilkins will host a Creature Feature show at Thornhill school on Friday at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $10 and all proceeds go to Thornhill. There will be snacks, popcorn and drinks available, as well as a raffle. Be sure to come and join in the fun. Wear you Halloween costume and bring a Jack-O-Lantern to light up the night. Contact: 50th@thornhillschool.org to let us know if you and your family are coming.
CCW

Creature Feature - Bob Wilkins

Image from http://www.bobwilkins.net/

Did you grow up in the Bay Area? If you did you probably remember 'Creature Feature' and stayed up late every Saturday Night glued to the TV. Bob Wilkins hosted the show and is the father of our 5th grade teacher, Mr Rob Wilkins. The show was a huge success and I know there are parents at the school who got to visit the studio and go on the show!

"Don't stay up late, it's not worth it," Bob Wilkins warned as he leaned back in his yellow rocking chair, smoke wafting from his big cigar. But monster movie fans in Northern California stayed up with him, every Saturday Night . Creature Features made it's debut on Channel 2 (KTVU) in 1971, and was an immediate success with it's grade- Z horror films and Bob's dry sense of humor.

Many of the films were pretty good, and his guests were even better: Ray Harryhausen, Christopher Lee, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, John Landis, William Marshall, Forest J Ackerman and . . . well, too many to list. You never knew who (or what) you'd see next on Creature Features. There was an endless parade of the weird: People who claimed to be witches and martians, inventors who built robots, a woman who knitted a sweater for King Kong, local filmmakers who showed bizzare TV commercial take-offs. Once, Bob received a phone call from a man claiming to be a vampire. When he asked if he could be a guest, Bob said "Sure, can you come down to the studio at two o'clock tomorrow afternoon?" When the caller said yes, he could, Bob replied, "If you're a vampire, how is it you can be there at 2 p.m.?" There was a pause, then 'click'. The vampire hung up.

These quotes and more can be found at: http://www.bobwilkins.net/
CCW

Newsletter - Jan 1959

This is the very first newsletter published at the school - Jan 1959.

Random act of kindness - 1958

Montclair School donated a TV to Thornhill School so the kids could watch the KQED channel. Back in 1958 Thornhill had zero funds in the bank as they had just formed the newly established Thornhill PFC group.

PTA resolution - an independent group is formed

The Parent Faculty Club was formed as an independent group. Dr Stanford Plainfield was appointed one of the temporary officers and held the position as the 1st PFC president.

Letter to the Editor

In response to the earlier published article, the above article was published to clarify the 'togetherness' at Thornhill. One of the reasons for not forming a PTA was because it was expressed in the earlier article of 'lacking togetherness'. As you read through this piece it's clear to say one of the main reasons to form an independent group, was so both parents could attend meetings together. Formerly mothers would meet at noon - afternoon meetings and dads would meet in the evening at Dad's club. Click on the image to read the details.

PTA vs PFC - custard hit the fan! September 1958

There are 3 promient articles that were featured in the Montclarion about the parents at Thornhill rebelling against the usual formation of a PTA. After a man stood up at the first school meeting and said he would rather contribute his dues to the school, rather than a national organization - at this point the custard hit the fan! Click on the article above to read the details. The next 2 articles summerize the decisions of all the involved parties.

Principal named for Thornhill- July 2nd,1958

It was published in the Montclarion that the new Principal for Thornhill School was Dr Benjamin Jefferson.

Four New Schools To Open This Fall - the Trib wrote

Thornhill was amongst a bunch of other schools scheduled to open in the Fall of 1958. (Double click to read the article)

Construction began in 1957

The construction began with a deadline for September 1st, 1958.

430 students from K - 6th

Another article in the Montclarion had the school slated for 12 classrooms and 430 students. The school originally went from Kindergarten to 6th grade.

Even a member from the Dad's club was on hand

As work commenced on the planned site for the Thornhill school, the photo above shows a very close knit community - a member of the Dad's Club was there to observe too!

Bids for Construction posted

Bids for construction were posted in the Tribune. All the bids exceeded the allocated funds.

Oakland Tribune article from July 4th, 1956

The new school plans were big news in the community. All the local news networks picked up the story including the Tribune. (Double click on the article to read the details).