On the first day of school chatter about the ‘big rock’ in the courtyard was roaming all through the halls. Well it turns out that ‘big rock’ is actually our school crest and was donated to the school by the class of 2012 and the local artist behind it all, Stuart Simpson. The crest was placed in our courtyard on August twentieth after a lot of hard work on design and creation. Overall, it took Simpson three to four months and lots of his own money to make the dream come true.
“He [Simpson] liked what we were about and our story and he made it a reality,” Principal Little said.
The crest didn’t come cheap. The senior class raised money at the school dances but still did not have quite enough for the crest they all envisioned. After contacting Simpson, they found there right hand man. He not only understood what they wanted, but helped to finance the project. The crest is carved into a big rock that stands out in the courtyard. Underneath it, a carved snake is slithering along the bottom engraved with “Dedicated to VHS by the Class of 2012”
“It took over four hours and a big crane to get the 2.5 ton rock set in place,” Mrs. Bodorf said.
It was important for the faculty that the crest be in place before school started, not only for safety reasons, but so when the class of 2012 returned for homecoming their gift would be ready for them to see. Originally, the crest was supposed to be in place before the first graduating class left, but due to the immense size of the project it was not plausible for that to happen.
More involvement with the crest, such as a dedication ceremony, is in the works. Not only is the crest a reminder of the class of 2012, but on the back of the rock there is a space left for each graduating year to engrave their class motto into the crest. The faculty, and even some students, are working on beautifying the courtyard to make it a better place for students to gather. This is just the first of many projects to help make our school a better place for years to come.
“The greatest thing about the school crest outside is it is a reminder of our past,” Principal Little said. “Each class can leave their mark now for many years in the future.”
