The Odell Lions Club donated $15,000 to the Mid Valley PTO towards its playground remodel; another $10,000 will come in the new year. Pictured are, left to right, back row, PTO President Mari-Beth Guenther, Tia Larson and Victoria Oaks, Odell Lions members Chuck Bugge and Kathy Oates, Mid Valley Principal Kim Yasui, HRCSD Superintendent Bill Newton, Kelsey Cervantez, Muir Cohen and Rosa Trejo; front, Maria Salazar, Jenny Cohen, Melissa Crosswhite, Kira Guisto and Mid Valley Elementary student representatives.
ODELL — Mid Valley Elementary School is undergoing a full playground remodel in memory of longtime Mid Valley teacher Holly Cohn, who died Jan. 31, 2022.
The school and grounds are a community hub, and at 26 years old, its playground has outlived its life expectancy of 15-20. Mid Valley PTO began fundraising for a new playground several years ago after Hood River County School District committed $60,000 to the project, with the understanding the PTO would make up the balance.
“When we began, it was kind of like, ‘We’ll see what we can get,'” said Mid Valley PTO President Mari-Beth Guenther.But what made a huge difference in the scope of the project came from a sizable donation from Cohn’s own family — more than $100,000 with an additional $50,000 match grant; any donation made by community members will be doubled up to that amount (givebutter.com/FVthpH).
“Before Holly died, she told me she wanted to contribute in a meaningful way to Mid Valley Elementary, in particular, something specifically for the kids,” said Eric Cohn. “The idea to contribute to the playground came about in a conversation I had with Holly’s dear friend and longtime teaching partner Jami [Phelps-Waits]; Jami and I talked about it and it just felt right. Our family knew this is what Holly would have wanted.”
“[Eric] wanted to make a sizable donation to kind of get our playground efforts going, because at that point, we had probably raised $20,000 to $30,000 through raffles and PTO events,” said Guenther. “He really wanted to see this through and gave us that push we needed to really get going.”
And push it did. The PTO has now raised $220,000; included in that total is $25,000 from the Odell Lions Club, which has since disbanded in favor of joining the Hood River Club, said club members Chuck and Becky Bugge. Of the total, $15,000 was immediately donated to Mid-Valley Elementary School, and the remaining $10,000 will be donated after the first of the year.
The Odell Lions Club donated $15,000 to the Mid Valley PTO towards its playground remodel; another $10,000 will come in the new year. Pictured are, left to right, back row, PTO President Mari-Beth Guenther, Tia Larson and Victoria Oaks, Odell Lions members Chuck Bugge and Kathy Oates, Mid Valley Principal Kim Yasui, HRCSD Superintendent Bill Newton, Kelsey Cervantez, Muir Cohen and Rosa Trejo; front, Maria Salazar, Jenny Cohen, Melissa Crosswhite, Kira Guisto and Mid Valley Elementary student representatives.
Stephanie Hoppe photo
“We wanted the money to go back to the community from which it was raised and for which it was intended,” said Becky Bugge. “It will give us great pleasure to watch this project grow to completion and to enjoy the laughter from the children once it is completed.”
The project is set for two phases: Phase one will begin over spring break and include the main playground, with phase two adding a covered area that will serve as an outdoor classroom and community gathering space. (For donation information, see sidebar, this page.)
“We are so grateful to the entire Mid Valley Elementary staff, PTO, and greater community for providing the Cohn family with this wonderful opportunity to honor Holly’s wish,” said Eric Cohn.
Holly Cohn was born Dec. 25, 1963, and died at age 58 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). She began working at Mid Valley Elementary in 1996, retiring from full-time teaching in 2019. She worked as a substitute teacher prior to her illness. Cohn was bilingual in English and Spanish and enjoyed working with the entire community, Eric Cohn said.
“Teaching at Mid Valley was a great source of pride for Holly,” he said. “Holly’s enthusiasm for teaching, and very hard work are pretty standard for the staff there, and Holly was no exception to this high standard of professionalism and caring. Throughout our long life together, every Sunday was devoted to Holly going up to work to plan out what the week would look like. She loved Mid Valley School in every facet: students, location, staff and the surrounding community.”
Mid Valley PTO is bilingual and participates in a variety of fundraising events to fill in district funding gaps. Guenther noted wreath and plant sales, skate and movie nights, Popcorn Fridays and serving concessions during Hood River County Fair and Families in the Park concerts.
“Even the things like Popcorn Friday that only raise us a few hundred dollars — we do them all year long,” she said. “So it all adds up.”
Money all goes to the school — for big things like the playground and smaller things like supplies. But a good portion also goes towards teacher grants to help provide extra funds as needed, such as window coverings for old, ground level windows. They are also building safety buckets for each classroom to use in the event of a lockdown.
“Having the community support to raise money for the playground has helped a lot because then, we can still be able to help fund art week and STEM — all sorts of things in the school,” Guenther said.
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