Imaginations Filled with Dreams on Career Day at E. Wilson Morrison Elementary School

“What I fear most, I think, is the death of the imagination.”

In a passage of her journals, written during the 1950’s, American poet Sylvia Plath goes on: “If I sit still and don’t do anything, the world goes on beating like a slack drum, without meaning. We must be moving, working, making dreams to run toward; the poverty of life without dreams is too horrible to imagine.”

Staff at E. Wilson Morrison Elementary School are giving students dreams to run toward. This is a very careful process that culminates in Career Day, which the children hear about and discuss, looking forward to it with excitement. It is not a day for sitting still and doing nothing. Government employees and local businesses come together to help the young people understand that the sky is the limit. This could be you in a few years! That is the message they are hearing.

The Town of Front Royal’s Director of Energy Services Carey Saffelle shows students what it takes to be a lineman. Royal Examiner Photo Credits: Brenden McHugh

“Career Day,” School Counselor Raychel DeArmitt explained, “is an event where students learn about a variety of jobs and professions from guest speakers and hands-on activities. It helps them explore their interests and understand the skills and education needed for different career paths, but it’s more than just a single-day event. Mrs. Rachael Younkins and I began preparing in January by doing lessons in the classrooms that introduce a wide range of careers. Through lessons, research activities, and mini projects, students explore different professions and build excitement leading up to the day.”

Students learn about police work from the Warren County Sheriff’s Office.

March 25 marked the third year that the elementary school has undertaken this event. It is a developing concept, recently expanded to include preschool, kindergarten, and first-grade students in watching the presentations. And the sky is indeed the limit. “Some of the professions featured include hairstylist, tattoo artist, law enforcement, firefighters, paramedic, orthodontics, nurse, army officer, photographer, truck driver/ mechanic, lineman, real estate agent, farmer, floral designer, beekeeper, teacher/principal, landscaper, animal assisted care coordinator, artist, audio engineer, Blue Ridge Technical School, senior director, attorney, and more.”

A fire truck provides a hands-on experience for anyone who might grow up to be a firefighter.

An institution that embraces human potential so passionately must be commended. In a world that bombards the youth with conflicting and often very negative messages, one sees the alternative to flourishing: homeless, addicted, in some cases, imprisoned. For lack of a positive mental horizon, the world indeed goes slack and becomes seemingly meaningless. Thus, career day could be a matter of life and death. The poverty, too horrible to imagine, a life without dreams, is not the legacy of E. Wilson Morrison Elementary School.

Students sit for a presentation from a representative of the Blue Ridge Technical School.

The message is clear: you have a track, you can run.