JOYCE — The new sign outside of Crescent School is designed for simplicity and safety — and completely coordinated by volunteers.
Vashina Donnell, a former Crescent District School Board member and an active parent in the district, and her husband, Chris, took the lead in the effort to get a new sign installed.
The old one had to be put up manually, requiring students and staff to climb ladders in wind, rain and snow to change how the board read.
“I don’t even know how old that other sign was,” Vashina Donnell said.
“This is something that [the late] Doug Kubalek wanted when he was still superintendent.
“It is something the community had talked about, but there were so many other issues and expense and when I was on the School Board we had other things we needed to fund.
“But this was sort of the last thing I wanted to see get done after my time on the School Board.”
She said Chris Donnell was extremely active, rallying area businesses to donate for the new electronic board.
“It is really neat because they can do it all from the office,” she said.
“There aren’t any wires or anything — it is all transmitted on radio waves.
“So they can type it from the office and get it up there.
“It was really a safety issue to keep them from having to climb up the ladders in all kinds of weather.”
Since the board was installed in late April, Donnell said it has been an inspiration.
“We had had all kinds of comments that people couldn’t read the old board, and the new one looks so nice,” she said.
“Not only for the community but for my family it has been really uplifting to see that go up.”
Simpson Electric LLC installed the sign which was made by Daktronics from Seattle, Donnell said.
The sign touts the names of the sponsors who paid for it, including Joyce General Store, Joyce Self Storage, Crescent Development Inc., the Crescent Booster Club and the Crescent Parent Teacher Organization.
Donnell declined to say how much the sign cost, but said that it was funded completely by donations.
“This was something we felt we didn’t want to burden taxpayers with, so my husband Chris really ran with it and got as many local businesses involved as possible,” she said.
“If anyone gets a big pat on the back it should be Chris.”
