Kathleen Parlett, who has tirelessly donated her time to Crofton Meadows Elementary School for the last 16 years, today was named the 2016 Anne Arundel County Public Schools Volunteer of the Year.
The surprise announcement came at the end of AACPS’ annual Volunteer Recognition Tea, a celebration of the more than 664,000 hours volunteers have donated to county schools this year.
Parlett began volunteering when her triplets entered kindergarten at Crofton Meadows and soon began to consider the welfare of the school as her own special job. She currently serves as president of the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization, and also co-chaired the playground committee as it raised money for new playground equipment.
Parlett has also worked on numerous programs to support student success and raised money that brought assemblies, SmartBoards and Chromebooks to the school.
Said Principal Julie Little-McVearry: “At Crofton Meadows Elementary School for the past two years, I have had the pleasure of working with a woman who is able to balance the roles of PTO President, volunteer, substitute teacher, wife, mother of six children, daughter to elderly parents with needs, and an all-around ‘Super Woman.’ ”
BRENDA SCHOENER LEGACY AWARD
Also today, Severna Park resident Andy Borland, a retired Anne Arundel County Public Schools teacher, coach, and athletic director, received the inaugural Brenda Schoener Legacy Award for his ongoing commitment to children in Anne Arundel County Public Schools.
The award was created to honor the work of the late Brenda Schoener, who founded and worked tirelessly with the Backpack Buddies program at Tyler Heights Elementary School. It is presented to a person, group, or organization committed not just to helping students in the present, but to empowering them to help others in the future.
Borland spent 35 years with AACPS before retiring in 1998 after teaching physical education at Annapolis High School, Severna Park Junior High School, and Severna Park High School. The longtime Severna Park High School football coach also served as the school’s athletic director for 20 years.
Since retiring, Borland hosts members of the Annapolis Woodworking Guild weekly from February through December at his home, where the group makes toys such as cars, trucks, treasure boxes, and jewelry boxes adorned with ballerinas. The gifts are then distributed through the Backpack Buddies program. Tyler Heights classrooms also receive handmade doll beds and matching mattresses and quilts, along with dolls representing a variety of different ethnic backgrounds.
The group makes and distributes more than 1,000 toys annually to the needy.
Other awards handed out at Volunteer Recognition Tea were:
- Crystal Apple Award: The Marley Players at Marley Elementary School
- Jennifer Summers Barrett Champion of Young Children Award: Barbara Palmer
- Annapolis & Broadneck Regional Winner: Bee-A-Bruin, Broadneck Elementary
- Arundel & South River Regional Winner: STAIR – Start the Adventure in Reading, Nantucket Elementary School
- Chesapeake & North County Regional Winner: Marching Bank Dinner Program, North County High School
- Glen Burnie & Severna Park Regional Winner: Boys Leadership Group, Corkran Middle School
- Meade & Southern Regional Winner: Soldiers for Students, Manor View Elementary
- Northeast & Old Mill Regional Winner: Kin No YaMa Wadaiko Taiko Ensemble, Southgate Elementary