Lincoln Avenue Celebrates Fourth Grade Promotion

Pearl River High School senior George DelGrosso offered a warning along with advice to the fourth graders during Tuesday's Lincoln Avenue Elementary School Promotion Ceremony.

"You will not be the head honchos any more," DelGrosso said to the assembled students, who will be moving on to Pearl River Middle School in the fall.

That is just another challenge for this group of 72 students.

"Even though I only had this one year with you, I enjoyed it tremendously and I will miss you as you move on ot the middle school," said Lincoln Avenue Principal Kathleenann Cool. "When you look back on your five years here at Lincoln, you certainly faced your share of challenges, personal loss and several principals. You have handled so much so well in your young lives. I send you to the middle school confident you are prepared to be successful not only in your classes, but in your choices as well.

"Because of your experiences, this class reminds me of a quote by Christopher Robin in Winnie the Poo. 'Promise me you will always remember you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think. Do you promise?"

Student Council President Sean Pottberg addressed the challenges he and his classmates will face.

"This is a very important day for all of us,"Pottberg said. "We are moving on to face new challenges in middle school -- lockers, midterms, final exams. Some of us may be a little nervous about all fo this. I think we can all agree that our teachers here at Lincoln Avenue ar the best. They have done a great job preparing all of us for our futures."

The school presented awards to students Jack Bellew and Kylie Costello in honor of Carolyn Sullivan, who was eight years old when she passed away in 2009. Her brother and sister, Jack and Lauren Sullivan, presented the awards after a tearful speech from Cool.

"I wish she was here with us, but I know she is watching over all of us and saying, 'I know you guys are going to be awesome in middle school," Pottberg said during his speech.

Bellew, the student council vice president, presented retiring Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Auriemma with a CD of music recorded by Lincoln Avenue students.

"You hired most of the staff members through the district, including my mom,"Bellew said, drawing a laugh from the crowd. "You even hired Mrs. Cool three different times. You supported us in everything we do - the Kindergarten celebrations, the concerts and the Halloween parades. When he walked through the building, he always had a smile or a hello for all of us."