Noreen Hurley Handwriting Competition

During Christmas vacation Mrs. Smith was saddened to hear of the passing of her mother-in-law’s Mom, Noreen Hurley, at the age of 86. She had known Mrs. Hurley from the age of 13 and loved to get cards and letters from her. Her penmanship was truly amazing. Mrs. Smith was in awe at how accurately and elegantly her letters were formed.

Mrs. Smith decided that she wanted to organize a handwriting competition as a worthy memorial to this loving wife and mother. Mrs. Hurley truly valued education, both of her sons became teachers and they married teachers! Mrs. Hurley volunteered as a “Lunch Lady” at her local elementary school in Yorkshire, England, for many years and was beloved by all the children. She was someone who influenced Mrs. Smith’s decision to become a teacher and Mrs. Smith will always be grateful for having known her.

The competition was held in mid-April and was organized by grade level. The winner of each grade level: Grades 3 & 4, Grades 5 & 6, and Grades 7 & 8 all received a pen, candy bar, and a certificate. The Grand Prize Winner also received a special Parker brand pen in a case and a golden trophy engraved with the words, “The Noreen Hurley Handwriting Trophy”.

Mrs. Smith and Ms. Lyons presented the awards at our Morning Prayer Service on Tuesday, April 24, 2007. Mrs. Smith would like to thank all who took the time to enter the competition and offers congratulations to all of the winners. She is proud of all of you and knows that Mrs. Hurley would be proud of you, too. Mrs. Smith is also grateful for the help from the faculty and staff who assisted in the final judging stage of the competition and to Mrs. McLeod for creating the certificates of achievement.