Summer Vacation

In 1503, Christopher Columbus discovered the Cayman Islands. He named the islands "Las Tortugas," meaning "the turtles," upon seeing the copious sea turtles that dwelled there. More than 500 years later, the islands are now thriving and are a popular place to visit. My family and I were fortunate enough to rent a house and spend a week there this summer. Stepping off the airplane in Grand Cayman, I didn't see any sea turtles, but I did see a steel drum band welcoming us to the island playing their traditional music.

Summer is a time for fun, relaxation, peace and quiet. Maybe a trip to a day camp or sleepaway camp. But a camp that's like college? Who would want more school, or anything like it, right? The National Student Leadership Conferences are an opportunity for high school students to gain leadership skills, meet new people, experience college life and learn about a chosen field of work. A few months before summer began I received a packet in the mail explaining that I had been nominated to participate in the NSLC program.

Early heat I hope that you're enjoying your summer vacation. We sure got that summer heat early! Church plans Funfest June 21 St. Paul's Reformed Church on U.S. 40, 3 miles east of Clear Spring, will hold "Funfest" starting at 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 21. There will be games for children to play, such as pick up ducks, bean bag toss, coin pitch, crafts and prizes will be given to all children. Also available will be a Moon Bounce Adventure and face painting.

Imagine soaring in the air in a small plane, leaving your worries behind and sailing through the sky. That's what I did this week. I flew a Cessna 172, a small single-engine airplane, at the Hagerstown Aviation Academy. I was with academy owner and instructor Evan Smith, who sat down with me and talked to me about his life as an aircraft instructor and about his school before he took me up to fly. Smith, 45, is the youngest of three siblings. His parents wanted him to become a physician like his father.

WAYNESBORO, PA. -- Editor's note: This is the 13th and final entry in a series of stories The Herald-Mail has published during the 2007-08 school year about Bobbi Blubaugh's fifth-grade classroom at Fairview Elementary School in the Waynesboro (Pa.) Area School District. For today's story, staff writer Jennifer Fitch talked with students about what they've learned. Check out Monday's Herald-Mail for Jennifer's column on what she learned in fifth grade this year. Weighed down by overstuffed backpacks, shoulder bags, canvas totes, plastic bags and lunch boxes, children shuffled out of Bobbi Blubaugh's classroom on Wednesday afternoon with everything that had been stashed in their desks.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Ella Starr's summer vacation after high school graduation will be cut short by her entrance into the U.S. Naval Academy less than 48 hours before Independence Day. "I wanted to serve my country all my life and be a surgeon," Starr said. Starr, 18, will graduate from Chambersburg Area Senior High School with about 700 other students on Friday. Time after graduation will be spent in continued work at Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar and preparation for the Naval Academy in Annapolis.

CHAMBERSBURG, PA. - Ella Starr's summer vacation after high school graduation will be cut short by her entrance into the U.S. Naval Academy less than 48 hours before Independence Day. "I wanted to serve my country all my life and be a surgeon," Starr said. Starr, 18, will graduate from Chambersburg Area Senior High School with about 700 other students on Friday. Time after graduation will be spent in continued work at Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar and preparation for the Naval Academy in Annapolis.

Creating art is a form of expressing yourself - a way to be yourself no matter what the public thinks. On July 9, I went to "Something Earthy," a two-week art camp in Damascus, Md. My good friend Sarah Ganassa's aunt owns the studio at which the camp took place. Sarah's family invited both Sarah and me to stay at their house for the two weeks. Throughout the camp, we learned many things, from centering clay on the wheels to creating tabletop fountains. The first day, I walked through the door and saw a very tranquil setting.

The Herald-Mail asked Bobbi Blubaugh's fifth-grade students at Fairview Elementary School in Waynesboro, Pa., to write essays about what they did on their summer vacation. Here are their largely unedited responses. · Anna Swink The day after school got out I went to the beach. The weather was very nice at first but later in the week the waves got very choppy and it was cool. I also went to camp this summer. The camp was called Rhodes Grove. That is what I did this summer.