From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
PINSON — Pinson Valley High School is set to host an Alabama Bicentennial Showcase on Saturday, April 20.
The event is free and will take place in the school’s fine arts wing from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The showcase will feature local artists and musicians, including the Pinson Elementary Clown Troupe, Kermit Johnson, Rudd Middle School and PVHS choirs, PVHS Jazz Band, and the Random Mountain Ramblers. A small-plate tasting will feature family recipes from the Pinson community. Artwork from award-winning PVHS students will be displayed. Students will also share stories that have been collected from residents relating to their memories of Pinson.
Pinson Valley High School’s contribution to the Bicentennial project was to forge connections between disparate groups within the community. To that end, Pinson Valley High School brought together some of the areas youngest and oldest adults to laugh, love and learn from each other.
“I wrote this grant last year on behalf of PVHS and was thrilled that we were selected as an Official Bicentennial School,” said PVHS educator Jennifer A. Moore. “Our project allowed students to make connections within the Pinson community that they likely otherwise would not have made. The students enjoyed visiting the Pinson Senior Citizens Center several times and interviewing members there about their memories of Pinson. Students also spent one day at the Pinson Library at the newly renovated Rock School Center to interview residents. This is truly a student lead project; they are the writer(s), editors, and artist(s) that are creating this book. Our Bicentennial Showcase will be a community-wide celebration to culminate our Bicentennial School Project.”
Pinson Valley High School was announced by Governor Kay Ivey as one of 200 Alabama Bicentennial Schools on Aug. 13, 2018, after completing a rigorous grant application process. Each of the schools selected received a $2,000 grant to support a year-long project designed to strengthen connections between campuses and their communities. The PVHS project is bringing multiple generations together to merge fine arts, culinary arts and memoirs to create a keepsake book for the Pinson community. The book, which will be published in May of this year, is entitled “The Pinson Writer’s Project: An Anthology of Prose, Art, and Recipes.” This showcase is the culminating event of the school’s project.