Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
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The weather couldn't have been better on Monday for the kickoff of Clay Central/Everly's reinstated K-6 Maverick Relays. The event was hosted at the former CC/E football field and track in Royal. The day was divided in two, with K-2 grade events hosted in the morning and 3-6 grade events in the afternoon. K-2 participated in four field events first, including the football toss, Frisbee throw, softball toss and kickball kick. Students then headed to the starting line for the 50-meter, 100-meter...
Clay Central/Everly recently received two Iowa State Education Association (ISEA) Outreach Grants of $500 each to benefit the CC/E student snack program and Mav Pack backpack program. ISEA's mission is to "promote quality public education by placing students at the center of everything we do while advocating for education professionals." Members of the CC/E community help assemble and prepare the snacks and backpacks each week for the CC/E students....
CC/E fifth graders enjoyed the wonderful weather last Wednesday by heading out to Everly and Royal residents for a day of service learning. Students worked hard the entire day to help different homeowners with their yard work. The students' servant hearts and helping hands truly shined in the work they did. The homeowners were incredibly grateful and the Mavericks were thankful that they were able to take a load off of citizens' plates and help some very kind and wonderful community members in...
Clay Central/Everly Elementary was represented by seven fifth and sixth grade students last week at the Northwest Iowa Honor Choir in Sioux Center. Hundreds of students represented northwest Iowa in the concert hosted at Sioux Center Middle School. The day was filled with fun and a bit of fear as the students had to take shelter midday due to nearby tornado sightings. Fortunately, all were safe and the concert went off without a hitch. The students did a great job representing CC/E during their...
Clay Central/Everly students in grades 2-6 enjoyed a short exploratory class as a large group in March and April. They first interviewed staff at the Spencer YMCA to learn about different types of fitness, and the benefits of them. They then got to try out several different activities at the Y to see which ones they enjoyed. Later, when back at school, small groups of mixed ages worked collaboratively to research one particular topic (such as CrossFit, swimming, biking, etc.) and then they creat...
The Clay County Countrymen 4-H Club hosted its annual Easter Egg Hunt at the Everly City Park last Saturday morning to kick off the holiday weekend. A full shelter house of children ages 0-10 were there, ready to search high and low for Easter eggs galore. The Clay County Countrymen crew helped fill and hide over 1,300 eggs for the occasion. To the south, Royal Community Action's annual Easter Egg hunt was hosted at the Royal City Park on the same day. The event was complete with a surprise...
Last Friday marked Clay Central/Everly's final big event of a busy month – the annual CC/E Fish Fry and Carnival. The free-will donation event ran from 5-7 p.m., starting in the lunchroom where a delicious meal of fried Alaskan Pollock, macaroni salad, baked beans and drink were served. The lunchroom was packed nearly the entire night with diners galore. Following the meal, patrons headed to the gym where the carnival was abuzz. Children of all ages ran around from game to game, playing for t...
Holy Week has begun, with Easter Sunday just around the corner. Pictured here, Bethlehem Lutheran Church's Pastor Mark Wilms, shares the good word at one of the King's Kamp stations last Wednesday afternoon. Participants headed from station to station learning about Holy Week with the reenactment and telling of Biblical parables. Parables included Jesus washing the disciples feet, showing that if even He as their Lord could stoop low enough to wash their feet, then surely they can do so for one...
Students at Clay Central/Everly Elementary drew mock Dr. Seuss book covers last week as part of Read Across America Week. The creations were then voted on by the student body to determine the best covers....
Clay Central/Everly Elementary hosted its second fundraising event of the month last Sunday, the 2nd Annual Mother-Son NERF Extravaganza. The event hosted families from near and far, all looking for an afternoon of memory-making fun. Participants received a favor bag before heading to the CC/E lunchroom to gear up, load NERF guns and prepare for "battle." The sons and mother/mother-figures were given time to put on face paint, NERF face tattoos and then adorn themselves with glowsticks before...
The busy month of March has Clay Central/Everly hosting three large-scale fundraiser events for the Mavericks and the surrounding communities to enjoy. CC/E kicked off "fundraiser season" with its annual Daddy/Daughter Dance this past Sunday at The Great Hall of Royal. This year's theme was the ever-popular Barbie and Ken. Fathers, father figures and grandfathers brought in their little Barbies and Skippers to enjoy an afternoon of pure fun. Participants dined on delicious cookies, pumpkin bars...
Clay Central/Everly Elementary students celebrated their 100th day of school in style last Thursday, with a dress up day and a few glow-stick dance parties sprinkled throughout the day Mavericks of all ages came to school dressed in hilarious elderly clothing, drawn-on wrinkles and assisted-walking gear. The students and staff started their day in the gym, where they were given glow sticks. The lights were then turned off and the music was turned up for some blood-pumping dancing fun. The glow...
After a few weather-related postponements, Clay Central/Everly Elementary students last week were finally able to thank a vital piece of the Maverick Community – the Clay County Sheriff's Office. Students invited the department to the school where all gathered in the gym for morning free-play. The youngsters were thrilled when the deputies joined them in a game of knockout as the rest of the school trickled into the gym. After an intense match, CC/E staff members Iesha Toft and Michelle Huntress...
Clay Central/Everly Elementary hosted its first-ever "Read Around the Building" event last Tuesday. Numerous parents/guardians and community members were invited to read to students throughout the building. All found it fun to find any spot in the building to read. Pairs were reading in tents, on the stage, in custom-made reading nooks in classrooms and bean bags strategically placed throughout the building. The older students had the choice of being read to or reading to their special guest,...
Clay Central/Everly Elementary's newly-established Theatre Club performed their reader's theater performance of "Cinder...Really? The TRUE Story of Cinderella" to the school last week. Students and staff enjoyed the hilarious tale told from Cinderella's stepsister's and stepmother's perspectives. Regardless of the sweet Fairy Godmother's and charming Prince's efforts, the quite impolite and sassy Cinderella did not have her fairytale ending. However, the sweet stepsisters and stepmother lived...
Last week Clay Central/Everly Elementary hosted its 2023 Winter Concert on the Royal stage. The music room was packed, with more rows of chairs needing to be set up due to the largest attendance in years. The Mavericks' concert was entitled "WE LOVE CHRISTMAS!" and it showed with their festive and fun song selections from start to finish. The concert began with the preschool class singing two holiday favorites "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth" and "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer."...
No one-horse open sleigh or Rudolph was needed for Santa and the missus to arrive in Royal last Saturday. Instead, the pair arrived at The Great Hall of Royal via Royal Fire Department's ambulance, lights aglow and excitement abounding. The venue was adorned with beautiful trees, festively decorated by the teams, community members and businesses they represented. Santa and Mrs. Claus sat atop the stage and welcomed children to sit on their laps, telling them their Christmas lists and humoring...
Clay Central/Everly Student Lighthouse members hosted a school-wide assembly last week that covered the Leader in Me habit of putting "first things first." Bentlee Tewes (above) gave a demonstration using rocks, pebbles and sand poured into a vase. It showed that when you do the most important things first and add in what you want to do later, then you can fit everything in nicely with time and space to spare. However, when you do it the opposite way and do what you want before what you need to...
Clay Central/Everly Elementary brought back its Veterans Day program last week after a four-year hiatus. The largely student-led program started with a greeting from Director of Student Services Michelle Huntress. The students then led the audience in a spirited delivery of The Pledge of Allegiance followed by Iesha Tof singing the National Anthem. Students in grades 4-6 then took the stage to individually describe what Veterans Day stands for, how it was founded, and the reason it is...
Clay Central/Everly Elementary's Student Lighthouse Committee put together an assembly last week for their fellow students. Committee members went over the Leader in Me 7 Habits and how to display those habits properly in the school and at home. Following the assembly, the CC/E cheerleaders took the floor, getting the crowd engaged in Maverick and Leader in Me cheers. The student-led assembly is one of many planned throughout the year. They allow students to take leadership roles and encourage...
Some people request funds for every kind deed, seeking to be reimbursed whenever possible. Others give freely without a desire to receive. Everly local Louie Dehrkhoop is the latter. Known by many traveling on M27 for his beautiful yard displays and gardens, and by even more for his kind heart and amazing work ethic, Louie is a quintessential "good guy." North of Barb's Corner you will see his acreage on the west side of the road, with festive yard displays changing with the each holiday and...
Royal Chief Matt Goyette came to visit Clay Central/Everly Elementary students Tuesday morning to discuss the importance of fire safety. He encouraged the children to sleep with the door shut, knowing that this has saved countless lives by keeping the fire at bay and buying firefighters more time to save whoever is inside. He suggested the students make a fire escape plan for their home and to never play with flammable items. He also sent the children home with educational materials for the...
During the past few weeks, Clay Central/Everly 4-6 grade students have learned about the importance of using their voice, advocating for a cause, running for election, and what a good leader should stand for and do. Students were then able to choose whether or not they wanted to run for the Student Lighthouse (similar to student council) position. Running mates campaigned with posters and giving speeches. Ultimately, the classes voted for their Top 2 picks to represent each class, with six...
This week the Clay Central/Everly Mavericks are stepping out in style for Homecoming week. The week holds many fun events including poster contests, hallway decorating, flag football and an alumni-run cheer camp (pictured at bottom). Highlighting the schedule is the parade Thursday (today) at 1:30 p.m. on Royal's Main Street, and pep rally to follow. The week will end with awards for dress-up and poster contest winners and a teachers-versus-students kickball game. The public is welcome to...
There is only one thing that gets a Midwesterner out of school that's not a holiday, snow day or in-service day – the Clay County Fair. The World's Greatest County Fair has a reputation for inducing joy, excitement, the need to purchase a larger belt, and the enthusiasm of children and adults alike. The fact that we have such pure pleasure so close to home is not just luck, but a true blessing that we long for at the end of the summer and relish for the short nine days it is here. How many p...