Colors Day reflects student spirit with color and attracts a familiar icon

Post date: Jul 07, 2015 7:50:50 PM

A large parade on school grounds consisting of classrooms of students and staff dressed in colored t-shirts, a presentation recognizing positive citizenship and student art with medals, a slide show and video presentation, field games including relay races, food and a very large corporate hot air balloon all added to the excitement and color of this year’s Colors Day at Wells Elementary School on June 18th.

The purpose of this annual June event, which is entering its 29th year, is to promote cooperation, sportsmanship, teamwork, and fun among members of the Wells Elementary School community.

New this year was a visit from one of RE/MAX’s hot air balloons and crew invited to the event by Josh Lagasse of the RE/MAX office in Ogunquit. Lagasse was accompanied to the event by Ina Toth of RE/MAX. Adults were allowed a brief ride up to about 50 feet on the tethered balloon in exchange for a small donation to Project Graduation 2016.

Colors day is organized and sponsored by the PTSA for WES with additional sponsorship from many area businesses. According to Assistant Principal Ken Spinney, this years slide and video show was assembled by Ken Webb, (a technology teacher in Saugus, Massachusetts) and shown to the entire student body by Webb with assistance from Inger Gregory, and Physical Education Teacher Kathy Calo.

It was Calo who initiated Colors Day on a much smaller scale in 1987. In the early years Calo was assisted by Laura Subilia-Bell with the event's planning and other tasks. Each year several hundred t-shirts are printed and handed out to students for Colors Day. This year it was student Michael Lewinski's logo design that was selected to be printed on the front of the shirt.

Students in the Multi 4 class of Melissa Stapleton and Beth Bush dressed in green playing in the ‘Torch Race’ on Colors Day 2015 at WES. Facing the camera and carrying the torch is Grady Roy. Waiting for Roy at left is Luke Keniston. Other field day games include tug of war, and bucket brigade.

Students in red and purple take a break from Colors Day activities and gaze out at the hot air balloon below at WES on June 18th