Dictionary Project

On January 15^th, the Rotary Club Chairperson for our Annual Dictionary Project, Jeff Thompson and his committee consisting of Jay Sedlak, Stan and Nan Roe, Tom Thompson, Dave Thorman and John Mangels delivered one hundred and ninety (190) new glossy Dictionaries to grateful 3^rd graders at Detering and Carmichael Elementary Schools. These high quality dictionaries  consist of 912 pages, fully illustrated, and published by Simon and Shuster, entitled “Dictionary for Children, 4^th Revised Edition (2004)".

Jeff Thompson (photo on left) is the founder of the project for the Carmichael Club. He once was a student at Detering Elementary and struggled mightily with his spelling. Seven year’s ago, Jeff became enthused about the project because he could see that having these dictionaries, at this time in a child’s life, could markedly improve his or her chances of doing better at school and in life.

Dave Thorman, President of our Club stated: "It was extremely positive and moving for us!  The kids loved the dictionaries, particularly when they found out they could keep them forever!  I have learned that some kids have no books at home, so the dictionary becomes their first book. I did give a little speech in each classroom and the response was very positive from everyone.  At the end of my speech I asked them to look up a word..."teacher", which they did, and started to learn how to use the dictionary."