The Hydetown Elementary PTG has a close relationship with local firefighters. When the Hydetown Volunteer Fire Department held a festival last spring with the theme “Patriots: Past and Present,” the school got involved. Each 5th grader was asked to compose a paragraph about any war in U.S. history, and the paragraphs were put together in a booklet. A top writer was chosen for each war. The top writers rode in the firefighters parade and then came onstage to receive a medallion. At the grade 5 end-of-year banquet, two firefighters handed out certificates to all the students. A few weeks later, one firefighter was told by a parent that her son hadn’t been interested in writing until he received the certificate. Since then, he’d been writing every night.