Transition Day: Fair Haven marks students' move to new school
Knollwood School Principal Thomas Famulary looked like a general addressing his troops massed on Willow Avenue. He was even wearing a helmet. A bike helmet.
Famulary led 110 Sickles School third-graders Thursday on an annual rite of passage in the borough. On Transition Day, graduating students symbolically ride from their old school to the new school they'll attend in the fall, Knollwood.
In a state that seems to move at the speed of sound, the Transition Day ritual sums up what people like about living and raising a family in the borough.
"I think it's awesome. We've lived it, with two of my three kids who've done it," said Paul Elderhorst, who gathered with neighbors on a street corner to cheer, wave and take photos of the schoolchildren as they giggled, talked and rode their way along Third Street.Police stopped traffic on Fair Haven Road as three groups of third-graders, mixed with parents and faculty, pedaled into the future, escorted by a patrol car.
Elderhorst was among those parents whose children have taken the ceremonial ride. So was Marcy Brenner, parent of a seventh-grader, who held up a sign that said "Go Zach" in support of her neighbor's child.
"Four have done it; I have one to go," parent Clare Ryan said. "I think it's great. The kids get excited about going to a new school, they feel more mature. It's a rite of passage."
No one could say exactly how long Transition Day has been happening. Famulary said it has taken place for the 10 years he's been at Knollwood.
"It's a big deal, sort of like a graduation," he said.
After the ride, students toured Knollwood and were given a peek of what the school has to offer, down to the middle school band, where students demonstrated each instrument.
Transition Day is also a microcosm of Fair Haven's biking culture. The lot outside Knollwood had enough bikes parked in it to look like a suburban park 'n' ride lot on a busy work day.
"It's so indicative of what this town is. We try and ride our bikes everywhere we can," said parent Maura Thorp, who rode with her daughter. "Both principals are riding with them. It gives the kids a little more confidence about going to the bigger school."Unlike other towns, which are bisected by major highways, county roads and large local boulevards, Fair Haven has slower side streets perfect for cyclists.
"It's a small town with some major roads, like River Road, Ridge and Hance (roads), but there are a lot of side streets that make bike riding safe," Famulary said. "Kids are used to it. They bike to their friend's houses, to school."
Eighth-graders have their own transition day in reverse. After graduation ceremonies at Rumson-Fair Haven High School, they ride buses back to Knollwood and walk up Third Street to Sickles School for their graduation dance, Famulary said.
Parent Patty Gallagher said she remembers walking with her eighth-grade class back to Sickles after graduation, but Transition Day hadn't started when she was in school."This is my youngest," she said, having seen her two older children make the ride. "It's unique because most places where people live, the roads are too busy. Here we have the cooperation of the police, the principals, it's so cute."
And students anxiously await Transition Day.
"They get so excited. They hear about it from their siblings and peers," said Maggie Geiger, parent of third- and seventh-graders and a high school freshman, who rode in their transition days. "The kids say they remember it."See the Asbury Park Press article for a video of the bike ride at http://www.app.com/article/20100610/NEWS/6100349/Transition-Day-Fair-Haven-marks-students-move-to-new-school
