Mercy students rest in a tree at Mahoney State Park during their Day of Discovery April 30. The girls, from left, Amanda Wiese, Amanda Sinnot, Steph Mailander, Danielle Dyer and Michelle Blanker, spent the day visiting sites along Interstate 80.
Students discover life outside classroom By LISA MAXSON Catholic Voice
Not all learning takes place in the classroom.
That's why the 353 girls at Mercy High School in Omaha escaped the walls of their school to explore new areas and try new activities.
The school's April 30 Day of Discovery gave students "a first-hand experience at an opportunity that might not otherwise be available to them," said student council faculty sponsor Kate Tarsney.
Students participated in one of 15 activities, which included learning how to play golf, fishing at a family farm and walking the Wabash Trail. Students even spent the weekend seeing the sights in St. Louis.
Other visits included a radio station, WOWT and the Omaha World-Herald, Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City, Fontenelle Forest and the Joslyn Art Museum.
Each adventure was chaperoned by one or two faculty members.
For freshman Jenny Kelly, the visit to teacher Scott Stara's family farm in Ulysses was an adventure, especially learning to fish.
"Everyone tried to catch a fish but no one caught anything. Most of us learned how to put worms, bobbers, hooks and weights onto a fishing pole," she said.
During the adventure along Interstate 80, 21 girls toured the Air & Space Museum, climbed the tower at Mahoney State Park, took a behind-the-scenes tour at the Schramm Park Aquarium and visited the Holy Family Shrine.
"The technology and intensity of the G-force ride was thrilling and intriguing," said freshman Anna Ahlstrom, referring to a centrifugal force simulator ride at the Air & Space Museum.
"My favorite part was the Holy Family Shrine," said freshman Michelle Blanker. "It was really pretty."
A weekend getaway took 41 students to St. Louis, where they visited the Gateway Arch, St. Louis University, Missouri Botanical Gardens, Union Station and the Science Museum.
"I learned a lot about myself and other people," said Caity Wessling, a junior who had been to St. Louis before. "I loved going with girls from all four grade levels because I got to know a whole new group of people. I learned a lot about history, heard many funny stories and made memories that will last a lifetime."
The goal of the day really was "to give our students some extra exposure and some new experiences," said Mercy spokesperson Maureen Falcon. "It gives them a chance to experience different things with their teachers that they otherwise would not get the opportunity to do."
