Acorns given to schools making a big eco effort
0 Comments | Express & Echo; Exeter (UK), Mar 2, 2010 | by ANNE BYRNE
WHAT a day to remember! Green cocktails; TV personalities including naturalist Nick Baker; Exeter’s Lord Mayor at everyone’s beck and call to sign autographs; plates piled with food — and those Acorn Award winners to announce!
Yes, it was the first award ceremony for Exeter schools’ Green teams and everyone had tons of fun. And welcome to the special supplement to celebrate the day.
It is packed with pictures and cartoonist Ross Hendrick, who does such a wonderful job recounting Genius Greenius’ adventures each week, has created a front page especially for this souvenir edition of the Echo’s Green team supplement.
The Acorn Awards were to celebrate the achievements of the 12 schools which signed up to have Green teams in the first year of the campaign.
And those schools which have joined since should not feel left out as we will soon be launching a new Green team Big Project which will be open to all Green team schools.
Nick Baker was so impressed when he heard about what the Green teams had been up to that he told them he wanted to visit them all in their schools: “You are all brilliant and have shown yourself to be a bunch of very, very green ambassadors for the future. What you are doing is the most important thing as what you are doing now will still be there when you move on from your school.”
Compere for the day was TV sports reporter Mark Tyler who said: “The teams are absolutely great. Everyone is learning about green things and having fun at the same time.”
Genius Greenius himself was there looking resplendent in a new outfit made specially for him by Anne Milne, a member of the craft club at Heavitree Parish Church.
He was there to talk to the Green teamers about their projects and hand out glasses of his green cocktail. He maintained that it contained frogs but we are sure Denis the Dustcart would not let him make drinks with any such thing!
Other highlights of the event included Ross Hendrick doing some quick-fire sketches, and star footballers Matt Taylor, Exeter City’s captain, and striker Stuart Fleetwood were there to sign autographs.
And there was even a spot of magic from magician Ozzy D. Eight- year-old Amelia Clancy-Mitchell from Alphington Primary School said: “He pulled a playing card out of my ear. He really did!” And nine- year-old Reese Saunders, from Countess Wear, said he had liked the cocktail but did not believe for a minute that there were really frogs in it.
The Green teams are sponsored by the Echo, Exeter City Council and Gregory’s Distribution.
Cllr John Winterbottom, Exeter’s Lord Mayor, who welcomed everyone on the day, thoroughly enjoyed the ceremony: “It has been an amazing day. The children have enjoyed themselves and really deserve the awards they have been given and I hope that the Green teams will continue into the future.”
Echo editor Marc Astley said: “It was a super day
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