Gabi Oliva, a third grade student at Old Bethpage Elementary School, was surprised on her birthday Tuesday afternoon when the Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School National Art Honor Society, during their induction ceremony, presented an illustrated book they crafted out of a story Oliva had written titled “Someday.”
Led by Adrian Kim, who is valedictorian of the class of 2013, Kim said the NAHS took an estimated two months to complete the book, which is 20 pages and features colorful artwork. Others in the NAHS who worked on the project include Samantha Sheinwald, Jena Stark, Madeleine Schultz, Samantha Valenza, Christina Billias, Dori Gronich, Ariel Borowsky, Amanda Slomovitz, Farrah Su, Brooke Holoman, & Bing Ying Xia.
The idea was first conceived by Superintendent of Schools Lorna Lewis, when she read Oliva’s story and asked her to read it at a board of education meeting this past December.
Filled with excitement, Oliva surprised her family and administrative members even more when she said it took only twenty minutes to write the story. With the premise of thinking about the future, the story ends with the lines: “Someday, the world will be as one, but for now, we’re only halfway there.”
Copies of the book will be made available through the district, and sold at fundraisers.
