On May 8, 2018, we hosted our annual End-of-Year Celebration for our John Moffet Elementary School students and their families at Circle of Hope Gallery! Each year we come together in Kensington to showcase all of the incredible work our students create during the academic year with a potluck and performances. This year, we had the opportunity to invite our students from Al-Amal Percussion Ensemble at Northeast High School. They traveled to Kensington from Northeast Philadelphia to drum with our Moffet students. We also partnered with The Clay Studio to provide a wheel-throwing demonstration by Roberto Lugo!
As guests and families arrived, they enjoyed the clay demonstrations and an exhibition of artwork made after-school with Visual Art Director Lisa Volta, including exciting cyanotypes (sun-prints), ceramic tiles based on food studies, and gold abstract paintings. During the recital portion of the afternoon, the students showed off their newfound skills in percussion and choir, and Program Coordinator Soumya Dhulekar surprised the audience by inviting students to take the stage and share speeches about the year! Two students from each class stood up and shared their favorite things about each class, and thanked their teachers. Here are some quotes from their speeches:
“My favorite part about drumming was learning new rhythms and solos.” — Jehaid, Grade 3
“My favorite part about singing was learning new notes.” — Sofiah, Grade 2
“My favorite part about art was the clay.” — Areliz, Grade 3
Photos by Chip Colson
Choir Director Serge El Helou led students in several songs, including an adorable rendition of I Believe I Can Fly, performed in both Arabic and English. Afterwards, Percussion Director Hafez Kotain closed out the afternoon with Moffet students drumming alongside our Northeast High School Al-Amal Percussion Ensemble.
Shukran to students (current and alumni) and families for your participation! And Alf Shukr to Circle of Hope, The Clay Studio, Al-Amal Percussion Ensemble and to our incredible teachers and staff: Hafez Kotain, Serge El Helou, Lisa Volta, Irene Pelech, Soumya Dhulekar, Adam Bdeir, Alia Barakat, and Kathryn Medina.
Big thanks to our supporters who have made this program possible this year: William Penn Foundation, Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation, and Philadelphia Cultural Fund.
