The entire school community of Roosevelt Elementary School gathered in Teddy Bear Park on Monday, October 27, to sing happy birthday and honor the school’s namesake and 26th President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt.
Mayor Dr. David Gordon led the students, teachers and parents in the Pledge of Allegiance as U.S. Army Sergeant First Class Edmundo A. Bendana was flag bearer and color guard. The John Burroughs High School marching band played the national anthem as the entire group of nearly one thousand people sang.
Board of Education members Dave Kemp and Ted Bunch, along with Dr. Tom Kissinger, Assistant Superintendent of the Burbank Unified School District, were also in attendance. Burroughs cheerleaders performed several spirited cheers for the students and the JBHS marching band played additional music.
Roosevelt teacher John Pike dressed up as Teddy Roosevelt and many of the school’s nearly 600 students wore handlebar mustaches in honor of the 26th President’s iconic facial hair.
Principal Dr. Jennifer Meglemre sported a mustache-print skirt and several teachers dressed in cheerleading outfits in the school colors of blue and yellow.
Dr. Meglemre also highlighted that many of the students are learning instruments and she encouraged them to return to Roosevelt Elementary in a few years as members of the JBHS marching band.
After the program, parents and students gathered for a school-wide picnic, complete with a live DJ, conga lines, a dance party and free play recess time for the youngsters.
Roosevelt Elementary School opened in Magnolia Park with four classrooms in 1926. The school highlights its namesake in a variety of ways, including the before- and after- school child care (Rough Riders), the school’s mascot (teddy bear) and the school’s expansive playground and grass field (Teddy Bear Park.)
Every year, the Teddy Roosevelt birthday party is celebrated with a program and a family picnic. The school will mark its 90-year anniversary in 2016.
