[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 134 (Wednesday, September 25, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S11319]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 TRIBUTE TO THE COMMUNITY OF NORTH CHARLESTOWN, NH, FOR RENOVATING THE 
                             FARWELL SCHOOL

 Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to the 
families of Harvey Hill and Paul St. Pierre and all the residents of 
North Charlestown, NH, who renovated a 105-year-old two-room building 
to provide additional space for the Farwell School. The philanthropy of 
the Hill and St. Pierre families and their community is truly 
commendable. Last month, the residents of North Charlestown gathered 
for a ribbon-cutting ceremony, a family-style barbeque, and soccer 
games to celebrate the recent opening of the new Farwell School.
  Harvey Hill and his wife, Christina, who are North Charlestown 
residents, donated $450,000 for the construction of the old Farwell 
Elementary School. He is the Editor of the Claremont Eagle Times and a 
successful businessman in North Charlestown. Hill is a graduate of the 
original Farwell School and has a daughter who now attends the new 
elementary school. Before the addition was built, Hill's daughter was 
bused to the North Walpole School, which took a total of 2 hours every 
day. The Hill and the St. Pierre families have tried several times to 
get a bond passed, but were unsuccessful. Harvey and his wife are 
pleased to have helped with the education of the children in the Fall 
Mountain School District.
  The St. Pierre Family also contributed an enormous sum for the 
construction of the new school. Paul and Rolande St. Pierre are parents 
of thirteen children and operators of a successful construction 
business in North Charlestown. The family donated part of the land for 
the addition of the Farwell School. Additionally, the St. Pierres 
performed much of the construction and site work for the building, and 
donated $125,000. The St. Pierre family, like the Hill family, did not 
want North Charlestown children to have to ride the bus for two hours 
every day.
  The extra space in the Farwell School provides several advantages for 
the community of North Charlestown. For the last 16 years, 45 of the 80 
students now attending the new Farwell School were bused to the North 
Walpole School 16 miles away. Not only do these North Charlestown 
children now attend school closer to home, but the transfer of the 
students frees up more space in the North Walpole School. The expansion 
of the Farwell School has helped decrease the problem of overpopulation 
in the Walpole School.
  The Farwell Trust, the group that previously owned the building and 
land, donated the existing building, valued at $150,000, and the 5-acre 
property, valued at $100,000, to the Fall Mountain Regional School 
District. This gift freed the Farwell School from having to pay rent. 
These savings combined with savings from the elimination of two bus 
routes to neighboring North Walpole will save the school district 
money.
  Before the Hill and St. Pierre families offered their donations, Fall 
Mountain voters rejected a new school for several years. In response 
residents and volunteers worked hard to raise $58,000 in donations, 
which arrived in the forms of money, supplies, and other essential 
gifts. Even with these donations, the new elementary school still would 
not have been possible without financial assistance from the Hill and 
St. Pierre families.
  The students who now attend the Farwell School appreciate the 
community's hard work and dedication in making their school truly the 
school that volunteers built. They are also grateful for the tremendous 
gift the Hill and St. Pierre families have given them. Indeed, the 
young children of North Charlestown are enthusiastic about their new 
school. How wonderful to know that the children of America, who are the 
future of our country, are eager to receive an education.
  The expansion of the Farwell School would not have been possible 
without the generous donations from the residents of North Charlestown. 
I commend the Hill and St. Pierre families for their generous 
outpouring of support, and all the volunteers who made the Farwell 
School expansion possible. The North Charlestown residents should be 
very proud of their new school. They have given such a wonderful gift 
to the children in their community.

                          ____________________