Alma Schrader

One of the schools that would be upgraded if a proposed $40 million Cape Girardeau School District bond issue is approved next month is Alma Schrader Elementary School. This evening at 6:30 p.m. the school will have an open house marking its 50-year anniversary.

Like many of the district's other buildings, Alma Schrader needs electrical, mechanical, security and structural updates. Additional classrooms and a music room also are planned.

The school is named for a woman who devoted 50 years of her life to the school district as a teacher and as a principal of May Greene Elementary School. Schrader died several months before her namesake school opened.

Tonight's open house will include a reception for former students, parents and teachers. Fourth-graders will perform a musical review of the school's history.

The anniversary celebration is particularly nostalgic for those who taught at or attended Alma Schrader. They will have an opportunity to renew old acquaintances and friendships.

The reception also offers an opportunity for anyone whose life has been influenced by a special teacher to acknowledge the educators whose mission is to provide the best education possible for young students. Tonight would be a good time to say thank you.