By Pat Jenkins The Dispatch "In an age of technology and an ever-shrinking society," Community Day is a constant in Eatonville. That was the message Krestin Bahr, superintendent of the Eatonville School District, conveyed last Friday during the 2015 edition of the celebration of community connections and longevity. In what has become a tradition lasting 89 years, a standing-room-only crowd in Eatonville High School's gymnasium watched the pageantry of the royal court's introduction, applauded student entertainment, and listened to speeches and presentations that trumpeted the virtues of community. The latter included the announcement of the latest Award of Distinction recipients GÇô Reilley Bell and Lauren Surface, who were valedictorians in their high school graduating classes of 2005 and 2002, respectively. Bell went on to become a professional ballerina, currently with the Alberta Ballet in Canada. Surface earned a doctorate and teaches molecular and cellular biology at Harvard University. Surface was on hand to receive her award. Bell couldn't attend, but her award was accepted by her mother, Ronna Bell, an art teacher at the high school. The professional successes of Bell and Surface since leaving Eatonville are a source of local pride and examples of what Bahr described as the basic element of Community Day: "Eatonville is strong. Strong schools equal strong community." Schools were dismissed early Friday and adults, taking a break from their usual workday and home routines, streamed to the gym to be part of the Community Day unity. The event started in 1926 and has come to symbolize the links between the town's schools and the general populace.
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