Combining aspects of new signage, park benches and tables, a storage shed, landscaping and a water-conserving sprinkler system, a three-year improvement project at Hooker Elementary School has brought a sharper appearance and regional attention to the campus.

Our judges extol the project for the excellent work by youth volunteers, and the Amarillo Globe News has named it one of the top 10 volunteer projects in the panhandle region. The elementary students raised over half of the $20,000 budget, with the faculty and staff of the school raising another quarter of it through a variety of ways.

Everyone associated with the improvements at Hooker Elementary School deserves congratulations for their success. The schoolchildren have learned lifelong lessons about teamwork, pride, and caring for the environment, and that is clearly good news.