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Gift will build school's pool
By ED QUIOCO © St. Petersburg Times, published October 3, 2000 PALM HARBOR -- Students at the Palm Harbor Montessori Academy will learn how to do something that comes in handy in Florida, thanks to anonymous benefactors who have given the private school its largest donation ever. The school plans to use the recent $200,000 gift to build an outdoor heated swimming pool at its campus on Nebraska Avenue, school founder Christine Varkas said. The pool will be used for swimming lessons. "It's a huge deal," Varkas said. "I feel good about it because we have been part of this community for a long time, and it's nice to be recognized as the quality of education that we provide in a way that people are going to team up to help us be the best school we can be." The donors are Montesorri parents who live in Palm Harbor, she said. The school still is in the process of planning for the pool. There should be enough money to build the pool and have some left over to help pay for a recreation center, Varkas said. The campus at 2313 Nebraska Ave. has four buildings for toddlers, preschoolers, elementary school and middle school. The grant was given to the middle school program, which has 16 students and was started in the 1998-99 academic year, but Varkas said it will benefit the entire school. "Every child will be able to get swimming lessons as part of their physical education program," she said. "It was a wonderful surprise." The school was founded in 1983, has 220 students and also has a campus on East Lake Road. The yearly tuition for the middle school is $7,330. Despite its relatively small enrollment, the school has grown every year. "We are getting there, and we are picking up momentum every year," Varkas said. "This is big news for Palm Harbor, too. This kind of thing doesn't happen very often for us." Donna Lokey, whose daughter and son are students at the school, said the donation means a lot more to the school than just money. "This is the biggest thing that has ever happened since we decided to create a middle school," said Lokey, who lives in East Lake. "I'm just really glad to see the school grow and see other people be committed to it. It came from an anonymous donor, but I wish I could tell them, "Thank you.' " - Staff writer Ed Quioco can be reached at (727) 445-4183 or at quioco@sptimes.com.
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