Working this summer … and loving it

Like many educators, Holly Blashfield has plenty of activities planned this summer — she just happens to be bringing about 100 kids along with her.

Blashfield, a social studies teacher in Homer Community Schools near Battle Creek, founded and directs the Homer GAP program, which has provided Homer K-8 students with fun, safe and engaging activities during summer break for 20 years.

Blashfield launched the program through a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and it’s now mostly funded thanks to the support of a few local foundations and other community stakeholders.

Each summer, more than 100 children enroll in the program, which is open to all K-8 students in the district.

“You name it, we have done it with students in the summer,” Blashfield says, rattling off a litany of activities such as canoeing, woodworking, cooking, Tigers games, the Air Zoo, miniature golf, hiking, bowling and more.

A fellow HCS teacher helps Blashfield run the program, and they are assisted by several high school and college students as they make their way all over the state.

Blashfield says she’s thrilled to have the GAP program back this year, after having to cancel last year’s adventures due to the pandemic.

“It was incredibly sad not to be able to have a program last year,” Blashfield says. “As soon as I could start planning this summer is when I got my ‘normal’ back. My co-leader and I both teach middle school and high school, so the GAP program is a great way to establish relationships with our future students and make school an incredibly fun place to be.”