Article by Stephen Cavanaugh '08 of The Lancer, a publication of the South Lake High School Journalism program

The 'Sights of the Shores' is the first calendar St. Clair Shores has produced in four years. For the first time ever, the city has collaborated with students from here to make its publication possible.

"It-is-fantastic," St. Clair Shores Communication Director Mary Jane D'Herde said enthusiastically about printing a calendar for the first time since 2002.

D'Herde, who has worked for the city for the past 10 years, heard about the classroom project that English teacher Barb Taetsch's students were working on. After consulting with Taetsch, D'Herde decided to work with the high school writers and photographers to produce the calendar. She said the group has done an "extraordinary job."

"The text is extremely creative," D'Herde said. "And it's nice to see the perspective of a student - a young person-, rather than an older person's view of the city."

Some of the city's "sights" featured in the 2007 calendar include gardens, fireworks, toy trains, clocks and real fire trucks.

Last spring after consulting with the city's mayor Robert Hison and former mayor Curt Dumas, Taetsch decided that the calendar project would be a perfect showcase for her students' award-winning photographs, as well as what she describes as "creative non-fiction articles."

She said she loved how it forced her students to take a close look at their city, to see its beauty firsthand and to learn about it.

"The city officials were more than helpful with our project," Taetsch said. "They directed us to wonderful people who know and care about the city's history and its continued growth."

Despite the fact that some of Taetsch's student's are from surrounding cities and even foreign countries, they still managed to convey the appreciation they have for the Shores.

Approximately 24 student writers and photographers contributed to the calendar, from laying out and designing the project, to writing non-fiction articles, taking photographs, and sketching the needed artwork.

This calendar isn't merely a school project for many of the students. It also encouraged them to express themselves artistically and to have their work published in their local community.

"I like writing," junior writer Alayna Wilkins said. "And it's [the calendar] such a great opportunity for publication."

Other than the collection of photography, artwork and articles, this year's calendar includes information such as water bills dates, a frequently asked questions page, along with a city map and other essential city information and phone numbers.

"These are things that people need to know on a daily basis, so they don't have to call city hall, so they don't have to call th~ police department," D'Herde said. "The questions people have are answered right in the calendar. It has a 12 month shelf-life."

In the beginning Taetsch's idea was to use this calendar to help display her student work, but with time, she has discovered how useful a tool the calendar has come to be.

"While searching for the perfect vehicle to showcase my students' work, I stumbled across a meaningful calendar idea," Taetsch said. "With much help the rest is [almost] history."

The calendar is scheduled to be delivered to each resident's doorstep at the end of December.