School Visits & Sister City Signing Ceremony

Tuesday was another long but productive day. Our delegation visited several schools as outlined below.

Larne High School
We were very impressed with Principal Armstrong and the students at Larne High School. After we presented a Blue Eagle football jersey to the Principal, we toured the school and spoke with some of the 600 students. Each time we entered a classroom of kids, they all stood in their uniforms to recognize Principal Armstrong. After touring the facility, we met at length with the Principal and Vice Principal.

Larne Grammar School
The name of this school may be a bit misleading to folks in the US. This is not what we would consider an elementary school. It's actually a school of 720 11 to 18 year old's. The kids who plan to continue on to a university, attend Larne Grammar School. We toured the facility and saw these bright kids working away in the classrooms. The Principal is very interested in working with the Clover School District.

St. Comgall's College
This is a Catholic school of approximately 200 students. We sat down with the new Principal at the school, who told us that they are about to combine with two other Catholic schools in the area.

Roddensvale School
We were delighted to get to see the kids at Roddensvale after some of them visited with us earlier this year. The facility is almost as amazing as the kids. After touring the school, we were able to enjoy some great singing by some of the kids. Mason stood out to all of us. He has an incredible memory, recalling the name and mascot of the opposing team they saw play the Charlotte Knights. He sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" like we've never heard. Then, he quized each of us by asking us who we are and what we do. He asked some of us if we worked in a restaurant because of our white shirts with the same Town of Clover logos. He made our day with laughter!

Sister City Signing
We attended a Sister City Committee Tuesday night, where the final order of business was the official signing of the sister city agreement on Ulster soil. Both Mayors signed the agreement, and then came the hundreds of pictures! Honestly, we can't wait to share the pictures of the two delegations together. This was a long time coming. We then exchanged gifts, had dinner in the Mayor's Parlor, and chatted at length with our friends from Northern Ireland.

Although the visits with the schools were very productive and promising, the highlight of the day was being able to sign the agreement with Larne. Many Clover leaders and residents have worked hard to develop a relationship, and we feel fortunate to be able to represent Clover in taking the next step in this partnership.