Past and current students and staff of Palo Alto Middle School recalled 31 years of learning, love and tradition during a closing ceremony Monday in a packed gym.
At one end of the Palo Alto Patriots gym, Principal Christina Harris sat alongside former principals Kernisha Hill and Matt Widacki with other campus administrators and Killeen ISD representatives.
At the opposite end of the gym, the school’s band and choir assembled to lead the audience in a final performance of the school song and other selections.
Palo Alto’s dance team the Sparklers performed a moving lyrical routine, and an alumni step team roused the crowd with a spirited song.
Messages from school leaders and a pair of students followed a consistent theme – closing a school building does not end what makes a school most important.
As three decades of tradition closes, the friendships, lessons and memories remain.
“For 31 years, Palo Alto has been a place for students to discover their talents, build friendships and dream,” said eighth-grader Kayleigh Stanco.
“Within these halls, teachers inspired curiosity, encouraged perseverance and taught students to believe in themselves and their potential,” she said.
“Closing the doors of a school after 31 years is not easy. School becomes more than brick and mortar. It becomes part of our lives. It’s like a second home.”
“To our students,” said Harris, “carry the strength, resilience and spirit you have developed wherever you go. Staff, thank you for your unwavering dedication and love you poured into this community. Families, thank you for entrusting us with your student.”
The legacy of the school, the principal said, will live on in the lives of the people it has touched.
Another eighth-grader, Jabari Edwards spoke of legacy.
“Though we say goodbye to this chapter, we will always carry the memories and pride of Palo Alto with his,” he said. “Our legacy lives on by honoring the past and inspiring the future.”
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Palo Alto Middle School opened in 1995 in west Killeen.
That was the same year the district opened the Killeen and the Ellison ninth-grade centers, the forerunners to Harker Heights and Shoemaker high schools, which would expand to full high schools in 2000.
The first principal at Palo Alto was Jerry Lewis. Others included Melanie Henson, Dee Levens, Joe Coburn, Widacki, Hill and Harris.
The middle school was named for an early community located north of Killeen. Historic accounts indicate the Palo Alto school included split-log seats and a wood-burning stove. The village was eventually swallowed into Fort Hood.
Palo Alto was the predecessor to the city of Killeen that shifted southward in 1882 when the Santa Fe Railroad first came through.