For Immediate Release

Wednesday, May 2, 2018

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

Moharimet Elementary School Hosts Pancake Breakfast with Homemade Maple Syrup 

DURHAM — Oyster River students, faculty and community members received a special treat last month as Moharimet Elementary School marked its 26th successful maple sugaring season with its annual pancake breakfast.

On Saturday, April 14, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., school staff and volunteers cooked and served hundreds of pancakes, sweetened by Moharimet-made maple syrup.

For over 2 1/2 decades, students have been tapping maple trees and collecting sap. Teachers, parents, and community volunteers then boil the sap in Moharimet’s own sugar shack. Jim Davis, a former Moharimet parent, leads the sugaring work and has shown thousands of students how to boil syrup.

“Sugaring provides endless opportunities for our students to get outside, learn and explore,” said Holly Burt, Moharimet’s event organization and enrichment activity coordinator. “It is a really unique program that helps make Moharimet so special.”

The pancake breakfast also featured local musicians (adult groups and the Oyster River Middle School jazz band) and dancers, who kept guests entertained as they dined. Student artwork related to maple sugaring was on display and Davis provided tours and explanations of the sugar shack and the evaporator to those interested. There was even an oxen demonstration, where Tyler Allen, a resident from Lee who works at San Wall Farm, illustrated how the animals pull sap collection buckets on sleds.

Principal David Goldsmith would like to thank the Oyster River Sustainability Committee and the University of New Hampshire for their support and assistance with the breakfast.

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