Facebook Friday: Well Wishes for Central Principal Gina Rodewald

Here at Lemont Patch, Facebook is a big deal.

Not only does Facebook allow me to share stories and quick updates, but it allows me to interact with readers, answer questions and see what the community thinks about some of the biggest issues in town.

This week, we welcomed 11 new fans. We love and appreciate all the support, so we hope you'll continue to share our Facebook page with friends.

Every Friday, we'll highlight some of the comments on our page, and we'll even share some of our community pages.

On Thursday, we reported that Central School Principal Gina Rodewald had formally submitted her resignation to take a position in another district for the 2011-2012 school year. A number of readers took to our Facebook page to share their thoughts on her departure:

• Marcus Hebda: So it begins...
• Marilou Purpura: She will be missed, my children go to rv, but I know her through girl scouts and she has always been kind . I wish there was a different outcome we are losing such wonderful people, and yet the same idiot who got us here is still in charge, yeah I said it.....now I will go in the corner and hide...
• Holly Sheridan Tolly: thank goodness she is going to a well run district
• Chris Rinchich: I agree with your statement, Marcus. This is the beginning of a future set of consequences we, as a district, will be facing for not financially supporting our schools. This news brought me to tears. Gina Rodewald is the finest principal 113a has, and she will be missed. I wish her the very best in her future endeavors at Gower, but knowing that our children will lose such a dedicated and amazing leader breaks my heart.
• Marcus Hebda: I want to be angry for the stupidity that has lead us directly to this point but what is the point.
• Robyn Rehor Horn: Such sad news... I adore her and my daughter does too. Central school (if it remains open) won't be the same without her, but who can blame her?
• Rich Rinchich: Gina is one of many excellent educators we will lose. When the opportunity presents itself...our amazing teachers will move to greener pastures vs. facing an uncertain future and further hardships when Central School is closed. We would all do the same in our own professional careers.
• Rich Rinchich: One Board of Education candidate asked me what's the big deal in closing Central School. "We'll move the teachers and kids to the other buildings". That candidate and our voters didn't understand/care enough that the heart out of our scho...ol system would be ripped out. On April 5th, a majority of voters in our community turned their backs on our kids. Those who voted not to pass the referendum became equally as responsible as the former school board members that got us into this mess.
• Robyn Rehor Horn: Rich, although I do adore central school, Im ok with closing it if it saves us teachers. Sure, in my opinion, it's the heart of the district. It's "history"!! but Id rather my kids have smaller class sizes. I love it for the small size, ...but now I"m wishing it was larger so we could move the RV kids here ;) There's always something very quaint about old buildings! Although thinking it is the "heart" of the district has so much to do with Gina Rodewald! She makes every kid feel special there!
• Rich Rinchich: Robyn...I agree...Gina is the "heart of Central" and Central is the heart of 113a. Central's building and the culture Gina fostered with her staff reminded me of my elementary education where the grade school was a huge part of a neighborho...od. When we moved to the grade center education model, the grade school became less of a focal point for the neighborhood. Gina's leadership and culture she crafted at Central overcame this. When the Early Childhood program moved from Central...I already know firsthand the loss of Gina's guiding hand and influence. 
• Brenda Monk Douglass: She will be greatly missed... Gower should be thrilled to get her!

Using Facebook's new "Question" feature, I took an informal poll of fans' favorite spring pastimes.

The top vote-getters were:

• Baseball: 5 votes
• Grilling: 4 votes
• Boating: 2 votes
• Boozing: 1 vote
• Bicycling: 1 vote
• Running outside: 1 vote
• Gardening: 1 vote

This week's Facebook Page of the Week goes to the Lemont Quarryman Challenge . The page is a great way to keep up with the annual race, which will be held Saturday, May 7, in downtown Lemont.