The read-a-thon assembly began with the effort's leader, science teacher Becca Stolzenbach, thanking everyone who made the program a success, including the homeroom teachers for collecting envelopes and sending out reminders, the library team for their help with planning, a few specific individuals who stayed late at school with her on several occasions to get everything organized, and, of course, the students for reading!

"How many hours do you think we read?" she asked the Lower School student body seated in the auditorium. After taking a guess from the audience, she revealed the number: a whopping 3,592 hours! The fourth graders got a shoutout for their improvement in the amount of time they read — a collective 755 hours, which Stolzenbach noted was 300 more than their total from last year. Impressive!

Before revealing how much money was raised for charity, Stolzenbach said, "I thought it would be fun to celebrate with confetti." She called on fifth grade teacher Peter Hawkins and fourth grade teacher Michelle Turner to assist with the confetti cannons, and cheers erupted from all the students.

Representatives from the Ulman Foundation, an organization that creates a community of support for young adults impacted by cancer, happily received a giant check for $15,340.25! Congratulations to the whole Lower School for a job well done!