Page 8 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • November 27, 2013 Ho-Ho-Kus Student poet presents award-winning work Erika Kluge, a student at the Ho-Ho- Kus Public School, read her award-winning poem, “Landfill,” for the board of educa- tion and several members of the public last week. Dr. Alexis Eckert, the school principal, introduced Kluge to the audience. The prin- cipal noted that students at the K-8 school are encouraged to participate in essay and poetry competitions throughout the year. She explained that Kluge’s work had been written for an environmental aware- ness poetry contest sponsored by the State Department of Education. After the meet- ing, Eckert mentioned that Kluge’s entry was particularly well received because it focused on a very specific aspect of envi- ronmental awareness: keeping items out of landfills. Ho-Ho-Kus Superintendent Deborah Ferrara added that Kluge was the school champion and was listed in the top 16 entries overall. The text of “Landfill” follows: If you were a landfill, What would you do If you were covered in 10,516,881 tons of unwanted goo? If you were a landfill, What would you say If you knew that the humans Didn’t have to dispose of their stuff that way? If you were a landfill, You would most likely exclaim, “Try a compost barrel for stuff, It’s not a big pain!” If you were a landfill, You would shout, “Donate your old items, Don’t throw them out! If you were a landfill, You would yell, “Please go green! Help make our world clean!” Kluge received a warm round of applause from the board, the public, and several of her peers who attended last week’s board of education meeting. J. CRUSCO Erika Kluge reads her award-winning poem. Also pictured are school trustees John Buffa and Ellen Walsh and Superintendent Deborah Ferrara.