Prince Edward County High receives a piece of history

Published 4:25 am Friday, October 21, 2022

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FARMVILLE – Prince Edward County High School recently received a handmade gift to help people remember significant parts of American history.

Bruce Springer is a community member who donated six framed speeches and documents from American history at the Prince Edward County Public Schools School Board meeting. The 93-year-old crafted and stained each of the six wooden frames to display these documents and help the younger generation remember their history and appreciate and preserve the freedoms they have in this country.

“I try to make [the frames] look as tough and strong looking as possible,” said Springer. “Like I think our Constitution is.”

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Included among these six documents is the Mayflower Compact of 1620 which gave a binding law to the pilgrims who came from England and which was a new settlement that would soon evolve into a separate nation, leading way for the others. The others include the Constitution’s preamble “We The People”, The Ordinance of 1787, Patrick Henry’s “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death”, “Congress of the United States” and the Declaration of Independence.

“I have a fear that someday the Constitution will not be allowed, that they will do away with it,” said Springer. “I hope 50 years down the road from now the younger generation will come to school and they will look on the walls where you have these and they’ll do research and they will think for themselves.”

According to Springer, this is not the only set of framed documents he has donated. He has also made sets for other public schools, colleges, universities, private schools and whoever is interested in getting a set. This is the fourth set he has donated with another one ready to go.

“On behalf of Prince Edward County Public Schools… thank you so much for your contribution and thank you for the beautiful woodworking and we appreciate you coming today,” said Dr. Barbara Johnson, superintendent of Prince Edward County Public Schools.