Hawthorne High School will have a new way to keep the community informed about all its activities when an outdoor digital sign becomes fully functional on Thursday, May 8, 2014. The sign, at the corner of Warburton and Parmelee Aves (which replaces the old marque sign that relied on manually changing each letter of the message once a month), will have a wireless router and be able to be programmed from any computer that has the digital software.

When the sign posts its first digital message on Thursday, it will be thanks to a five-year effort by the high school PTO. The PTO was struggling to raise the necessary $23,000 to finance the high-tech sign, when PTO member Lisa Kowalski approached Tony Rose, the marketing manager at Columbia Bank. “He was more than happy to help,” said Kowalski, who was delighted when Columbia Bank offered to pick up the entire cost. The PTO has contributed the $3,750 installation fee.

The installation of the sign over the weekend was quickly noted on the Hawthorne Families Community Board on Facebook. Board of Education member Abbey Goff wrote, “Looks amazing!! A huge thanks to you [Lisa Kowalski] and the rest of the PTO!!” Josephine Reilly added her thanks saying, “What a great gift from the bank. It makes me want to go open an account.” Celeste Iapichino agreed, adding, “I think we all should have accounts with Columbia.”

The Hawthorne High School community is grateful to have the support of such a dedicated PTO and to be the beneficiary of Columbia Bank’s generous community outreach.