Children at one school in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom are celebrating the results of a Town Meeting Day vote — on a ballot question the kids had a hand in shaping.
"Everyone needs a name," second grader Chloe Kempton said of the Peacham Elementary School's project to name the town's snow plows.
The idea to name Peacham's plow trucks, which are currently numbered one through five, first came up in an online community discussion.
Then, children at Peacham's pre-K-through-sixth-grade school provided suggestions, including Sparkles, Day Blaze and Fearless Frosty.
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Those names went on Tuesday's Town Meeting Day ballot for voters to approve.
"I think it just goes to show how much they value the kids, too, and want the kids to feel included," elementary school teacher Kelly Youngberg said of the voters of Peacham.
When the ballots were counted, the kids' plow picks got the thumbs-up, the school told NECN and NBC10 Boston Wednesday.
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"This makes Peacham and the Peacham [Elementary] School a unique and special community," observed Noelle Washington, a fourth-grader at the school.
If you're thinking the road crew may bristle a bit at some of those names — especially Sparkles — Peacham's road foreman, Jeremy Withers, acknowledged that is true.
"They're not as macho, or as tough, or I don't know what to call it, as the guys probably would've named them, but that's OK," Withers said of the names.
However, Withers said his team is really glad to know the kids got a glimpse at how local elections work.
Leo Kantrowitz, a sixth-grader at the school, said his fellow students could see local democracy in action.
"I think it's cool to have my voice be heard in the community," Kantrowitz added.
The early hope is the question will return on future Town Meeting Day ballots, with new names proposed as town vehicles enter the fleet, the school's principal indicated.
