April 3, 2017- Ribbon Cutting Event
Carina Walker, Kim Elsesser, Miwa Takayanagi, Board of Trustee President Margaret Breazeal, Justin W., Bridget Paciorek, Bradley M., Livia Aryananda, Michelle X., Matthew R., Jane Wang, Brian X., Kerry Reiling, Jake J., Jeffrey R., William Marelich, Jack P., Akira T., Chase W., Morgan K., Anthony C., Karen Paciorek, Coach John Paciorek, Kris Mohandie, Nova W., Ashby Z., Janna Hawes, Sherri Notley, Josh Elmore, Ashlee N., Kelson J., Nancy Larr, Headmaster Dr. Robert Nafie, Atticus W., Sara Williams, Terry Xu, Christian M., Carson P., Janice Elmore, Aidan C., Keith Zee, Jane Marks, Monica Chiu, Kyle Schaberg, Caroline K., and Dora Kwan.
Retiring Clairbourn Coach John Paciorek was honored in early April at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new state-of-the-art batting cage built on campus in his honor. Paciorek will be retiring after 41 years from Clairbourn School at the end of the 2016-2017 school year.
Joining the gathering of students and staff at the site of the new facility were a host of donors including the Batting Cage Fund Chairs and current Clairbourn Parents Dr. William Marelich and Dr. Kim Elsesser. The Marelich family had interest in leading the fund because of their son’s experience with John Paciorek as a coach. “We all know about his famous baseball statistic, but the reason we admire John Paciorek isn’t his record-setting performance in baseball’s Major Leagues. We appreciate him because of the joy he’s brought to Clairbourn students, and also to our son Bradley. John is not your typical P.E. teacher. He quotes philosophy, writes books, and never waivers in his pursuit of perfection. We are indebted to him for sharing his passion for learning and constant self-improvement with our son Bradley and all Clairbourn students.”
Batting Cage Fund Chairs Dr. William Marelich, Bradley Marelich, and Dr. Kim Elsesser.
The new batting cage, built by U.S. Sports Netting, is one of the largest and nicest in the area. It measures in at 70 feet long, 18 feet wide, and 12 feet high. It is an all-weather structure with a hard metal roof, interior padding over the poles, poly mesh panels that skim the chain-link sides to screen out the wind and sun-glare, and it includes UV treated and weatherproof black nylon netting inside the cage. There are two L-shaped protection panels which project from the sides, a movable custom 10-inch high pitching mound, and the structure has LED lighting on the ceiling and artificial turf on the floor. Pitching is handled by a top-of-the-line Iron Mike machine which is durable, very accurate, and will allow student athletes to experience the speed of pitches faced in games. The machine can also accommodate pitching distances from 45 feet up to 60 feet.
Eighth-graders congratulate Coach Paciorek: Oliver B., Jeffrey R., Zoe G., Sherry F., Emma L., Megan J., Makenna K., Evan X., and Alex X. 
Sixth-graders Kristy S., Samantha F., Angie C., Emily W., Chelsea C., and Kayla L. congratulate Coach Paciorek. 
Fifth-graders Wendy W., Raymond M., Aidan C., Cyanne J., Christian M., William H., Raymond T., and Andrew P. congratulate Coach Paciorek as they tour the new batting cage. 
Headmaster Dr. Nafie greets first grade students Hayden Y., Akira T., and Athan C. as they exit the new batting cage. 
Coach John Paciorek speaking to the crowd at the ribbon-cutting ceremony 
Coach Paciorek with his after-school baseball class students Adrienne X., Hayden Y., Jay Z., Akira T., Carson P., Anderson G., Jack P., Lukas D., Valen S., Marc C., Athan C., Ian L., Heath W., Atticus W., Atticus S., Jerry Z., Wesley C., Shogo H., Lucas H., and Jason Q. 
Headmaster Dr. Robert Nafie, Board of Trustees President Margaret Breazeal, Coach John Paciorek, Dr. William Marelich, Bradley Marelich, and Dr. Kim Elsesser.
Fans and friends of Coach Paciorek are encouraged to visit his Facebook Retirement page where they can send a greeting to Coach, share comments, and enjoy 41 years of photos at https://www.facebook.com/CoachPaciorek.
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