Sweet sendoff at Ocean Studies

Young Isla waves to teachers while celebrating the completion of kindergarten.

May 29 marked the final day of school for students at Ocean Studies Charter School at MM 92, oceanside, in Tavernier. While students have seen teachers and staff through the computer screen, it’s been a while since they met in person. As a final sendoff, teachers and staff stood 6 feet apart in front of the school to wave goodbye to students, who sat in their parents’ cars, for the summer.

Young Isla waves to teachers while celebrating the completion of kindergarten.
Ocean Studies Charter School teachers wave to students in the back of a truck as they celebrate the end of what’s been an unprecedented school year.
Principal Trisha Woods, teachers and staff stay socially distant as they wave to students in cars.
Jim McCarthy is one of the many Western New Yorkers who escaped the snow and frigid temperatures for warm living by the water. A former crime & court reporter and city editor for two Western New York newspapers, Jim has been honing his craft since he graduated from St. Bonaventure University in 2014. In his 4-plus years in the Keys, Jim has enjoyed connecting with the community. “One of my college professors would always preach to be curious,” he said. “Behind every person is a story that’s unique to them, and one worth telling. As writers, we are the ones who paint the pictures in the readers minds of the emotions, the struggles and the triumphs.” Jim is past president of the Key Largo Sunset Rotary Club, which is composed of energetic members who serve the community’s youth and older populations. Jim is a sports fanatic who loves to watch football, hockey, mixed martial arts and golf. He also enjoys time with family and his new baby boy, Lucas, who arrived Oct. 4, 2022.