GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – Green Bay Area Public School officials will name their new westside elementary school after two local legends.
On Monday night, school board members voted to name the school Starr Elementary after Bart and Cherry Starr.
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School board members said it’s an effort to recognize the contributions that both Packers legend Bart Starr and his wife Cherry made throughout their lives to the Green Bay community.
“When I think about Bart Starr, I think about what we know about him and the kind of person that he is,” said GBAPS board member Alex Mineau. “He is such a respectful, honorable person. I’d imagine that he’d be delighted to have his wife have an opportunity to be included.”
“Both Bart and Cherry Starr made significant contributions,” said new school board president James Lyerly. “We heard from the community that it’s really important to recognize both male and female figures in the community. Both of them did everything together.”
Officials will build the new Starr Elementary School on the current Kennedy Elementary School site. It’s one of several projects that are part of the $183 million referendum voters approved for the district in November.
Students from Kennedy, Keller, and MacArthur will attend this new school.
Bart and Cherry’s son, Bart Starr Jr., said school district officials had reached out to him about renaming the school after his parents. He said it’s an honor.
“My goodness, Green Bay just had the most amazing draft,” said Bart Starr. Jr. “Now we get this news about this school. Could it get any better? They (his parents) would be over the moon.”
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Bart and Cherry co-founded Rawhide Youth Services, an organization that helps at-risk youth. They also created the Starr Children’s Fund, an endowment to finance childhood cancer research.
Starr Jr. said his parents loved the city of Green Bay and its people.
“They’ll say your parents meant a lot to the Green Bay community, but I like to remind them that they liked to look at it from the other side, that Green Bay inspired them to be their best,” said Starr Jr.
Starr. Jr. said he plans to come up to Green Bay to visit soon to see the site of the new elementary school and meet the people who made it happen.
School Board officials said they’re working with Packers Hall of Fame officials to get busts of
Bart and Cherry Starr installed in the new school when construction finishes up.
