Our school, Deerfield Elementary, is in Harford County, Maryland which is located near the northwestern part of our beautiful Chesapeake Bay. In 1997, our school answered an "Ahoy!" from the Pride of Baltimore II, a goodwill sailing vessel, to create a school scrapbook that would sail aboard the Pride II on her year long hands-across-the-sea journey to the Orient.  The Pride II visited ports in China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan.  Our scrapbook was given to the Morrison Academy of Kaochsiung, Taiwan and in return we received from them many gifts of friendship.  The gifts included a yearbook, maps, a Kaochsiung CD, a school banner, and pictures of artwork.

The Pride of Baltimore II returned home from its 26,000 mile voyage to the Orient on November 27, 1998.  Again, there was an "Ahoy!" to participate in a Welcome Home Banner Contest.  And again we answered the call and created a banner welcoming the Pride II home.  We tied for first place with another elementary from the western part of Maryland.  The Prize?  Sailing on the Pride II as it ended its journey in the Port of Baltimore.  Three of our fifth graders along with our principal, Dr. Rachael Reid, and our enrichment teacher, Mrs. Margene Versace got the thrill of a lifetime as they sailed on the Pride II as it was welcomed by thousands in the Baltimore Harbor.

We wanted to learn more about sea adventures and we also like working with computers.  THINKQUEST is our idea of a perfect match.  So, we began researching topics related to maritime on the Internet and in the library.  Mrs. Rebecca Fitzgerald, gifted/talented specialist, made arrangements for us to interview her daughter, Erin Fitzgerald of the United States Merchant Marine Academy!

Mrs. Margene Versace, our schoolwide enrichment teacher, made arrangements for us to inspect the contents of the Pride II's Seaman's Chest:

We had a great time exploring the contents of the Seaman's Chest.   We discovered a navigational map with a caliper to measure distances.  We got to inspect pieces of a mast and the wood used to build the Pride II.  There were banners, flags, books, and even a ship in a bottle!  The ship in the bottle was a replica of the Pride of Baltimore II.  Another item we liked was the seaman's pants.  Famous sea explorers actually wore pants just like them.  After inspecting the seaman's chest, we were ready to learn even more about maritime!