May the circle be unbroken

FALLS VILLAGE — A wreath is only as good as its foundation — which in the case of wreaths made on production night by the FFA, is a wire coat hanger, twisted into a circular shape.Housatonic Valley Regional High School’s FFA students and alumni schedule two annual production nights each winter. Community members meet in the agricultural education rooms at the high school to create garlands, wreaths and other festive decorations, which are then sold on campus.Ricky Boardman was on coat hanger duty during the second of this year’s production nights, on Wednesday, Dec. 7, at Housatonic Valley Regional High School.Ricky, a freshman from Sheffield, Mass., explained, “It’s got to be a perfect circle in order to make a perfect wreath.”He cocked a critical eye at the hanger he was working on, and made a minute adjustment.“I get two points each,” he added.The students get points according to their output, which is part of their grade. To judge from the whirl of activity, there should be some happy parents when report cards next come out.Alexa Curtiss and her mother, Cindy, were fashioning tied bundles of white pine and Eastern red cedar into wreaths. Last year Alexa was on crutches, which cramped her style a bit, but this year the duo was in full swing.And at the next table Wayne Jenkins of North Canaan was making wreaths with the smooth, steady technique that befits an FFA alumnus (1959-1962). He said he’d probably make seven or eight wreaths in the two-hour period.FFA annual holiday sales are open every day from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. until Dec. 23. Students are selling wreaths (some of which are hand-tied), poinsettias, roping, Christmas trees, boxwood trees, kissing balls, garland, potted plants, floral centerpieces and Cabot cheese. In addition, the FFA alumni are selling amaryllis. Customers can select from a variety of fir and spruce trees. Special orders are taken for specialty wreaths, trees and floral pieces.