Set on a stage decorated with football balloons, Ferguson explained to his enthusiastic audience how important reading is and how discoveries are made through the books that are read. As an example, he pointed out the origin of his unique first name.
"I was named after a character in literature," he said. "My name comes from the book "The Thornbirds," a book that my dad read before I was born."
Ferguson touted an autographed jersey and two autographed books that were given out to students who went on stage and shared with him the books that they like to read. The athlete even vowed to read the books himself, taking out a pen and writing the titles of the books on a piece of paper.
When he opened up the floor for questions, one student asked him what inspired him to play football. The answer was a lesson in determination.
"When I was 8 or 9, I had to get heart surgery and I wasn't supposed to play sports," he began. "I didn't play gym in elementary school or even at Dodd. But I was frustrated. I just knew I had to make it happen," he said. "So I told my mom that I wanted to play football."
"She said that we would have to go to the cardiologist to see if it's okay. So we went to the cardiologist. After he checked me out he said, 'Go ahead. Play football,' and my mom's jaw dropped to the floor," he recalled, grinning.
Ferguson started on the junior varsity level, but admitted that he was a little frustrated. "But the coaches told me to stick with it. And that's what I did," he said. "I started small and it grew from there."
Ferguson's lesson to the students was this: "If you start small and stick with something there will be benefits.
"You don't have to read these huge novels. Take small steps and eventually you will get there," he said. "You know, I had some teachers who used to say it doesn't matter what you read the important thing is that you read. It's up to you guys to keep Freeport strong," he said to the cheering crowd. "You are the future of Freeport."
This year's PARP campaign, "Reading Rocks with PARP," runs from March 14 -31. Students are encouraged to read every night and log it in a journal that is returned to their teacher. The theme for the campaign will be carried out with various fun activities for the students, culminating in the Atkinson Idol Show on March 27 at 7:30 p.m.
Freeport Public Schools is a diverse, innovative district on Long Island's South Shore serving about 6,750 students in grades Pre-K through 12. The district and its eight schools take pride in having the region's only magnet schools of choice, a longstanding and award-winning classroom English/Spanish Dual Language Program, and a high school where students excel in competitions that include the regional Academic Challenge, Odyssey of the Mind and Future Problem Solving International. The district's New Visions School of Exploration and Discovery has been named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education for its high student performance and engaging curriculum.
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