LHS has many well known traditions, from the electric pep rallies to the beautiful sound of the Alma Mater being sung by the choir, but few are as well known as the Yard Jay.
Proudly displaying a handcrafted Blue Jay in the front of one’s house decorated and personalized with the student’s own unique touch for everyone to see has been a long lasting tradition. About 80 Yard Jays are sold every year and the tradition continues live on from year to year and class to class.
“It’s a great way to represent that you go to LHS,” TSA student president and TEAM leader senior Jess Watt said.
Although the tradition has been a stamp on LHS for a long time, little know how the Yard Jays are created.
A Yard Jay starts with a sheet of plywood and is made with the help of two of the schools club’s: Technology Education Association of Missouri (TEAM) and Technology Student Association (TSA).
“It brings our club closer together and helps get us more involved with the school,” Watt said.
For the Yard Jays, TEAM is in charge of gathering the materials. After TEAM gathers all the wood and poles. Then they use a machine called a CNC Router to cut out the shape of the jays.
“We use a program called Aspire to generate the drawing and it also writes the GM code for the CNC Router,” TEAM sponsor Dennis Blochlinger said. “We have it programed for the first bit to cut the inside details of the yard bird. The second bit cuts out the Yard Bird profile. Then the birds are ready to be hand-painted.”
TSA, sponsored by teacher Dathan Boden, helps complete the final task to finish the Jays.
“We paint all the colors on the Yard Jays,” Boden said. “We just get a blank sheet of plywood in the shape of the bird and we do the painting.”
TEAM and TSA have been making the Yard Jays since 2014. The profit made from making the Jays is used to support the club’s trips to State and National competitions.
“A unique part of belonging to TEAM or TSA is that you can take your projects that you’ve made in just about any class and take it to competition at the State or even National level,” Blochlinger said.
If you are interested in joining TEAM or TSA, both clubs meet in room 30, TEAM meets Thursdays during Liberty Hour and TSA meets on Fridays during Liberty Hour.
Yard Jays may be purchased by anyone attending LHS for $85. Help the long lasting tradition of the Jay continue by stopping by the main office to pick up a Yard Jay order form. Not only can you support TEAM and TSA, but you can also show your Blue Jay pride and continue the tradition!