Wilson Junior Academy student Miranda Groleau recently brought Violet Jessup, the “unsinkable” Titanic survivor, to life during the school's “Night at the Wax Museum" on March 5. (Contributed photo)

Wilson Junior Academy welcomed families and community members on March 5 for an Open House and Visitor’s Day, transforming the school gymnasium into a captivating “Night at the Wax Museum.”

Parents, grandparents and neighbors strolled through the school’s gymnasium, where students stood motionless in elaborate period costumes before springing to life to portray legendary Americans. The interactive exhibit combined theatrical performance with historical education, allowing guests to step back in time and speak directly with some of the nation’s most influential figures.

Dressed in a khaki Rough Rider uniform complete with spectacles and a mustache, Teddy Messersmith became Theodore Roosevelt, recounting his charge up San Juan Hill and his tireless crusade to protect America’s national parks.

Nearby, Abraham Lincoln impersonator Tred DeGrave in a stovepipe hat and black frock coat fielded questions about the Emancipation Proclamation and the meaning of “government of the people, by the people, for the people.”

Another figure was Violet Jessup, the “unsinkable” Titanic survivor, brought vividly to life by student Miranda Groleau in a crisp nursing uniform. Visitors listened as she described surviving the collisions of both the Olympic and Titanic ships, then serving as a nurse aboard the Britannic during World War I.

There were fourteen exhibits in all: Ezar Boerschinger as Desmond Doss, Lennon Mykkanen as Lafayette Green Pool, Mo Messersmith as Audie Murphy, Cari DeGrave as Ola Mildred Rexroat, Cora Degrave as Ruby Bradley, Bree Jorasz as Eleanor Roosevelt, Miranda Groleau as Violet Jessup, Ava Groleau as Ruth Becker, Teddy Messersmith as Teddy Roosevelt, Nathan Jorasz as Thomas Edison, Emily Walechka as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Tred DeGrave as Abraham Lincoln, Liv Groleau as Abigail Adams and Wade Degrave as George Washington.

Teachers and parents alike praised the event for its creativity and educational impact. By the end of the evening, the gymnasium echoed with applause and lively conversations as students broke character to pose for photos with proud families.

Wilson Junior Academy’s “Night at the Wax Museum” proved once again that when history steps off the page and into the present, young minds, and their community, light up together.