Bernabi sixth-grader Frank Bellnier portrays General Isaac Ridgeway Trimble. In 1861, Trimble had to make a choice. He had lived in Maryland for most of his life, but because he was born in Virginia, Trimble decided to join the army of the Confederate States of America. Trimble was badly wounded and captured by the Union army at Gettysburg. He survived the war, however, and when it was over, returned to Baltimore and his civilian career as an engineer.

Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass and Harriett Tubman all visited Bernabi Elementary School in Spencerport as part of a week-long residency in April about famous people of the Civil War era. People portraying the historical figures presented interpretations of their lives. The residency is one of the BOCES 2 ADEPT (A Diversified Enrichment Program for the Talented) program offerings.

Each day students learned more about these famous Americans. Then, the actors stepped out of character to talk with students about how to become a convincing character. This offered children the opportunity to work on questioning techniques from different points of view.

One group of students worked with an actor throughout the week to prepare an historical interpretation of their own to present, which was done at the end of the week in two all-school assemblies.

Administrative intern Craig Bodensteiner says the goals of the program were to help students learn about the significant roles people played in American history, learn how an actor creates and develops a convincing character, develop an understanding of the concept of first person interpretation, learn to pose questions from different perspectives and become more interested in biography as a genre of literature.