Some Westbrook students celebrated the last day of school Monday by trading a yellow school bus for a white stretch limousine.

Nine students from Wescott Junior High, Canal and Saccarappa schools piled into the back of the long, white Lincoln stretch limousine for their ride, which included lunch at McDonald’s and a ride around town.

Tracey Geary set up the ride for her three children: Allison, who just finished eighth-grade at Wescott; Christopher, who just finished fifth-grade at Canal; Tim, who just finished first-grade at Saccarappa, and some of their friends.

Geary said she got a gift certificate for a limo ride from Custom Coach and Limousine through the Maine Public Broadcasting auction, and she decided to treat the kids as they began their summer vacation. “I thought it would be a great thing for the end of the year for them,” she said.

Saccarappa Principal Sharon Orlando, who is retiring at the end of the school year, said this was the first time she had ever seen a limo pull up to the school to pick up students. “I haven’t seen that before,” she said. “I thought it was a really neat idea. That was kind of a celebratory way to end the year.”

Sitting in the parking lot of Saccarappa School where the car had just picked up its last three passengers, the kids were in the car exploring their surroundings, with the youngest kids hopping up and down on the seats with excitement.

Geary said she decided not to make the ride a surprise because she needed to get permission to pick the kids up in the limo. Also, the kids all wanted to make sure everyone knew what would be waiting for them once school got out.

“They wanted to be able to brag about it,” she said with a laugh.

While they were eager to get underway, all of the kids said the experience of being picked up from school in a limo was something they would never forget.

“I thought it was pretty cool,” said Allison Geary. She said her friends were jealous of her limo ride, and that riding in a limousine was not a new experience for her. In fact, this was the second time in just a week that she had ridden in a limo. Just last week, she said she rode in a limo to get to her school’s end-of-the-year semi-formal dance.

Allison’s friends, Brooke Sinko and Liz Thibodeau both said they were having fun sitting in the back of the plush car. “It’s cool,” said Thibodeau.

Chris Geary said this was his first time in the limo. Geary, who will be entering sixth-grade at Wescott this fall, said he especially liked telling all of his friends about how he was getting home from school. “It was cool because you got to (brag to) the kids who weren’t riding,” he said.

Geary’s friend Austin Watts, said this was the first time he had ever been in a limousine and he was excited about riding around town in the big car.

Mariah Sloat said, like Watts and Geary, this was her first time in a limo. Sloat said the whole experience was exciting to her. Sloat just finished fifth-grade at Canal School, and she said while she was a little nervous about going to the middle school next year, she was going to enjoy her summer.

Tim Geary, who just finished first-grade at Saccarappa, said he was happy to be out of school and he was looking forward to hanging out and having fun this summer. Peering though the tinted windows of the car, Geary said he was excited to see the limo pull up in front of his school.

“It was wicked cool,” he said with a grin.

Geary’s friend Nick Grover, who also just finished first-grade at Saccarappa, also thought the car was cool. Even though he said he liked school, Grover said he was happy that summer vacation had come at last and he was looking forward to playing and having fun.

Kai McGee, also a first-grader at Saccarappa, said he was excited to be in the limo, but he wasn’t as excited to be out of school. “I’m sad,” he said. Grover said he was sad that school was over because he really liked school and he would miss his friends during the summer.

Standing outside the car waiting for all the kids to pile in so they could begin their adventure, Tracey Geary said she was thrilled with the way Custom Coach has treated the kids, making them feel like they are celebrities. “The kids are psyched,” Geary said. “They’re being treated like royalty, so they all feel like they just came from Hollywood.”

This week, Westbrook students were picked up at school in a limosuine as a special treat to celebrate the end of the school year. Standing in the parking lot of Saccarappa School before setting out on their ride are (back row from left) Austin Watts, Chris Geary, Elizabeth Thibodeau, Allison Geary, Brooke Sinko and Mariah Sloate. Front row (from left) Kai McGee, Tim Geary and Nick Grover. Staff photo by Mike Higgins