LYNN – Families and students at the Connery Elementary School turned a cold, snowy afternoon into a day of fun last Wednesday thanks to a visit from Operation Bootstrap volunteer Anne Principe.Principe was a guest at the Connery Families Learn Together Literacy Program, where she presented a variety of indoor games to a group of about 20 parents, children and staff, giving everyone a chance to be active despite the harsh conditions outside.Principe incorporated memory and listening components into her physical games and had everyone laughing and participating enthusiastically, according to organizers and attendees.”Everyone’s favorite had to be the activity with the colorful parachute,” said Operation Bootstrap ESOL teacher Roberta Rogers.Principe is currently studying to be an Interfaith Community Chaplain at the Chaplaincy Institute of Maine. She also volunteers in several classes at Operation Bootstrap.Bootstrap is an adult education center located in Lynn, where immigrant families can go to get an education in English, career skills and basic knowledge. The organization also features GED courses.Bootstrap sponsors the Connery Program, which brings parents and students together in an effort to involve families in the lifelong education of their children. Formerly a resident of Lynn for 18 years, Principe seeks to maintain her connections to the Lynn community. She enjoys leading her group activities, believing that “we learn best and live best when we can share experiences, especially laughter, across boundaries such as age and culture,” Rogers said in an email.The Connery Program was also fortunate to be a recent recipient of a 2008 Barbara Bush Foundation grant. The Foundation funds programs that provide family literacy instruction for parents as well as children.Since its inception in 1989, the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy has awarded more than $30 million to more than 700 family literacy programs in the country.