Mar. 13--SANFORD -- As Eli Felix turned the corner to the East Lee Middle School lobby Thursday, his face lit up.

"Whoa," he said, rushing toward a table, which contained a laptop computer, printer and goodie bag.

Pharmaceutical maker Wyeth and Communities in Schools of Lee County presented the free laptop and printer to Felix, a seventh-grader at East Lee, because of his achievement in science and because his family did not already have a computer.

"I just can't believe it," Felix said after taking his Dell laptop out of the box to examine. "It's amazing."

Felix's seventh-grade science teacher Donald Weinstein nominated him for the prize, which Communities in Schools purchased with a $1,000 donation from Wyeth.

"I saw Eli's potential as a scientist. He was dedicated and has a high (grade point average) in my class," Weinstein said. "I wanted to find a student who showed some aptitude for science, and Eli showed that right from the start."

Felix said the donation will help him complete his school assignments more easily.

His family members, as well as Wyeth and Communities in Schools representatives, were on hand Thursday to surprise him.

"It made me feel wonderful. We did the right thing for the right child," said Kim Pritt, assistant director for organizational learning at Wyeth and chairwoman of CIS Board of Directors.

Pritt said education -- and particularly science -- is an important cause for Wyeth, which produces components of vaccines at its Sanford plant.

East Lee Middle School also has an academy for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) that helps give students hands-on skills.

Principal Tom Harvey-Felder said the new laptop will help give Felix a jump on his academics.

"It was an easy choice," he said.

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