"Being peaceful isn’t always easy," said physical education teacher Martha Larsen to the sea of elementary school students seated in the gymnasium at Drew Model Elementary School.
They were taking part in the annual Peace Walk on June 22 as an end-of-the-year activity to promote the school’s philosophy of peace.
YET THE young children were surprisingly quiet and respectful for their age (pre-schoolers through fifth-graders) at the Peace Assembly that acts as the precursor to the Peace Walk itself, and, because it really is the most accurate way to describe it, they were behaving quite peacefully.
This year's Peace Walk theme was "Planting Seeds of Peace," and Adrianne Devlin's third-grade class undertook the responsibility of planting sunflower seeds in the school’s garden as a symbolic gesture. Martha Larsen and fourth-grader Zamira Green guided the Peace Assembly, announcing the various acts that served to encourage a peaceful atmosphere and mindset. The assembly's lineup ranged from a staging of a Korean tale by Mee Kim's lively kindergarten class to the recitation of a folk song from Israel to an endearing Hawaiian dance number by Jill Meyer's first-graders, dedicated to Principal Janice Adkisson. This marked Principal Adkisson's final Peace Walk, as she has accepted a position at Campbell Elementary.
Initiated in 1995, the Peace Walk itself is an engaging event, garnering the attention of neighbors who come out to wave to the parading students carrying colorful class banners and poster boards spelling out the word "Peace." Children wore tie-dyed peace sign necklaces with the words "Peace begins with me" or bright visors personalized with their names and the word "Peace."
Police cordon off streets to accommodate the elementary school kids and parents who join in. Faculty members were identified with their red and white T-shirts proclaiming "Planting Seeds of Peace — Peace Walk 2006," with a cheerful sunflower on the front or the solid red T-shirts with a dove on the front and the words "Bridges to Peace" championed across the back.
DREW MODEL'S peace-spreading efforts have obviously not gone unnoticed, and the importance of emphasizing peaceful behavior at such a young age is an influential characteristic of what makes the school so appealing to parents. Sally Baird, the democratic candidate running for the School Board in the fall, has a kindergartener already enrolled, as well as a rising pre-schooler — son Adam who accompanied his mother this year to build up his stamina for the Peace Walk he will be a part of next year.
"The Peace Walk has always been a wonderful example of unity between the school and the community," she said. "It was what made me fall in love with this school."