A4 • Friday, February 11, 2022 | Seaside Signal | SeasideSignal.com
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‘Kindness wins’ at Pacific Ridge Elementary School
By KATHERINE LACAZE
For Seaside Signal
Students at Pacific Ridge Ele-
mentary School were challenged
in a unique way. It didn’t involve
reading, science or mathemat-
ics. Instead, they participated in
The Great Kindness Challenge, a
nationwide initiative from Kids for
Peace that took place from Jan. 24
to 28.
“Throughout the week, their
focus was to be completing the dif-
ferent kind acts,” said counselor
Kaile Jones, who introduced the
campaign at Gearhart Elementary
School a couple of years ago. The
goal is to boost morale and positive
connections between students and
their peers, teachers, family and
community.
After not being able to host a
Kindness Challenge during the
2020-21 school year, Jones was
excited to bring it back this year,
although she changed it from a
monthlong event to a weeklong
campaign.
This year, each grade level was
presented with a different kindness
goal, and then individual teachers
and classrooms could determine
what they wanted to do to focus on
their particular goal.
Kindergarteners and first grad-
ers were tasked with demonstrat-
ing kindness to others, which they
did by drawing pictures and writing
kind notes for teachers, staff mem-
bers and bus drivers. Pacific Ridge
preschoolers also created cards.
Second graders were presented
the goal of showing kindness to the
environment and coming up with
ideas to keep it healthy and clean.
The goal for third graders was to
demonstrate kindness to the school
community. Together, they created
a large poster, which is covered in
hearts and a heartbeat line and reads
“Health and Kindness: The Heart-
beat of Pacific Ridge,” to hang out-
side the front of the school.
Lastly, fourth and fifth grad-
ers were encouraged to show kind-
ness to self. They created posi-
tive affirmation bookmarks with
sayings like, “I am smart,” “I am
kind,” or “I am strong.” Jones also
shared a character strength survey
with teachers to do with their stu-
dents if they wanted. The survey
helps highlight a person’s top five
strengths. Students who completed
the survey were encouraged to put
one of their strengths on a nametag
sticker and wear it throughout the
day.
“We thought that would be a
positive activity for them,” she
said, adding students often start
to feel less confident and positive
about themselves as they get older,
which can affect how they treat
others. “We’re really just trying to
focus on their kindness and love to
themselves.”
On a schoolwide level, teach-
ers were encouraged to take note of
students completing a kind act. The
student was then given a paper link
— with different colors of paper
corresponding to different grade
levels — to write down their act of
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
Oscar, a student at Pacific Ridge
Elementary School, shares a
Compliment Card he wrote for his
teacher during The Great Kindness
Challenge, which took place from
Jan. 24 to 28.
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
Kindness and positivity took over Pacific Ridge Elementary School at the end of January, as the school participated
in The Great Kindness Challenge, with different kindness goals for each grade level.
kindness, and the link was added to
a large chain in the cafeteria.
The idea, Jones said, was “to see
how many kind acts, as a school,
we can complete.”
Her goal was 500 links, and they
had reached 501 by the end of the
week, with students continuing to
turn in links the following week.
The Kindness Challenge was
accompanied by a Spirit Week,
featuring simple clothing options
centered on a daily theme. For
example, last Monday’s theme
was “Hats Off to Kindness,” and
students were encouraged to wear
their favorite hat. Last Thursday’s
theme was “Kindness Wins,”
accompanied by sports attire or
team apparel.
“I tried to stick with things that
weren’t too difficult,” Jones said.
Meanwhile, she also tasked her-
self with doing different acts of
kindness to bring positivity and
boost morale among staff members
as well.
Although the Kindness Chal-
lenge lasted only a week, the school
focused on spreading the message
that this is more than just a tempo-
rary challenge.
“Kindness is something that
needs to continue throughout their
whole life,” Jones said.
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
Students
at
Pacific
Ridge
Elementary School created cards
for their teachers as an act of
kindness during The Great Kindness
Challenge, a nationwide initiative.
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
Pacific Ridge Elementary School students Winston (from left), Savannah,
Isla and Chelsea share a message of kindness during the school’s Kindness
Challenge.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Seaside Public Works
employee ‘got the job done’
I wanted to thank Jeremy Strimple from
Seaside Public Works for fixing the road I
pointed out to them within a week of my
email.
We don’t often praise our public officials
or even know what they do to help our day-to-
day lives. I don’t know or care about his party
affiliation, just happy he got the job done.
Brenda Burch
Seaside
Now is the time to act
on new firehouse
I’ve been a Gearhart taxpayer since 1987,
with 20-plus years of going to City Council
and Planning Commission meetings.
In 2015, Gearhart assembled a fire sta-
tion committee to find the best location for
a new fire and police station, going by state
and federal codes for tsunamis and earth-
quakes. There were three-plus years of pub-
lic meetings before we presented our find-
ings to the City Council.
Our top choice: Leslie Miller Dunes
Meadow Park. Not because it’s a park or
PUBLISHER
EDITOR
Kari Borgen
R.J. Marx
PUBLIC MEETINGS
has an ocean view, but because it’s close
to city center, was the highest point (at the
time), and was already Gearhart property
costing about $5 million.
It wasn’t about feelings, but about the
safety of our citizens and costs.
It was rejected. There was outcry by
some, because it’s a park, even though it
was to take up only a small portion of Gear-
hart-owned park property.
The High Point property came up for
sale, at $3 million to $4 million just for
the property. After the city spent thousands
testing the ground, the owner decided not to
sell to Gearhart.
Now, we’re at the Highlands Lane sta-
tion, a higher point, further inland and with
a higher cost. The longer we wait, the more
it’ll cost … substantially!
I certainly hope those fighting against a
new fire station all this time realize the sub-
stantial amount they’ve cost Gearhart tax-
payers, whether it passes or not. Five mil-
lion dollars at the park then, and now almost
$15 million. Next year?
All City Council and Planning Commis-
sion meetings are open to the public. Get
the facts!
Tom Thies
Gearhart
CIRCULATION
MANAGER
Shannon Arlint
ADVERTISING
SALES MANAGER
Sarah Silver-
Tecza
ADVERTISING
REPRESENTATIVE
Haley Werst
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
counselor Kaile Jones introduced
The Great Kindness Challenge, a
nationwide initiative, at Gearhart
Elementary School a few years
back. She’s now implementing it at
Pacific Ridge.
PRODUCTION
MANAGER
CONTRIBUTING
WRITERS
John D. Bruijn
Skyler Archibald
Joshua Heineman
Katherine Lacaze
Esther Moberg
SYSTEMS
MANAGER
Carl Earl
CONTRIBUTING
PHOTOGRAPHER
Jeff TerHar
Contact local agencies for latest
meeting information and attendance
guidelines.
Seaside Planning Commission, 6 p.m., 989
Broadway.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2
Gearhart City Council, 7 p.m., www.cityof-
gearhart.com.
MONDAY, FEB. 14
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., 989 Broadway.
TUESDAY, FEB. 15
Seaside Planning Commission, work ses-
sion, 6 p.m., 989 Broadway.
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16
Tourism Advisory Committee, 3 p.m., 989
Broadway.
Seaside School District, 6 p.m., https://
www.seaside.k12.or.us/.
THURSDAY, MARCH 3
Seaside Parks Advisory Committee, 6 p.m.,
989 Broadway.
THURSDAY, MARCH 10
Seaside Convention Center Commission,
5 p.m., 415 First Ave., Seaside.
MONDAY, MARCH 14
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., 989 Broadway.
TUESDAY, MARCH 15
THURSDAY, FEB. 17
Transportation Advisory Commission,
6 p.m., 989 Broadway.
Seaside Planning Commission, work ses-
sion, 6 p.m., 989 Broadway.
Seaside School District, 6 p.m., https://
www.seaside.k12.or.us/.
TUESDAY, FEB. 22
Sunset Empire Park and Recreation
District Board of Directors, 5:15 p.m., 1225
Ave. A.
MONDAY, FEB. 28
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., 989 Broadway.
TUESDAY, MARCH 22
Seaside Airport Advisory Committee,
6 p.m., 989 Broadway.
MONDAY, MARCH 28
TUESDAY, MARCH 1
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., 989 Broadway.
Seaside Community Center Commission,
10 a.m., Bob Chisholm Community Center,
1225 Avenue A.
Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District
Board of Directors, 5:15 p.m., 1225 Ave. A.
TUESDAY, MARCH 29
Seaside Signal
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