Ornaments Quickly Adopted Off Of Wv Tree Of Sharing

Suzanne Scott and Larry Bush share an unusual bond.

Both lost their mothers to breast cancer.

From those losses seven years ago, they’ve created a tradition for their colleagues in the West Valley School District.

They put up a tree of sharing. The tree takes over Superintendent Dave Smith’s office, but that’s OK with him. It’s just for one day each year, Dec. 1. More than 400 ornaments are hung. One by one, they are pocketed by someone eager to start their Christmas giving early. Each ornament asks a gift for someone in need: a pair of blue jeans, a set of sheets for a queen size bed, a crock pot.

“We wanted to do something to honor our mothers with sharing,” said Scott, a counselor at Pasadena Park and Orchard Center elementary schools. Bush is principal at Pasadena Park.

By mid-afternoon, the red and green ornaments are clustered at the top of the tree.

Lorie Thomas, a cashier at Orchard Center, fingers several ornaments and chooses four, one for each member of her family. It’s a regular part of their holidays.

Memories of Christmas giving surface from her childhood.

“We would leave baskets full of presents - laundry baskets,” Thomas said. “They never knew who it was.”

Bob Lingow, a West Valley High School history teacher, comes in and settles on a request from an adult.

“It’s not as much fun as a GI Joe,” he grumbles, good naturedly.

Why does he give?

“Life is pretty good for us,” he admits.

His son, Kevin, a captain in the Army, is coming home from Kuwait for six days over the holidays.

Scott and Bush, the tree partners, have expanded their reach from the early days. From their original connection with cancer patients, they now include Cancer Patient Care, Children’s Home Society clients and families in need from the West Valley district.

It used to be that more of the requests were for toys, Scott said. Nowadays, more requests come in for clothes.

“It’s sad when you see kids asking for boots for Christmas,” she said. “Or shoes.”

Centennial’s music fairy

The gift of a $3,000 cello has staggered Centennial Middle School strings instructor Shelley Jensen. When the West Valley School District put out the call for donations of instruments no one imagined a response like that.

The good fairy is Fern McGee, a West Valley resident, who prevailed on her children to give up their unused instruments. McGee, 85, started her children on music lessons as a way “to keep them off the streets.” All three went on to play with the Spokane Junior Symphony.

“The children loved playing in that junior symphony as much as anything they ever did,” she said.

The wonderful cello presented school officials with a quandary.

Cellos are large and kids active, so these instruments lead a tough life. They end up in the repair shop often and are no longer allowed on WV school buses.

The answer, to which McGee agreed, was to sell or trade the cello. The district may end up with two cellos, a viola and a violin.

What a boon for the district’s strings program. Just three years old, it’s attracted 100 students.

Good kids at work

Breanna Combs and Stephanie Gale, juniors at East Valley High School, engaged all three Valley school districts in their recent good works.

The two wanted to help Jill and Rob Schliebe, the north Spokane couple whose four sons died in a fire last month.

At an EV-CV football game, the girls collected $456 just passing the hat. Working the EV cafeteria, they made another $131.

The money bought a Sears gift certificate. Learning that Rob Schliebe is a 1985 West Valley grad, the girls drummed up a WV hat, T-shirts and a sweatshirt.

Combs and Gale presented their gifts Sunday. The two are part of Student Oriented Community Service at EV.

Music in the mall

Mid-day shoppers at University City mall on Friday will hear the North Pines Symphonic Orchestra perform. Sixty music students from North Pines Junior High will play everything from Christmas music to a little rock and roll. Bill Foster, who directs the group, wants the community to see how hot these young musicians are. The music starts at noon.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MEMO: Education Notebook is a regular feature of the Valley Voice. If you have news about an interesting program or activity at a Valley school or about the achievements of Valley students, teachers or school staff, please let us know. Write: Education Notebook, Valley Voice, 13208 E. Sprague, Spokane, WA 99216. Call: 927-2166. Fax: 927-2175.