Theater production stands to fight abuse

The theater arts students at Ferris High School are standing up against abuse.

Beginning tonight, the students will perform the third annual “Project Hope: Fighting Abuse,” at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium. The shows, also to take place next Thursday and May 15, are written, directed and performed by students.

The four shows will also include silent auctions. Area businesses, such as Starbucks and Great Harvest Bread Co., have donated items for the auctions.

The performances deal with all areas of abuse: child abuse, neglect, domestic abuse, manipulation and teenage dating issues.

Mary Cooper is the director of theater arts and an English teacher at Ferris. She has worked with the students on all different aspects of the project. “They’ve all reacted with aplomb and with maturity and they’ve taken to it very seriously. But, it’s been kind of hard for some kids,” she said.

Cooper said that counselors have visited with classes to discuss the sensitive issues they’re dealing with. She also has had meetings with parents to talk about any concerns they may have had about the project.

Cooper said that students have also learned from the project. Students understand that it’s important to talk to an adult, a teacher or a counselor. A senior drama student expressed: “Don’t be afraid to stand up and make a difference.”

Although the subject is difficult, working with her students on the project is motivating for Cooper. “I am, as always, humbled by it (the experience); humbled and amazed by how the kids get very into the project and how dedicated they are and how they really want to make a difference. It’s inspiring. Working with the kids on projects like this makes teaching and all the stress that comes with it and all the heartache worth it, just totally worth it,” she said.

At school, the students are selling “Hope Chain” links for $1. Students and teachers then have the option of writing a name of somebody in need of support or care on the link. The goal is that everyday the chain will get longer, and awareness will grow.

Next Thursday, 400 students and 35 teachers will wear a red X on their shirts for the Red X campaign. The students and teachers represent the one in four children abused in the U.S. everyday. At 9:18 a.m., everybody with a red X on their shirt will stand up to show their support and “stand up” against abuse.

Also contributing to Project Hope is the art club, making art for scenes for the shows and the film studies students have made videos. After school, kids also volunteered to work and contributed to the project.

Tickets are $4 in advance or $6 at the door.

To purchase tickets and for more information, call (509) 354-6006.

All proceeds from the performances and project events will benefit the Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery.

Celebrating diversity

On Friday, Garfield Elementary School, 222 W. Knox Ave., will host its second annual Culture and Community Night, from 6 to 8 p.m.

Families and friends will be able to experience cultural diversity in the school in booths set up in the gymnasium that will include snacks, artwork and entertainment, unique to each individual culture, along with a tour of Garfield students’ classrooms to view their literacy works, individualized to each class.

When students and families arrive in the gym, they will receive a passport. As they visit each “country” their passport will be stamped and when the passport is full, they will receive raffle tickets to win cultural prizes.

Chinese students from Whitworth University, will share their culture and teach students and their families how to write their names in Chinese; Japanese students from Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute also will be sharing their culture and writing in Japanese; and the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture will have a booth and will have a Visual Thinking Strategy display set up that allows students to see and learn about artwork from different artists, building on a student’s observation.

A few of Garfield’s students will be entertaining participants with poetry selections throughout the evening.

Dee Dee Quintero is the secretary at Garfield and the Parent Group president. She also coordinates Culture and Community Night.

“The goal is for everyone to realize that although we’re diverse in the sense that we’re from different cultures, culture can be anything. It doesn’t just have to be an ethnic group,” she said. “We’re all still part of the same community and with that said we realize how similar we are and how similar our goals are and how much alike we are. That’s how it (Culture and Community Night) came into fruition,” she said.

The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, call (509) 354-2682.