High school’s memories etched in stone

Coeur d’Alene High School is building tradition one rock at a time.

By forklift, three engraved stone monuments were planted in the school’s Memorial Garden on Tuesday, two of them to memorialize “fallen” students and one, a granite bench, to remember the class of 1954.

The garden and its memorial stones are part of the school’s effort to create an identity and tradition for its students, Principal Steve Casey said.

“It’s a way to recognize the alumni of the past and not let kids forget the fiber that made us what we are.”

The class of 2000 conceived the idea of the garden and decided to set aside a specific area on campus.

The garden, which contained a large stone memorial to veterans who were CHS students, now has a capstone explaining what the memorial garden is about: “This area was dedicated by the class of 2000 in memory of Lisa Jones and Bret Humphrey and to past, present and future Vikings.”

Jones and Humphrey were CHS students who died before they graduated, Jones from a sudden health problem and Humphrey in a car accident, Casey said.

The other stone added Tuesday reads, “donated by the class of 1999 in memory of Kyle Kirk,” who died along with Humphrey in the accident five years ago on Interstate 90.

Along with Paul Cornelius, who died in another car accident, there are now four “fallen” students memorialized in stone.

“I hope we don’t have too many of these,” Casey said.

The class of 1954 added a granite bench to the garden with proceeds left over from its reunion money.

“It’s a tradition for the 50-year reunion to dedicate something,” said Bill Drake, a 1954 CHS graduate. “Our class had a little (money) left over from the 40th reunion, which we invested … we passed the hat at the reunion and added $2,000 more.”

“We hope to have enough left to complete the landscaping,” Drake said.

Landscaping in the memorial garden is neat but spare. The trees are still small and shrubs are few.

“We haven’t landscaped it. We want it to develop on its own,” Casey said.

Various classes have purchased trees and rose bushes in honor of their class or someone specific. One tree was planted to honor Eileen Bieber, a retired teacher.

The stones added to the garden don’t necessarily have to memorialize someone who died.

“It’s just in memory of,” Casey said.

The forklift unloaded the monuments without fanfare – few students were probably even aware stones were being delivered.

The stones will be incorporated into the school’s Veterans Day observance activities on Nov. 10.