Douglas Students Take Steps Toward World Peace

Students at C.T. Douglas School put their best feet forward at last week’s Walk for Peace, a decade-long tradition that gives the school’s students the chance to spread a message of peace and hope throughout their community and world—one step at a time.

Last week Douglas students as well as parents, administrators and speakers met in the school’s cafeteria to celebrate their efforts before setting out on the one-mile walk on a rainy morning that seemed to have little effect on participants’ spirits or intentions.

“A little rain shouldn’t stop is from expressing our goal of having a more peaceful world,” said the school’s principal, Dr. Chris Whitbeck.

Event speakers included Dr. Stephen Mills, superintendent of Acton and Acton-Boxborough Schools, who said he was “honored and thrilled” to be part of the walk; State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, himself a Douglas School alumnus who told the children he was “so proud of what you’re doing”; and Lauren Rosenzweig-Morton, whose son, Max, was a kindergartner at Douglas when his father, Philip Rosenzweig, died in the attacks of 9/11, leading to the school’s first peace walk just a few weeks later.

At that time, said Rosenzweig-Morton, Douglas student Tucker Quirk organized the walk as an act of recognition and compassion toward the Rosenzweigs, a gesture she said meant the world to her grieving family.

“It was at a time when we were at our lowest low,” said Rosenzweig-Morton. “It was a wonderful thing for him to do.”

Since then, the walk has evolved from one strictly about its commemorative roots to a symbolic act promoting world peace while raising significant funds to do good works internationally.

Whitbeck said in recent years the school has partnered with Free The Children, an organization “founded by kids to help children in war-torn places,” and used the funds raised through sponsorships of last year’s walk, and various other efforts, to build a school in the village of Osenetoi in Kenya.

“Our whole goal is to teach children that bad things happen in the world, that many people are less fortunate locally and globally, and that they can help,” said Whitbeck, who told the Douglas audience that students are hoping to raise about $5,000 this year, half of the which students decided to use toward drought relief in Osenetoi, the other half “toward setting up businesses that don’t depend on water.”

For their part, participating families said they appreciated the chance to be part of an event that could help empower children at a time when many people are struggling.

Cameron Friend, a fifth-grader who is new to the school this year, said, “I thought (the walk) was a good way to remember 9/11 by helping people out in another country, like Kenya. They need education, food and water to live and we can help by giving them money to buy food, start businesses and for education. We’re lucky because we have plenty of water and food and a lot of schools.”

“(The walk) is a great opportunity to talk to our kids about how fortunate some of us are in the whole scheme of the world,” said Cameron’s mother, Maureen Ryan-Friend. “Right now, so many people are unemployed and are doing with less here in Massachusetts and in the country, but I think it’s a good reminder of how much less other people in the world have than most of us do.”

What’s more, she said, “I love that the school is telling the kids that they don’t have to wait to be an adult to help, that they can do something to help, even in a small way, right now, today.”

Whitbeck, Douglas students accept award in Toronto

Douglas School’s efforts toward world peace and paying it forward have gotten some international notice. Today, Whitbeck, along with six students and four parents, are in Toronto—the only school in the United States to be selected as such—to attend We Day, an international gathering of students who meet with Nobel Peace Laureates, world-renowned social activists, and Grammy and JUNO Award winners, and to accept Free The Children’s Big Dreamers award.

The award is given to schools “who are dedicated to community service and teaching students that they can make a significant impact in the world” said Whitbeck. “We were (selected for) the award based on the educational efforts of the teachers and the amazing community service of our students and their families.”

According to Whitbeck, such efforts included collecting more 2000 pounds of food for the Acton Food Pantry, baking apple pies for a center for adults with disabilities, “adopting” families from the housing authority for Christmas, and partaking in several other community service projects. As part of the award, its sponsors matched the $5,000 Douglas students raised last year to build the school in Osenetoi, raising the total raised for the village to $10,000.

“The idea of community is a cornerstone of our school. We say that ‘If you are a member of community, you are responsible for the success of everyone,’” said Whitbeck. “Clearly we believe that our community includes our local community as well as our global community. Our association with Free The Children and the village of Osenetoi is teaching us that.”