Planting a peace pole at Analy
Analy celebrated the placement of a peace pole on campus, meant to represent the idea of global peace through local action
On Monday, community members from around the area celebrated the installation of a peace pole in the Analy High School quad. The pole, which stands about eight feet tall and is a prominent monument in the center of the school, is dedicated to preserving peace across the world. On it, the words “May Peace Prevail on Earth” are inscribed in eight languages, including Japanese and Ukrainian—the languages of Sebastopol’s sister cities: Takeo City, Japan, and Chyhyryn, Ukraine. The pole was a partnership between the Sebastopol Rotary, Veterans for Peace, and Analy’s Interact Club.
Interact Club President Keira McKnight, a senior at Analy, was one of the biggest supporters of the installation of this pole. Analy’s Interact Club is a service-oriented organization sponsored by the Sebastopol Rotary to foster leadership, international understanding, and community service. The peace pole is the latest project for the club, which regularly works with groups like Food for Thought and helps staff various Rotary events like the annual crab feed.
McKnight, who was the first speaker at the pole’s unveiling, spoke about what the pole symbolized. She mentioned that the peace messages inscribed on the pole represent languages from every continent around the world, as well as an inscription in Braille. “So it’s as accessible as possible,” she said.
McKnight explained that in the coming fall, next year’s Interact Club would be placing a garden to go around the pole. “The garden that’s being put in in the fall will be a representation that peace requires cultivation; that nothing that is tough and that is valuable — like peace — comes without dedication and maintenance and effort,” she reflected.
Analy teacher and Interact Club advisor John Grech echoed McKnight’s sentiments about letting the pole inspire effort toward peace. “Let’s pursue broad definitions of peace that include inner peace, that include social peace between acquaintances, and real peace between nations,” Grech said, “And with that broad definition of peace in our thoughts, let those thoughts drive personal actions.”
Grech mentioned Analy graduate Willard Libby, who developed radiocarbon dating — a process that allowed scientists to accurately date archeological artifacts. He won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work, and Grech explained how Libby’s work helped us to understand the past and humanity itself. “So may this peace pole remind everyone that we can all make a difference toward a better future no matter who we are,” Grech affirmed, thanking the Rotary clubs and Interact for their work on getting the pole installed. He finished, saying, “May today’s students’ energy toward peace, built on previous generations, be felt by generations to come.”
Sonoma County’s Veterans for Peace chapter president Fred Ptucha spoke about the history of the peace pole. He explained his experience in the Vietnam war — “a war based on lies,” he said—which is one of the main factors that inspired him to work for peace through the creation of peace poles, which has become a global movement. He said the idea of peace poles inscribed with the words “May Peace Prevail on Earth” originated in Japan in the 1970s but quickly spread across the world.
Nowadays, he explained, there are more than 200,000 peace poles over 120 different countries across the world.
“It has become one of the most recognized and respected symbols of peace,” he said.
Here in Sonoma County, Ptucha has worked to get peace poles placed in schools, where the younger generation will see them every day. “We set a goal, a joint goal of Veterans for Peace and Rotary International, to dedicate a peace pole on the campus of every school in Sonoma County.”
There are over 200 schools spread across Sonoma County. Analy’s newly-added pole was the 97th of such additions—which means they’re about halfway to their goal.
Ptucha finished his remarks by reading a pledge to peace, written by fifth and sixth graders who were members of the leadership club at Proctor Terrace Elementary School in Santa Rosa:
I pledge to use my words to speak in a kind way.
I pledge to help others as I go throughout my day.
I pledge to take care of our Earth with my healing heart and hands.
I pledge to respect people in each and every land.
I pledge to join together as we unite the big and small.
I pledge to do my part to create peace for one and all.
Kathy Hicks from the Rotary Club was the last to speak. She closed the ceremony with a few brief remarks, describing how Ptucha first proposed the idea of the peace poles to the Rotary. Then she thanked the members of Interact Club, saying, “You are model citizens of our city, and we can, as adults, learn from you.” She ended the celebration with a few wise words, concluding with, “To Keira and all the Interactors, I’m just super proud of you. You took a stand for peace.”
Lawson Gaylord is an Analy student and publisher of the West County World, Analy’s student newspaper.
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I attended the Analy Peace Pole dedication and I must say Lawson's report and photos captured the moment in all its facets. Hey, folks, Lawson is an excellent journalist. For the record, I warned him to stay away from a career in journalism unless he was prepared for a life of low financial compensation and unfair affronts. He told me it was too late, that he already was infected with the illness of chasing the truth and fixing the world for the rest of us. Go, Lawson.
What a well written article about a lovely effort to share the values of peace