Rotary offers to fund peace poles at Pacific High and Driftwood; board will place installation request on next agenda

Rotary representatives and Interact Club students presented an Educational Spotlight proposing two peace poles—one for Pacific High and another for Driftwood Elementary—and described how the Peaceful Schools curriculum would tie to the installations.

A Rotary presenter introduced Mike Huitt, whom she identified as the Peaceful District chair for District 5110. “May peace prevail on earth for all of us,” Huitt said as he described the origins of peace poles (the first at Hiroshima) and the Rotary-affiliated effort to plant poles as a visible reminder of daily commitment to peace.

Speakers described the poles as multilingual markers meant to reflect local cultures and languages, and said Rotary would pay for materials and coordinate a student-inclusive ceremony. Club volunteer Bella explained how the Peaceful Schools lessons work with students on conflict resolution, emotional identification and community building, and said older students trained in the program visit elementary classrooms to model skills.

Board members did not vote on the installation at the meeting. Instead, trustees agreed to place an action item on next month’s agenda so the board can discuss location, permanence and any site or operational details. A board member said this would be handled as a new-business agenda item rather than as part of the Educational Spotlight.

No funds from the district were requested during the presentation; Rotary representatives said the organization would cover expenses and offered flexible installation options (non-permanent or permanently mounted posts).