Student devotion grows victims' garden

KAYSVILLE -- Students at Davis County's Mountain High School rose above the stereotype of alternative high school students Wednesday as they took a stand against violence.

Members of the school's student council dedicated a memorial peace garden to victims of violence, paying special tribute to Michael Caulford, who died March 30 at age 12 as a result of being shaken by his biological parents as an infant. His adoptive father, Ron, is a teacher at Mountain High.

"Everybody looks at these kids and says they're bad kids, and then you see something like this that they've created," said Mountain High Principal Phil Castle. "How can you say they're bad kids?"

Approximately 30 students from two classes and the student council have spent 160 hours on the project since April, which Castle called "quite an accomplishment by any stretch of the imagination."

The students worked with teachers to design and build the garden, which has concrete poured in the shape of a peace sign and flowers and benches placed within. A marker in the back of the garden reads, "In memory of Michael Caulford and others who suffer from violence."

James Lowery, 18, designed and built the benches for the garden and said the project turned out better than he had hoped.

"I had no idea it would look this good, but we got a lot of support," he said. "I was proud to work on it, because it was for a real great cause."

Josh Walters, 17, called Ron Caulford "a great teacher" and said he was also proud of the garden.

"When we started, I didn't think it would be fun," he said. "But I think people will look at this and they'll remember that there are people out there who really care."

Davis County School District worker Doug Justensen, who helped build the memorial, said he was impressed with the students' commitment to the project.

"These guys are very devoted, so it was neat," he said. "They wanted everything to be really nice and presentable, so it worked well."

Describing the background of Mountain High students, student council adviser and teacher Rochelle Welty said, "We have a lot of different reasons for students being here. Some are into substance abuse, many have been abused, some have been in trouble with the law, some just fall behind in credit. But they're students who get kicked out (of school), and that's why they're stereotyped as bad kids."

But this experience was a meaningful one for the students, who "were really touched," she said.

"For teachers and students at Mountain High School this project has been a powerful way to heal, transform, and empower our lives and communities with a vision for a non-violent world."

Michael's adoptive mother, Carol Caulford, called the dedication an "absolutely amazing" tribute to her son.

"I never would have imagined this -- not in 100 years. I think that it's just amazing these students did this. And people say these are bad kids, but this is not bad," she said, gesturing toward the memorial.

Pointing toward the peace sign she said, "If we all lived that way, it would be a wonderful place to live."

At the conclusion of the dedication, the students had Carol, whose wedding ring has a butterfly on it, release butterflies to symbolize Michael's release from suffering.

"Butterflies are free," she said, "and Michael's free now, and he can walk and play and do all the things he couldn't do here."

E-mail: [email protected]

Copyright C 2003 Deseret News Publishing Co.
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.