Kearsarge Regional High School 457 North Road North Sutton, NH 03260 603-927-4261

Upcoming Events

May 20 – Junior Book Awards & NHS Induction 6:30pm

May 26-29 – Class & Student Council Elections

June 5 – End of Year Awards Ceremony 6:30pm

June 12 – Senior Scholarships & Award Night 6:30pm

June 13 – Graduation

With the announcement that all New Hampshire schools will continue with remote learning for the remainder of the school year, all events have been

cancelled, postponed or will be done virtually. The website will have all of that information posted,

including TBD dates. If there are any questions please feel free to call the school at 927-4261.

Welcome to May!

As I sit to write this I continue to be amazed at the efforts of our students and staff during this difficult time. The level of care, concern and feeling of family shines bright each and every day.

We continue to meet to discuss the immediate and long term plans for KRHS. This time of year brings time honored traditions that honor our students for their hard work and perseverance. At the time of this newsletter, no decisions have been made in regards to altering the graduation ceremony. We are still planning on graduation taking place on June 13th.

We will continue to take the information coming from the state level and make decisions that are rooted in student, staff and community safety.

Now, more than ever, it is important to stay connected through any digital means necessary to ensure our loved ones and neighbors are receiving any and all resources to support their social and emotional well-being. It is crucial that all of us practice social distancing to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Though difficult, the more we follow the guidelines given to us by medical experts, the sooner we can all come back together as a community.

We want to thank our first responders, police and fire departments for their continued dedication to our communities. We marvel at the herculean efforts of the health care providers, doctors, nurses, LNA’s and medical staff that put their own safety at risk to assist those in need.

Cougar Nation = Cougar Strong

Stay well and stay safe

Respectfully,

Robert Bennett, Principal

Poetry Winner

Congratulations to sophomore, Callie Valeri who recently won the Celebration of Poetry Contest hosted by the Center for Arts, Lake Sunapee Region. The theme of the contest was Snapshots in Time and she won the high school division with her original poem entitled "Just Like That." Her poem was judged by Alexandria Peary, Poet Laureate of New Hampshire. Callie was honored and read her poem at a public celebration of poetry in early April.

Just Like That. It’s funny how quickly a moment can go from thrilling to terrifying,

Just like that.

Laughter turns to screams

The world becomes so loud, yet so deafeningly silent.

The impact isn’t even the worst part,

But the pressure of the water overtaking my body and stealing my breath is what kills me.

I try to gasp for air

But to no avail.

Air turns to water and fills my lungs.

In my last moments I relive everything in my life up until now.

Every wrong decision

Every right one

Everything in between

Will the world miss me?

Or will I just be another unknown soul,

Gone?

Just like that.

Poetry Month April is National Poetry Month. Amanda Leslie's Women's Studies

class explored poetry about and by women as part of the month's celebration, while English 10 classes read, shared, and even wrote

poems throughout the month.

Climate & Culture Submitted by Amanda Leslie

The KRHS Climate and Culture Adult Design Team and Student Leadership Team have had several opportunities to meet since the move to remote learning. The two teams continue to work on Collaborative Leadership, Restorative Justice and Practices, Advisory, and Equity. The teams recently re-established subcommittees who are eager to move forward with this work.

Congratulations Chris Brahan competed in the New Hampshire Science and Engineering Expo science fair, and earned First Place in the Environmental Science category. His project titled Prediction of Variable Leaf Milfoil (Myriophyllum heterophyllum) Establishment Based on Substrate Composition in New Hampshire Lakes was also awarded the Office of Naval Research Award. This was a challenging format for the students considering that they were required to film their presentations at home and upload the file (along with journals, graphs, tables) for judging remotely.

US History – Crisis Interviews

Submitted by Ruby Hill

Our students are living through what might be the biggest event of their lives. After sharing how their lives and the lives of their family have changed during this time, they were asked to interview an adult about the biggest crisis they lived through. These two interviews, by Annie and Jack Chambers, show great student work and connectivity over space and time during today’s social distancing.

Student of the Month Congratulations to Eliza Cardillo, for being chosen as the May Student of the Month at Kearsarge Regional High School. Eliza is a sophomore at KRHS, and is an active and integral member of the SWOCO team. Eliza has helped SWOCO with numerous events, drives, and activities. Eliza works hard with her teammates in SWOCO to provide great digital and advertising support for our numerous events. Eliza is described by her teachers as someone with strong character who has made a commitment to positive change in her community. Eliza is a hard worker and a positive team player and role model to her peers. She is described as a vocal leader who is kind and considerate to everyone around her. Eliza challenges herself academically with a course load that includes honors and AP courses. Eliza is a member of Student Council and the Student Leadership Team for Climate and Culture work. Eliza is also an active member of the field hockey and lacrosse team!

Band News

On Wednesday April 22nd, KRHS Band hosted 3 clinics by members of the US Marine Band "The President's Own." We had a clarinet clinic, percussion clinic, and trumpet clinic. Students got a basic musical bio and what their job entails of each clinician then we talked about individual demands of each instrument before having a question and answer segment about instrument related topics. Clinicians were: Staff Sergeant Jacob Moyer, Clarinet; Staff Sergeant Darren Lin, Percussion; and Gunnery Sergeant Robert Singer, Trumpet.

Annie’s Interview

Interview with Duncan Beardsley (Grandpa), age 83 Date and Interview/Method Used: March 27, 2020 Using Zoom What Crisis He Lived Through: The Earthquake of ’89 (1989) Questions & Answers: Where were you when it happened? (see below) When did you learn that the bridge fell down? (see below) How did the landslides affect your travel? He didn't have to change travel. Most people that worked with him lived in the area. So he didn't have any effect that blocked people not being able to come in. Did the landslides or the loss of the bridge affect you more? He wasn't affected by any of the landslides. It impacted houses that were on cliffs or near them more. How did this affect your daily life? There was a freeway that went down the oceanfront of SFO, and everyone hated it because it ruined the skyline of SFO. After the earthquake all double decker freeways had to be re-fitted. This double decker freeway that ruined the skyline got torn down. It was a good thing. Did you know anyone who got hurt in the earthquake? He didn't really know anyone who got hurt, but he heard stories from Diane. He was fortunate to know that everyone was fine once they connected with my uncle and their one year old. Did you lose power from the earthquake? He cannot recall, maybe for a short period of time, at the time they didn't have cell phones, only landlines? Do you remember how it affected pop-culture? Ex. movies or tv shows that reference the event. He doesn't remember them, but remembers them such as the show called Beach Blanket Babylon. Look at Google for bridge examples Their Story: Directions (Some people will add things to their replies and provide information you didn’t ask for. Let them talk. Learn from them. Write down what they shared.) First, he showed me newspapers, and the bridge collapsed in the middle of three weeks. He was given extra money for a 30 day deadline. He enjoyed watching the race against time to see if he could build the bridge in time. Then, he talked about where the earthquake hit San Francisco. The center was on the beach, but the population was hit with a lower level. He said the whole thing shifted six feet. There was fire and rubble all along the line affected. Roads were turned and many cars got trapped in weird places. My uncle was at Candlestick Park at the time of the earthquake, watching a baseball game. My grandpa was in a building in downtown San Francisco at work, and the building shook. While the building was shaking, he called my grandma and told her that he was going to come home as soon as possible. Anything that was attached to the wall fell off and most things fell off his desk. The building was a new building that was designed to withstand an earthquake. This was unlike buildings that weren't designed for this. You wouldn't use an elevator, so he had to go down 13 flights of stairs. Additionally, there were many people flowing out of 24 levels of the building. Everyone had to stay calm. Once you were out of the building it was safer. At the time, he didn't know that the freeway collapsed. He then went on a double decker highway which could have fallen on him in the after effect. Once he got home, he called all of our family. Once they learned that my uncle went to the baseball game, and they were scared that something could have happened in the stadium. They were constantly waiting for him to call home. Nothing happened directly to him, but three of my other relatives lived in the marina district that was mostly a swampy bay that was filled in at the time. All of the buildings were sinking into the ground and the posts holding up the houses were sinking into the street. Meaning my relative’s house was destroyed because the supports for the house were destroyed. They weren't allowed to go in their house, and they were only allowed to go in it for 15 min, until the houses were deemed stable enough for them to grab more things. Once the earth stopped shaking, he was able to listen to authorities and look at it as the news instead of how it would affect him. He wasn't allowed to go back to work until the building was deemed safe to go in. At the time he had to work from home and he would go on bike rides at the time. He had to experience being alone for about two weeks until things went back to normal. The overall situation only affected Oakland and SFO. If they hadn't had aftershocks within the next day they wouldn’t have had them. So, once that day was over they were safe and just making sure everyone would be safe. He uses the quote “this too, will pass”. He keeps a newspaper from the time the event happened. Pictures move at an angle at an east west wall and a north south wall everything was shaking off the wall. Bookcases fell over and draws were opened. My grandma went under the kitchen table for protection with the telephone with her. All the trees were swaying. The earth turned into hills that looked like waves. After the event, everyone would share stories from that time. After that they make the highways earthquake proof. Your Summary: What did you learn from this interview?

Overall, I learned that the earthquake of ‘89 was a tragic event which affected many people in Oakland and all around San Francisco. At the time, there were double decker highways, but they were not the smartest idea because if the top was to fall down, it would crush the cars on the lower level. This is exactly what happened in the earthquake of ‘89 to the Oakland Bridge. My grandfather, Duncan Beardsly, experienced this earthquake and it was one of the longest ones he had ever felt. He went to work just like any normal morning. Near the end of the work day, he felt the building shake. The building he was in was fairly new, so it had a more lenient structure built for earthquakes. As this is a common occurrence in California, there are drills to follow. He went down the stairs with 24 floors of people leaving the building. Once he was in the parking lot, he felt safe. When he was driving home, he drove on a double decker highway, not knowing they were unsafe if an aftershock was to come. Once he got home and assured my grandma he was fine, he continued to call everyone he could to make sure they were okay. My uncle wasn’t responding which worried many people, but he was fine in the end. My grandpa will forever remember how he sat by the phone waiting for people to confirm that they were okay. For the next few weeks, every large building was closed until inspected. So, for two weeks my grandpa had to work at home. Additionally, for the next few weeks people in Oakland couldn't come in because the bridge from San Francisco to Oakland fell down. But, overall, what was the most worrying part of it all is not being able to reach someone because there wasn't instant communication like there is today.

Jack’s Interview Interview with grandmother Joan Chambers, 91 Date of Interview/Method Used: Email, over a period of days What Crisis She Lived Through: Tsunami-April 1st, 1946 Questions &Answers:

• When was it that this happened? - On April1st, 1946 at 7:30 in the morning • How long was the Tsunami? - It was a four hour experience, which changed the lives of all of our family. • How could you tell it was a Tsunami? - When a tidal, or any other wave starts to form, it pulls out the water ahead of it, to form a higher

wave. When this first wave started to form near our house, it pulled not only the water back but also the rocks on the seafloor. The huge noise that this created should have warned us but we had never heard it before.

• What were you doing before the Tsunami hit? - My mother was in the kitchen making breakfast, my brother and my father were still in bed. I was helping in the kitchen, dressed early for high school only because I had gotten a new pair of shoes in the mail the day before and wanted to wear them to school right away.

• How did you survive the Tsunami? - We all ran together about 1/3 of a mile to the nearest high ground and climbed the highest tree. The water rose to the point on the tree where it branched so we climbed higher and sat there for four hours.

• What did you lose to the Tsunami? - We watched the huge waves come in and our possessions, including my father's car, float around in the water below us. We had lost everything we had - photographs of family, my lovely doll collection, my mother's baby grand piano as well as our dear house

• Did you lose any friends or relatives? - The very sad thing that bothered us all was that our dear gardener, Ah Hon, who had worked for us for many years and was such a friend, was killed as well as all our pets..As we were running past her driveway, our next door neighbor came running towards us with her baby but when we said come with us, she turned and ran back into the waves and they were also killed. People in town who were watching the waves were killed when they went out to pick up live fish, left on the roads when the waves receded.

• Was there any trauma or mental health issues after this catastrophe? - My parents eventually built a house far from the ocean, my brother and I went away to school and everything seemed to settle down. But I think of that house and that yard and that ocean often - it was the perfect place to grow up and when I think of "home" that is the place that always comes first. I don't think there have been lasting problems, but the memory of that place and of the tidal wave will never go away.

• How would you recommend someone deal with a catastrophe / crisis like this? - From my experience, you just have to live it through.

Their Story: On April1st, 1946 at 7:30 in the morning, a tidal wave, called tsunami in Japan, hit our house on the beach in Hawaii. That was the beginning of a four hour experience which changed the lives of all of our family. When a tidal -or any other wave - starts to form, it pulls out the water ahead of it, to form a higher wave. When this first wave started to form near our house, it pulled not only the water back but also the rocks on the seafloor. The huge noise that this created should have warned us but we had never heard it before. Seconds after this, the first wave hit the house. My mother was in the kitchen making breakfast, my brother and my father were still in bed. I was helping in the kitchen, dressed early for high school only because I had gotten a new pair of shoes in the mail the day before and wanted to wear them to school right away. My father came running to the kitchen with my brother. He jumped out the kitchen door into the receding water and told us to follow him. Because there were many power lines floating in the water, I went to the dining room and with my new shoes, pushed down the loosened wall into the driveway so we could start to leave. We all ran together about 1/3 of a mile to the nearest high ground and climbed the highest tree. The water rose to the point on the tree where it branched so we climbed higher and sat there for four hours, watching the huge waves come in and our possessions, including my father's car, float around in the water below us. When the water receded, we heard voices calling, "Anyone there? Anyone there? It's the Red Cross." They came up to where we were waiting and helped us down from the tree and into their car. They took us to a dear friend's house -Mrs. Ruddells- and there we had some food and put on dry clothes. My father had to go to the hospital (he was a doctor) to see what he could do to help. We spent the night at Mrs. Ruddell’s and then spent several weeks in a friend's borrowed house until a friend vacated her house and let us live there for a year, while we got settled. The very sad thing that bothered us all was that our dear gardener, Ah Hon, who had worked for us for many years and was such a friend, was killed as well as all our pets. As we were running past her driveway, our next door neighbor came running towards us with her baby but when we said come with us, she turned and ran back into the waves and they were also killed. People in town who were watching the waves were killed when they went out to pick up live fish, left on the roads when the waves receded. I loved living on the ocean. Our place was far from town which made you create your own entertainment and I became a big reader. The tidal wave was certainly a shocking experience - for days after, none of us could think of anything to say so we were silent a lot. We had lost everything we had - photographs of family, my lovely doll collection, my mother's baby grand piano as well as our dear house. There was nothing left. My parents eventually built a house far from the ocean, my brother and I went away to school and everything seemed to settle down. But I think of that house and that yard and that ocean often - it was the perfect place to grow up and when I think of "home" that is the place that always comes first. I don't think there have been lasting problems, but the memory of that place and of the tidal wave will never go away. Your Summary: What did you learn from this interview?

From interviewing my grandmother, and hearing stories over the years, I have learned that one of the biggest things is the ability to move past it and don’t have these crises define you or your life. One of the biggest things that resonated with me from the interview is how people had seen the receding tides as a mysterious event, and some people went to explore the beach, and others ran to the hills, the catastrophe was unexpected, and before this nobody had experienced anything like it in Hawaii. I also learned that surviving a crisis is, in some scenarios, entirely chance based on some people making the right decisions or being in the right place to succeed, while others aren't. The most important thing is to not let these events hold you back.

Pandemic Parenting Submitted by Kris Lynn

School Psychologist

Greetings to everyone! I hope everyone is doing well in these confusing, anxiety-producing times. With remote learning continuing through the end of the school year, we are all being asked to acclimate to a “new normal”, which brings with it a cluster of emotions--positive and negative. I was fortunate to listen to a talk from Rachel Simmons about how to manage some of the challenges associated with all of this. Rachel is the author of “Odd Girl Out” and “Enough as She Is” and is a frequent contributor to Good Morning America among other shows. I like her easy-to-understand and implement strategies that I’ve summarized below.

Preventative Strategies for Harmony at Home and Self-Regulation

● Keep in mind that we are not “working from home”...We are at home during a crisis & trying to work (or go to school). Much of our behavior and that of our kids’ is the result of the prolonged crisis and stress. ● Create ground rules for communication: work together to create a list of what we can and can’t say to each other when things get hard. ● Create a care plan for each family member: what do we need from each other right now (or today)? What do we need to do for ourselves in order to enjoy this time (or this day)?--Source: Tiffany Baker, @revtiffanybaker ● At the end of the day, reflect: What worked today? What didn’t work today? How can we make tomorrow a better day? ● Help kids focus on what they can control including problem solving, making their own choices, exploring new hobbies or skills, and practicing generosity ● Respect privacy and physical boundaries ● Routine increases predictability in a time of uncertainty and makes kids feel more secure

Acute Strategies for Self-Regulation

● Practice calming breaths and feeling your feet on the floor ● Apologize to your children when you make a misstep. Try writing a note/letter. ● Ask yourself what your child may be feeling “underneath” their anger/frustration e.g. fear, anxiety, despair and respond to that emotion.

Steps of Self-Compassion

● Mindfulness ● Self kindness ● Common Humanity

Finally, this has been shared a lot on social media, but I think it’s worthwhile--so I’ll share it again! Daily Quarantine Questions:

1. What am I GRATEFUL for today? 2. Who am I CHECKING IN ON or CONNECTING WITH today? 3. What expectations of “normal” am I LETTING GO OF today? 4. How am I GETTING OUTSIDE today? 5. How am I MOVING MY BODY today? 6. What BEAUTY am I either creating, cultivating, or inviting in today?

The bottom line for me, at least, is to know the importance of giving yourself and your child some grace as we move forward. There will be “big feelings” of anxiety, grief, sadness, confusion, etc. that are important to bring to the forefront. Please reach out to the student support team at school if you or your child are struggling. We are here to help.