Pinwheel, pinwheel spinning around

When Northside High School art teacher Sara Gant stumbled upon an art installation project that took place in Coconut Creek, Fla., that gave students a voice, she knew it would strike a cord with Onslow County students.

Swansboro Middle School, Swansboro High School, Southwest Middle School, Richlands High School, Jacksonville Commons Elementary School, Jacksonville Commons Middle School and Northside High School planned to participate in Pinwheels for Peace, which is a celebration of the International Day of Peace.

The project, Gant said, proves "the power of one student shouting (for peace)."

One shout, when combined with the millions of shouts made by people around the world, will make Pinwheels for Peace's voice be heard, she said.

Richlands High School participated on Sunday, which was the official day, but others saw their pinwheel plans get rained out on Monday only to be rescheduled to Tuesday.

More than 175 pinwheels were planted at the Onslow County Museum Sunday, Richlands High School art teacher Edith Graves said. Those pinwheels were then taken to the Richlands High campus on Monday.

"It's not just about the war type peace, which it can be, but it's a message of tolerance. It's a message of goodwill," Graves explained. "The kids could draw, they could write poetry, they could write phrases, symbols. It could just be simple colors that were peaceful. The whole idea is that as the pinwheel spins, you send out this message of peace through the currents of the air and let it flow."

Letting it flow was exactly what happened, Richlands High senior Amanda Newmann said.

"I thought it was a really great idea," she said Monday. "It's a great way for kids to have fun while, I guess, noticing that peace is a big part of our world today and we need it. Our society wouldn't be a very great place if we were without peace, if we were in constant fight and war."

Newmann worked with two other students to make two giant pinwheels. The average pinwheel, she explained, is 7-inches by 7-inches but the trio made two that were 28-inches by 28-inches and filled the pinwheels with symbols of peace, including peace signs, roses, doves, globes and smiley faces.

"It was fun participating and planting it and knowing that I was promoting peace and getting the message out," she said.

Pinwheels for Peace began Sept. 21, 2005, when art teachers Ann Ayers and Ellen McMillan at Monarch High School in Coconut Creek, Fla., used the project as a way for students to express their feelings about what's going on in the world and their lives, according to the Pinwheels for Peace Web site.

Richlands High's pinwheels, however, may not remain at the campus for long. Graves is planning to send the pinwheels to Unite For Peace.

"They'll ship them to kids throughout the world and spread the message of peace," she said.

Listen Up! staff member Chris Thomas contributed to this report. Contact Jacksonville/Onslow County reporter Amanda Hickey at 910-219-8461. Visit www.jdnews.com to comment on this report.