Chalking it up for peace

Oakland Tribune, Sep 18, 2008 by Elizabeth Schainbaum

THE BLACKTOP at Beach Elementary School was no longer black by Sunday afternoon.

That's because hundreds of families drew peace signs, favorite cartoon and movie characters, and more as part of the Beach Dads' Pancake Breakfast and the seventh annual PAINTS (Promote Art in the Schools, Inc.) Chalk Art Festival. After eating a hearty meal, 200 families bought a 4-by-4-foot square and set of colorful chalk for $10 and got started on their fanciful creations. Participants also contributed to a giant peace sign.

The Piedmont festival ties into the weeklong CHALK4PEACE, a global art project about peace. Children from four continents, 15 countries and 25 states participate. Beach was the kick-off site for California.

The PAINTS event, open to families from all Piedmont schools, aims to bring a sense of community to the beginning of the school year and connect younger families to the nonprofit organization. Formed in 1989 by parents, PAINTS supports the arts at all six Piedmont schools through grants and teacher stipends.

"It reflects our dedication to art, how important it is to integrate art into the curriculum for all our kids," said Kim Belchamber, PAINTS president. "Art is education. It's not just a hobby. It helps you think and problem solve."

Although the event drew mostly elementary school children, art students from the middle school and high school also participated. As in years past, a few parents who work at Pixar drew some of the company's signature characters. Jim Reardon, for one, created WALL- E, the garbage-collecting robot from the 2008 movie by the same name.

Sophia Long, a Beach fifth-grader decided she wasn't going to go the Pixar route as so many others did. She's adhered to the theme of the global art project.

"I like peace," she said. "I'm a Democrat. I want to end the war, so let's do peace."

And that's what she did: She created a dove carrying an olive branch, a rainbow and various peace signs.

Lindy Wakeling, a third-grade Beach student, took a page for her own life when creating her square. She made a sunrise over the ocean, a scene she recalls from a family trip to Point Reyes. She also helped her ninth-grade sister draw a big pink flower and a blue dove.

She didn't participate last year, so she was happy to share her efforts with everyone Monday morning.

"Now, I can say, 'Hey, that's mine! I did it," she said.

Chalk creations aren't just for kids.

Parents also got down on their knees and drew. For example, the Keating family had two squares. One for dad and the other for the rest of the family: mom, Grant, a Beach third-grader, and his older sister, Clare, a sixth-grader.

The dad, Andy Keating, was inspired by his love of Middle Eastern rugs to create geometrical patterns in orange, yellow, blue, and dark pink.

Next to him, the rest of the family drew stars, a tree with an owl, a bear in a cave and bats, inspired by Grant's shoes and their encountered with the creatures during a recent camping to the Pinnacles.

"I think it's great to bring the community together, to do a joint art project," said mom Tammi Keating. "It makes it feel like a small town."