October 9, 2008

Where the Wild Things Were

Los Alamitos students take a ‘Walk on the Wild Side’

Los Alamitos students joined Wendy Walker (Dandy Lion) and Reed Canerday (masquerading in the gorilla suit) and co-chair Lynn Wach to “Walk on the Wild Side” at this year’s 19th annual walk-a-thon. Photos by Michelle Takeuchi

By Shana McLean Moore
Staff Writer

While many Los Alamitos Elementary School parents feared Mother Nature would rain on their parade during this year’s walk-a-thon, the 528 students participating took the weather in stride as they set out on their annual 6,000-mile journey of fun and fundraising.

The event is a 19-year tradition at the school, with the first Los Alamitos walk-a-thon (WAT) held on Oct. 21, 1989. WAT was the brainchild of Faith Borges (a current Los Alamitos teacher) and Doreene Chang (a kindergarten parent at the time) who reached out to parents, teachers and community members to raise money for a Risograph machine, computers and playground equipment. While the first WAT raised approximately $11,000, the event has grown to include a silent auction and typically raises in excess of $100,000.

This year’s event co-chair, Lynne Wach, sees all signs pointing to meeting the school’s goals in both laps walked and dollars raised for the event, which comes as a big relief given the current state of the economy and Saturday’s state of weather.

Faith LaBarbera and Halle Thompson painted their faces to look like wild animals as they spent the morning hours walking their laps.

Despite the gray and drizzling skies, the day started festively with the always-anticipated teacher dance. With the full participation of the staff, dressed for a safari to fit in with this year’s jungle theme, the teachers performed a dance to “Wild Thing” to the delight of parents and students excited to take their first of many laps.

Dandy Lion, the school mascot, was even joined by a friendly gorilla this year. The duo walked their laps with students and parents alike who passed through the festive archway adorned with foliage, banana bunches and colorful monkeys.

The event was kicked off several weeks before with a movie night and a craft project that encouraged every class to decorate a paper palm tree to the “Walk on the Wild Side” theme. By all accounts, the competitive spirit is alive and well, as many palm trees housed full families of lion heads or banana bunches with photographs of the faces of each student inside. “It’s incredible how creative people are,” said Wach.

“We really see the success of our walk-a-thon as a testament to how parents feel about our school,” Wach added. “We didn’t know what to expect with all the recent news about the economy.”

The Los Alamitos teachers took part in a group shot, which included Tarzan, laying down in front, and a second gorilla. Second-grade teacher Robert Ford dressed up as Tarzan and music teacher Mark Veregge, better known as Mr. V, was in the gorilla suit.

Wach’s co-chair Wendy Walker agreed. “We told ourselves that all we can do is plan the event. Then it is up to the individual families to decide if they will spend their discretionary funds for the benefit of our school,” Walker said.

When asked why she plays such an active role in the walk-a-thon every year, Walker said: “I do this because of the programs our fundraising supports. I see such a huge benefit from the Art Vista, music and science programs at our school. The funds we raise also support capital projects like new picnic tables and the shade structures we are currently purchasing for our playgrounds.”

The silent auction, organized by co-chairs Debbie Michels and Monique Guerra, was another draw as families bid on unique items such as a helicopter ride with the San Jose Police Department, an evening with the Sharks, a free-dress pass for one day for a whole class, which is a big treat to a school with a uniform policy.

The hottest items, which filled up within the first hour, were the group events such as a men’s poker night, ladies’ poker night, a group spa night at Benefits in Los Gatos, a margarita party night and a Mamma Mia sing-a-long night with boas, Greek food and a participatory viewing of the movie.

The silent auction was organized by co-chairs Debbie Michels and Monique Guerra.

It wasn’t just the parents who donated, created and decorated the baskets. Monique Guerra’s children donated perhaps the cleverest basket. They saw mom’s involvement and wanted to play a role themselves. Proving themselves as resourceful as their mother— who solicited many of the donated items for the auction — the kids decided to auction off some of the walking stick bugs in their own backyard. They convinced mom to purchase a small rose bush plant and a mister and placed it all in a bug collector’s container and offered up a “basket” that ended up in a bidding war at the close of the day.

It may have looked like a jungle out there during this year’s walk-a-thon, but the feeling of the day was 100 percent “Hakuna Matata” – jungle speak for “no worries—” as the school community came together for a fun and worthy cause.