In the News: Honoring fallen Dundee students

In light of the nine members of the Dundee Elementary School community that have died since 2007, school officials decided this winter to build a memorial in their honor.

The hard part was figuring out how to pay tribute in the most respectful manner while also being appropriate for an elementary school campus.

A committee of administrators, parents and one former student believes a memorial garden will do just that and is asking for the community’s help to make their vision a reality.

The committee has partnered with the Dundee Elementary Parent Group, which has challenged the community to raise $600 for the project, which it will match in order to cover remaining costs.

“There have been a lot of great community connections, but it’s been a lot of staff and then some parents, which is what we wanted,” school counselor Kevin Hall said. “We’ve thrown it open to the whole Dundee Elementary community.”

The committee has chosen to install a set of benches with built-in planter boxes in the school courtyard, with plaques honoring each of the former students, alumni and one parent who have died: Jordan Nelson (2007), Christian Nelson (2009), Casey Binkerd (2010), Marissa Poznanski (2012), Jordan Boggs (2012), Colton Fettig (2012), Bailey Engels (2012), Jackson Engels (2012) and Amy Engels (2012).

At the request of some of the parents, the plaques will list the years those students attended the school.

The garden will also include a tile mosaic, which will be executed by former artist in residence Sam Bernardi and placed on the ground amid the benches, which will be set up in a “U” configuration. Coincidentally, Bernardi helped students create the tile work that currently adorns the courtyard, including tiles by many of the students being honored.

Bernardi will return for another stint as the artist in residence this fall and will work with students to complete the second phase of the project, covering the benches with tile mosaics.

“It will make it much more colorful, which is something we really wanted as an elementary school,” said Newberg High School senior Carley Thomas, a former Dundee student and member of the committee. “We want something that looks really nice as a memorial, but is also kid friendly and therefore not too serious.”

Thomas was still searching for a meaningful senior project over the winter when her mother, Dundee Elementary School secretary Shelley Thomas, mentioned the memorial, which has turned out to be a fitting way “to leave her mark.”

“To come in as a high school senior and deal with such a topic — we’ve had parents sit in on the meeting just bawling — and the depth of the loss, and for her to navigate some of those emotional waters, she’s done great,” Hall said. “I think it’s been difficult because people are emotional and reactionary and not always able to really put their thoughts into words.”

In addition to achieving its goals of making the memorial honoring, durable, maintainable and affordable, the committee was tasked

by Newberg School District superintendent Kym LeBlanc-Esparza to also make it movable.
LeBlanc-Esparza explained that in her former district in Colorado, a memorial tree was lost because officials were unable to transfer it

to another location to accommodate construction.
“She said it’s just one of those things that doesn’t leave a good feeling with anybody when you have to do that,” Hall said. “And there’s conversation that’s been around for years about Dundee Elementary School someday may relocate.”

Hall said Craig Nies, who owns Dundee Garden Art, has been especially helpful by ordering the benches for the project at cost and without charging for shipping.

The benches have been shipped from New Jersey and are expected to arrive in the next week or so and the committee plans to hold a dedication ceremony in the next two to three weeks.

For more information on donating to the project, call the school at 504-554-4850.

By Seth Gordon, Newberg Graphic