CLIPPARD STUDENTS EARN RECOGNITION FOR SCHOOL PROJECT

It wasn't a typical day at Clippard Elementary School in Cape Girardeau.

The principal wore overalls and drove a tractor. Parents came to school wielding hammers and hoes. Children used rakes and shovels. The fire department stood by all to make a difference at the school's playground and outdoor classroom.

The cleanup project won Clippard School the distinction of Outstanding Local Project in last fall's Make a Difference Day. Read more about the national project in today's USA Weekend.

Linda Hill, kindergarten teacher at Clippard, said the Oct. 24 event was one in a series of cleanup days at the school. Another is set for Saturday, and volunteers are being recruited from the community. The cleanup day is an example of how a group of people can practice kindness in their communities. The annual Random Acts of Kindness Week begins May 9.

Clippard's Outdoor Classroom, found beyond the school playground includes a butterfly garden, a prairie grass demonstration plot, bird feeders, trees, flowers, a wildlife food plot and more. Teachers and students use the area to study science and the environment throughout the year.

"But twice a year it needs attention," Hill explained. Over the years, the school has requested help, and every time the community responds.

In the fall, for example, tree limbs needed trimming. The City of Cape Girardeau used its equipment to take down the largest limbs. Parents then pitched in with chain saws to clean up the rest.

The prairie grass plot must be burned off occasionally to stimulate new growth. The fire department stood by to make sure the fire didn't get out of hand.

During the day, a playground pavilion was painted and re-shingled, wood chips were spread around the Outdoor Classroom, tether ball poles were painted, pea gravel was placed under the playground equipment.

Families built and donated birdhouses and bird feeders, which were mounted that day. A parent built a sundial and refinished a bench. A wildlife food plot was planted in hopes of luring wildlife from the woods near the school into view of the students.

"It is wonderful," said Hill.

The playground is used daily by the more than 400 students who attend Clippard. The Outdoor Classroom is used often, too. Hill's kindergartners, for example, were studying living things. They took binoculars out to the classroom to see what they could spot.

"Older students study insects," Hill said. "They roll over railroad ties to see what they can find." Recently, three snakes were spotted.

"There is all kinds of activity out there," Hill said. "It doesn't even feel like school when you go out there."

The school encourages children and families to get involved. "It's a good lesson for children," Hill said. "It also helps develop a sense of ownership. This is yours. Don't tear it up."

On Saturday, the community is invited to participate again. "Anyone is welcome," Hill said. "We'll be planting seedlings, moving wood chips and doing general playground cleanup again."

To date, the following businesses, organizations or individuals have agreed to participate in Random Acts of Kindness week, May 9-16. Call the Southeast Missourian at 335-6611 to register.

Wives of Missouri Veterans Home residents

Lyncare at Lynwood Baptist Church

Community Caring Council

Union Planters Bank

Kelly Elementary School in Benton

ECHO Program

Prepare Program

Jana Jateff Mary Kay Unit

Marvels & Legends

Kagmo Electric Motor Co.

Caring Communities

Alma Schrader faculty and staff

Town and Country FCE Club

Brownie Troop 145 at Clippard School

Center for Professional Counseling in Sikeston

Daisy Girl Scout Troop 277 at Trinity School

Bluebird Stomper Square Dancers in Jackson

St. Mary Cathedral School

Kids Korner

Cape Girardeau Alternative Education Center

The Medicine Shoppe

First National Bank

Tiffiney Kies' class at South Elementary in Jackson

Rhodes 101 Stop Convenience Stores

Elizabeth Kemp in Cape Girardeau

Shelley Kofsky in Cape Girardeau

Southeast Elementary School in Sikeston

Jackson Memorial

North Elementary School in Jackson

Regency Management

Kage FCE

Young Americans 4-H Club

Deer Creek Academy

Betsy Dinkins Fourth Grade class at Jefferson Elementary

Tric's Family Restaurant in Altenburg

L.J. Schultz School

AAA Travel

St. Vincent de Paul School

St. Francis Medical Center

Betty Butler in Jackson

First Pentecostal Church

Cape Senior Center's Site Council

Trinity Lutheran School

Schapers IGA in Jackson

Southeast Hospice

Christian School for the Young Years

Kindercare Learning Center

Kathy Matlock's First Grade at Shawnee Elementary South in McClure, Ill.

Third grade classes at Egyptian Elementary School in Tamms, Ill.

Nelson's Limousine Service

Orchard Elementary School in Jackson

Charles Gudemuth of Cape Girardeau

Sewing Ladies of Bethany Baptist Church

Cox Small Animal Clinic

American Legion Auxiliary Unit 114 in Sikeston

Walgreens

NationsBank

Schnucks

Cape Girardeau Police Department

Orthopaedic Associates

Franklin Elementary School

May Greene Elementary School

South Elementary School in Jackson

Hanover Lutheran Church

Hanover Lutheran Sunday School

HealthSouth Rehabilitation Center of Cape Girardeau

HealthSouth Surgery Center of Cape Girardeau

Jobs for Illinois Graduates Five County R.V.S. in Tamms, Ill.

AM-1170 KUGT radio

Community Counseling Center

Nell Holcomb School

Cape Christian School

Oak Ridge Schools

Nancy Godwin's kindergarten class at Washington Elementary School

John W. Bell Monument Works of Cairo, Ill.

Great Clips in the Town Plaza

Nicholson Consulting

Easter Seals Child Development Center

Heavenly Ham

Goody's Family Clothing

Frank Welter Family of Chaffee

Beverly Healthcare

Gary's Car and Truck Sales

Cape Carpet & Supply Co.

Melani Hamilton of Cape Girardeau

Gordonville Attendance Center of the Jackson Public Schools

KINDNESS Q&A

Q. What is a random act of kindness?

A. Random acts of kindness are those sweet or lovely things we do for no reason except to be nice. The recipients can be people we know or complete strangers.

Q. Why is kindness limited to a single week?

A. Kindness is certainly not limited to a single week. The Southeast Missourian sponsors Random Acts of Kindness Week as a way to raise awareness about importance of small kindnesses each and every day. This marks the fourth year in a row for the local celebration. The National Random Acts of Kindness week -- that involves more than 450 communities and 10,000 schools around the world -- marked its fifth year in 1999.

Q. Who can sign up and what does it mean?

A. Anyone can participate -- individuals, businesses, schools, churches, entire communities. Participants only agree to do some kind act during the week. Names of participants will run on the front page of the newspaper. You can sign up over the phone by calling 335-6611 or by faxing in the kindness graphic that runs daily in the newspaper.

Q. Who has signed up so far?

A. More than 80 individuals, businesses, churches, schools and organizations have signed up so far from Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Benton, Altenburg, Sikeston, and the Illinois communities of Tamms, McClure and Cairo. It's not too late to join. Call 335-6611.

Q. How can I nominate a kind person for recognition?

A. During Kindness Week, the Southeast Missourian suspends its special pages and devotes the space to people who do kind things yearround. The names of individuals who routinely perform kindnesses, both large and small, are needed as soon as possible. Please call Joni Adams or Peggy Scott with suggestions at 335-6611.

Q. What free stuff is available from the newspaper?

A. We have bright smiley face stickers, bookmarks and small posters signifying Kindness participants. Supplies will be distributed free while they last. The newspaper ordered 25,000 bookmarks and 25,000 stickers, but more than 14,000 have already been requested. A sheet of 100 kind acts is also available, and it will run in the paper May 9.

Q. When does it all start?

A. Three weeks and counting. Kindness Week begins on Mother's Day, May 9, and runs through May 16. A Kindness Hotline at the newspaper will begin May 10, and individuals are encouraged to call the paper or the Speak Out line to report kind acts.