 |
Read Superintendent Comeau's letter |
| Read Police Chief Monegan's letter | |
| Read Fire Chief Goodrich's letter | |
| Event Photos | |
A Big
Thank You to these community leaders for joining
us in celebrating the
Incredible Kids of Anchorage!
On Thursday, March 16th, ASD Superintendent Carol Comeau, Anchorage Police Chief Walt Monegan and Anchorage Fire Chief Craig Goodrich shared their own Absolutely Incredible Kid Day letters with Camp Fire youth in our after school program at Chugach Optional. The children had some great questions for our community leaders; including a question to the Fire Chief about the biggest fire he ever fought and some discussion with the Superintendent about safety issues surrounding snowball throwing on school grounds. |
If you haven't written your own letter to the incredible kids in your life, do it today - or any day. Take the time to tell them how much they are appreciated. |
| March
16, 2006
I am so proud of each and every one of you who are students in our district. You are the whole reason that our school district exists, and I want to let you know that I am committed to bringing you the very best education possible. You are our future and we are pinning our hopes on you to solve so many of the serious issues we see today. You will be the leaders of tomorrow! We need you now more than ever as we face our many worldwide challenges. You are creative and much more tolerant of differences than so many adults…you have great ideas for solving today’s problems. You are committed to serving your community, whether though school projects, your church activities, community service organizations, and in many other ways. You lead by example and we as a school district need to do the very best we can for you. The School Board and I are committed to working with various elected leaders in our community to insure that we have the resources to provide you the highest quality of life possible. The Mayor and the Assembly have consistently supported the schools in the past five years; we appreciate their help. Many legislators have also passed laws and provided funds to make sure that we can hire the best teachers, support staff, and principals for your schools. You deserve the very best qualified teachers we can find. We are working hard to get enough funds to ensure that we can provide safe and caring schools for you each and every day. I want all young people in this community and in our district to feel valued for WHO you are, regardless of your race, religion, ability or disability, socioeconomic status, or gender. You deserve to feel safe and secure in your family, your schools, and in the community at large. We need to provide wholesome activities year-round for you so that you can grow and thrive in Anchorage. Your families, regardless of their size, are very important to us in supporting you. As you grow up, seek out the real heroes—our police officers and fire fighters, our teachers and health professionals, your moms and dads, grandparents, brothers and sisters, and family friends. Let them show you the values most important to success: hard work, honesty, caring, and perseverance! I hope that 2006 brings you much happiness and support as you grow and develop into adulthood. I want to assure you that we will support you each and every day during this very difficult time in our country’s history. Let us help you be the very best you can be…it is worth the hard work and the journey to help you become a contributing member of society and our community. Most sincerely, Carol Comeau back to top of page Letter from Police Chief Walt Monegan To the Absolutely Incredible Kids of Anchorage; As
you stand on the threshold of your life, about to enter,
where you go is up to you. You could choose to become
a doctor, police officer, soldier, pilot or dog sled
musher. Opportunities are all around, and with help
from your parents, family and teachers, freedom to
try one or many paths in life is yours. Limited only
by your imagination and determination to be the best
person you can possibly be, you can achieve amazing
things. Do not be afraid of failing, we all fail, it
is how we learn and it gives us strength and wisdom
to continue on our chosen journey. Stay in school and
learn new things everyday. This new knowledge will
help you choose your course in life and provide hope
and excitement for your future. Alaska is great place
to be a kid and provides wonderful activities and experiences
that will last your lifetime. We are proud of all you
and want to be involved in your lives and share your
dreams. Today we shape our community, families and
futures, tomorrow, you ———————————————————————— Absolutely
Incredible Kid Day Thank you for this absolutely awesome opportunity to be with you, and thank you for inviting me to offer some thoughts on this Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®. I am pleased and honored to help you celebrate the true joy and spirit of youth. When I was your age, all I wanted to do was be a fireman. Today we are called fire fighters for two reasons: 1) a “fireman” works on a train; and, 2) we have lady fire fighters – so the term fireman no longer fits. That is important for you to know, because there are times when we are told we can’t do things. Sometimes the reasons are good reasons: because it is dangerous, or what we want to do just costs too much, or takes too much time. Sometimes we are told “we can’t” because it just isn’t convenient and that’s OK too, but, sometimes we are told we can’t do something because of our gender – whether we are a man or a woman, or because of our skin color, or because we are “seen” to be physically incapable – and those are not acceptable reasons. When I was in high school I had a sports injury and the doctors said I could never be a fire fighter or do anything really physically demanding, but my mom and dad always told me I could do and be anything. They knew what I wanted and they helped me figure out what I would need to do to become a fire fighter – and that was more than 40 years ago. Today I am the Fire Chief because people helped me overcome my physical challenges. You Absolutely Incredible Kids have parents, teachers, aunts, uncles, police and fire fighters – all of whom are available to help you. What you must do is decide what you want; be excited – be passionate, be willing to work hard, be patient; certainly with others and with things but most importantly be patient with yourself. Stick with your goals; persevere, but don’t let somebody else tell you can’t be or do something you really, really want because of what or who you are. Women weren’t allowed to be fire fighters when I first joined the department and now we have a lot of really great women in our ranks. As “big
people” we have the job of seeing that you all
get the chance to be and do any and everything you
dream of doing. Your job is to not be afraid to challenge
the system; and to ask for help when you need it. Each
one of you is truly an Absolutely Incredible Kid, and
the future belongs to you. Your job, though, is to “be
there.” Carpe-diem. Seize the day. |
