2 minute read
Buddy Bench
- Marcia Searle, BASE
High school and elementary school students join together in the Buddy Bench dedication.
-Jill Irving, Portland EA
N e w s Y o u C a n U s e
Marcia Searle lost her mother when she was just
8-years-old. The seasoned Portland school bus driver couldn’t hold back her emotion when she described the moment she helped one of her students who lost her dad at the same young age of 8. “I saw myself in that child; I knew what she was dealing with. I want each kid to feel, when they step on my bus, they’re safe.” Searle creates that family-like environment on her bus, but she saw a need for the kindness to spread. That’s when she had an idea.
“I was sitting one Sunday morning watching TV, and I saw the story about a little boy who created a Buddy Bench. It was amazing to me what he did. For me, as an awkward kid growing up, this would have been exactly what I needed,” said Searle.
The idea behind the Buddy Bench is simple—create a safe space at the playground that can eliminate loneliness and foster friendship, where children can make a friend and be a friend. From that hope, and Searle’s persistence, the Buddy Benches in Portland were born. They’re places where kids can sit at the playground if they’re seeking a friend to play with or if they feel lonely and left out. Sitting on the Buddy Bench sends a signal to others the child needs someone to play with or the child feels alone. Children will then invite the child to play with them or another lonely child can find a playmate in the buddy on the bench.
Searle worked with local sponsors and other educators to make the benches a reality. The Portland School District then took the idea of the Buddy Bench to a whole new level, making the creation of two benches community projects.
Jill Irving, a special education teacher in Portland Arts and Technology High School’s Woodworking and Masonry program led the charge to build the benches. With the help of donated wood from Hancock Lumber, her special needs students built two benches—one for Riverton Elementary and one for Hall Elementary.
“My goal is to have my students mentor other people, give back, and understand that what they have is valuable and they have something to offer others. I saw my students get so into the project and really understand that this bench was a great thing to help other people feel included,” said Jill Irving.
The project didn’t end with building the benches. Students at Deering High School mentored younger students at each elementary school on anti-bullying issues. Training focused on what it feels like to be excluded, how to help other students feel more included, and how to be part of a school culture that supports kindness and friendship as a general practice. The benches have been a huge success for all the students involved with two other Portland schools requesting benches at their playgrounds.
