FastForward | March - April 2024

FastForward

FastForward SUMMER CAMPS

Lifelong MEMORIES

+ PINTEREST

AN INTERVIEW WITH JUDY LEE (HEAD OF GLOBAL BRAND EXPERIENCES)

SCHOOL OF THE MONTH

MILL VALLEY MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS SHARE THEIR PASSIONS

Campers hiking at Coastal Camp

LOS ANGELES & NEW YORK

FASTFORWARD REPORTERS: AN INSIDE VIEW AS PRESS

TAM VALLEY SCHOOL

STUDENT COUNCIL

Anne Marie Padilla, Teacher

As members of the Tam Valley Student Council, we work to unite our school. Student Council helps with our Friday spirit assemblies; in which we celebrate positive behavior and learn new tools to help us grow. Our goal is to make students feel happy and welcome on campus. In addition to planning events that contribute to school spirit, the student council is the voice of the whole school. They come to meetings sharing out things that are for the betterment of our school community and develop plans to make things better.

Andrew’s Camp

Branson School

Camp Funderblast

Camp Winnarainbow

Carmel Valley Tennis Camp

Circus Center San Francisco

City of San Rafael - Kids Camp

Coastal Camp

Dave Fromer Soccer Camp

Farm Camp

Headlands Preparatory Schoo Marin

County Fair

Marin County Library Foundation

Marin Greenplay Camp

Marin Horizon School

Marin Waves Track & Field Club

MJCC Camp Kehillah

Marin Shakespeare Camp

Marin Summer Camp Fair Mill

Mill

Morning Star

Mountain

Mount

Performing

Ross

Ross

San

PUBLISHER: Winifred MacLeod winifred@fastforwardweb.com M: 415.272.3569

STUDENT EDITORS: Charlotte Martin and Emerson Swift

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Ashley Adams, Eliza Angelo, Myles Arthur, Nola Barreiro, Brooks Beau Beyer, Cami Colpitts, Liam Conroe, Harper Dean, Ollie Efremov, Ella Ervin, Oscar Estrada, Lidia Gomez, George Graham, Josie HaydenSmith, Kate I., Rafferty Kan, William King, Axel Kolterman, Skylar Lariviere, Haley Lefferts, Charlie Lieginger, Amelia Loedolff, Audrey Lowell, Daniel May, Julian Maybury, Amanda Mauzy, Andy Mazariegos, Adonis Martin, Ava McMahon, Meadow McPherson, Cara O’Connell, Lauren Olsen, Madalena Owen, Charlotte Martin, Dashiell de Pala, Cara Parks, Lila Paris, Cat Philip, Jordan Potter, Kaleigh Randlett, Nicole Rekhtman, Isla Robbins, Semira Robinson, Colin Ryckman, Sadie Saavedra, BT Salle, Henry Squires, Isaac Sutherland, Emerson Swift, Ella Tsai, Jenniffer Valiente, Poppy Wintermute, Yoga Weng, Owen Zech

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS: Anna Han, Hayes Hyman, Luke Jorgenson, Zoe Milum, Emilia Narganes, Alina Palacios, Bora Tekin, Carter West and Dylan Whisenant

ONE WEEK: June 17-21 9th Grades — Grade 12

ONE WEEK: July 20-26 9th Grades — Grade 12

SPONSORED BY:

In Drama, students get to be silly and serious and everywhere in between. We try on all sorts of characters and stretch our sense of who we are and who we can be. We work in small groups, solo, and as one whole class, sometimes leading and sometimes following. We write our own scripts, experiment with our voices, choreograph our movements, and design our own costumes. We have fun playing Improv games and are making music videos for our favorite songs.

a performer.” — Ryan

“I love the creative freedom to make incredible projects, excel at acting and improv, and being able to do so confident and strongly!” — Liyah

“Being able to use Drama as a creative outlet is a wonderful thing! It’s an amazing, safe, positive space with a great environment and community!”— Skye

“ Drama is fun because I can be goofy (without getting detention - Lol).”— Annika

Check out our Shop & Give Donations Program — Select your favorite charity and we’ll donate 2% of your total grocery receipts.

MON-SAT 7am - 7:30pm SUN 9am-7pm

12 Corte Madera Ave. Mill Valley 415-388-3222

& Summer FUN

& Lifelong MEMORIES

Laugh, play music, create, build something, explore new places, make new friends, ride a horse, sing songs ...

Do what you love.

MOUNTAIN CAMP

By Liam Conroe, 8th Grade, MCDS

I stared out of the window, observing the expanse of trees and nature around me as the bus I took from Marin entered the South Lake Tahoe area. A short time later, we pulled up to camp. My brother and I jumped off the buses and grabbed our bags, eager to experience our first summer camp. I hauled my fluorescent yellow bag over to a pile of gear and sat down with my friends and brother. With everyone assembled and buzzing with excitement, the camp director introduced himself and some of the staff and counselors, and then gave us our cabin assignments. Two weeks of fun is starting now, I thought to myself as I lugged my bag to my cabin. I was so right.

I had an incredible time at Mountain Camp, with the tasty food, friendly atmosphere, and wide range of activities. Every morning you wake up to a yummy breakfast, which can vary from eggs and hash browns to pancakes. If you don’t like the breakfast they are offering that day, you can make yourself a delicious bowl of either cereal or oatmeal with toppings like honey, brown sugar and cranberries. After breakfast, there is an activity with your cabin which can be anything from tubing to a ropes course, followed by a general camp activity. After lunch there are two more activity periods before some afternoon free time. After dinner, there is an engaging evening program followed by nightlife with your cabinmates before going to bed around 10 pm. Lunches and dinners are also enticing, with a wide variety of options like pizza, sandwiches and pasta at lunch and ravioli and pulled pork sandwiches for dinner. If you have any kind of dietary restriction, not to worry, as there is a salad bar and other options. Best of all, after each meal there is an appetizing variety of desserts.

One of the many fun activities at Mountain Camp is

LARPing. LARPing stands for Live Action Roleplaying and is a game where you duel opponents with a foam sword. My friends and I had tons of fun LARPing, with all of us getting better every time we played. There are many different variants of LARPing, such as EFT (Everyone For Themselves) and CTF (Capture the Flag).

Mountain Camp is on a big lake which provides a slew of exciting activities like tubing, water skiing, kayaking and sailing. Two activities I particularly enjoyed were kayaking and tubing. I enjoyed experiencing the serene, deep blue lake as I kayaked with my friends followed by jumping off a rock aptly named “Jumping Rock”. Another activity I loved on the lake was tubing. I was completely exhilarated while tightly clinging onto the bright red tube as it skipped across the water.

Aside from LARPing, there are also many amazing activities on land. Two of my favorite activities were the ropes course and outdoor cooking. In outdoor cooking, there are many enjoyable treats to be made, like cinnamon apples, ice cream and pizza pockets. At the ropes course, there are other fun options such as the opportunity to scale several rock walls.

Finally, if you are one for adventure, you have to try the Polar Plunge. The Polar Plunge is when campers wake up early and jump in the cold lake water, before enjoying hot chocolate. If you do this, you are entered into a raffle to win a fluffy stuffed polar bear. The water is wonderfully refreshing that early and not too cold.

I had an amazing first time at Mountain Camp and it was sad to leave after two short weeks. Mountain Camp is the place of many memories and stories that I still laugh about with my friends. I can’t wait to go back this year!

Mountain Camp campers sharing fun on the water.

GOLD ARROW CAMP

By Isla Robbins, 6th Grade Mount Tamalpais School

Gold Arrow Camp is the best place in the world to go for the summer! One of the best parts about camp is enjoying the experience away from home with new people in your cabin that become close friends.

I started going to Gold Arrow Camp when I was nine. I was so excited to go and a little nervous, but as soon as I got on the bus, I met two girls who were in the same cabin as me and we became instant friends. The fun of camp starts when you get on the bus — you get to meet the counselors and new campers, stop for lunch, and watch a movie and everyone is happy and excited on the journey!

It’s even more fun when you arrive. As the bus pulls into camp, you can see all of the counselors and cabin mates wait for everyone to arrive. People are laughing, hugging, singing, and welcoming everyone as you get off the bus and taken to your cabin group.

You share the cabin with about 10 girls/ boys and 3-4 counselors. It’s really fun to be able to share the amazing activities with your cabin friends. I have been in the same cabin with best friends from my first summer, which I love. You do most of the activities together with your cabin, eat your meals

together, and have a campfire with smores and popcorn every night — all this time together means we become really close. You’ll definitely make new friends at camp!

There are some fun and unique things about GAC. The counselors don’t use their real names. They go by their camp names like Monkey, Ace, or Glitter. It might sound weird at first, but it is super fun and at the end, they might even tell you their real names!

Shaver Lake is amazing! Everyone gets the chance to go to Shaver for water skiing, wakeboarding, knee boarding and wake surfing. I learned how to ski on one ski last summer! You get to sleep under the stars after a day on

the water. It’s my favorite place to be at camp.

The camp activities are fun and allow you to try new things. Besides the water sports, which are my favorite (wait until you go on the pontooning boat!), you get to try archery, rock climbing, horseback riding, hiking, riflery, and go on the high ropes course. I love to help out with horses in my free time.

One of my favorite parts about camp is when you get to make a skit with your cabin and you get to perform it in front of the entire camp. The skits are funny and a lot of fun!

Gold Arrow Camp is the place to go! It has great activities and so much fun that you don’t even think about going on a device.

Gold Arrow campers head out on a boating excursion.

l

COASTAL CAMP

by Ashley Adams, Kent Middle School, 5th Grade

Coastal camp is a fun-filled adventure camp with lots of exciting activities, like learning, exploring, and hikes, such as Newt Nation and Rodeo Beach hike. There were plenty of things to keep me busy. I learned about native and invasive plants and how most of them got there. Most of the time I enjoyed sitting on the beach looking for Carnelians and shiny blue-ish green pebbles.

I loved every hike I took and especially loved the hike up to the top one of the surrounding mountains, where I felt like I was on top of the world! We got to plan our own routes (within our groups) back down the mountain and I was really excited and thought it was great! I love Coastal camp because I usually have too much energy for just sitting around at home and would definitely rather spend my time outside.

Another thing about Coastal Camp is all the beautiful nature. I get to explore a really pretty area and I have a great time finding stuff like feathers, shells, and driftwood there. We got to build forts in a redwood tree grove and made our way through a pebble maze where we could look out over the ocean. I almost forgot to mention the wildlife! We saw all sorts of animals and insects, everything from black beetles to dolphins, pelicans and seagulls.

Finally, all the instructors were super nice. The tasty double chocolate chip cookies and regular chocolate chip cookies we got at the end of the day were also super nice. Before our parents arrived to pick us up, we got to play games such as Poison Dart Frog and French Duck Duck Goose.

MARIN SHAKESPEARE CAMP

By Ella Ervin, Sinaloa Middle School, 8th Grade

In my two years of performing at Marin Shakespeare Camp, I’ve had riveting, fun, and shared experiences with quick-witted, passionate and kind friends. I’ve learned much about Shakespeare’s prose and verse in these productions. I find the language fascinating, as well as how the verse that Shakespeare wrote explains emotional nuances while keeping the line in iambic pentameter. Even when characters speak in prose, the words give vivid imagery of the character’s thinking and how the plot will continue. Learning about the writing choices that Shakespeare made and the flowery language has been riveting; I’ve learned a lot from it.

The way in which Shakespeare portrayed characters was brilliant as well. It is clear how the characters think, and how their morals as well as personality traits affect how they interact with others. While reading scripts and watching people, it’s so interesting to watch the other young actors make small choices about what their character thinks about a piece of information, or how they act around other certain characters. It’s so fun to bring our intricate characters onto the stage and understand our character’s choices.

Physically performing these plays is fantastic. It’s truly an amazing experience as it allows for a form of self-expression in acting out these roles. You can either play these roles as if you were partially yourself in this position or take on an entirely new personality. The feeling of adrenaline when I step on stage with the lights in my eyes is incredible. It is so gratifying, and I love doing it with all the other actors.

The other young actors I’ve met and worked with are all excellent. They all love Shakespeare, and we all get along so well. Everyone is so quick-witted, kind, and passionate. I’ve made friends that I talk to regularly from the productions I’ve worked in. I think they are some of the best people I’ve ever known.

I highly recommend kids of all ages to join the Marin Shakespeare Company’s summer camps and other productions. It will be an experience you won’t forget. For me, it has been a valuable and gratifying experience, where I’ve created many great memories.

MARIN WAVES and TRACK CLUB

By Daniel May, Junior, Marin Academy

I love running track at Marin Waves and Track Club because it has helped me learn to focus, work hard and achieve success through running. I first pursued running by trying out for my middle school track team. I had not done anything to prepare, and it did not go well. I felt like a failure. Then a friend told me about David Hay and his Track Club. I started right away and noticed how taking time to work on my running technique helped me learn to become a better runner. I immediately started focusing on my form and Coach Dave really helped me start perfecting this. A good team is impossible without a good coach. David Hay is a fantastic coach. He knows his stuff— all about running, form, stride and what it takes. He’s good been very good at analyzing my form and telling me what I need to do to improve my running. He can see my weaknesses and helps me improve as well as my strengths. Check out Marin Waves and Track Club

Camps Summer

ANDREWSCAMPS: Marin County, Corte Madera. AT THE CENTER Age 5+ Indoor & outdoor play areas. Zipline, bouncy houses, laser/nerf tag, trampoline, climbing wall, monkey bars, hockey, soccer, baseball, basketball, obstacle courses, capture the flag, & more. Lego Room, Imagination Room, Technology & Art Room.

TRAVEL CAMP Age 7+ Six Flags, Hurricane Harbor, Rebounderz, Scandia, Spring Lake, Cal Skate, & more.

OVERNIGHT CAMP Grades 4-12 Nice cabins, lodge, incredible activities: swimming, boating, tubing, jet skis, rafting, archery, BB guns, paintball, dune buggies, cave exploration, fishing, hiking, & more. June 10th - Aug 30th, 8:30AM-5:00PM

ANDREWSCAMPS.COM

415-891-3185

BRANSON SCHOOL SUMMER SESSION: 20+summer camps, workshops and classes taught by Branson faculty, staff and coaches. MIDDLE SCHOOL: Applied AI in Python, Effective Reading and Writing Skills for 7th & 8th Grade, Financial Literacy, Intro to Python, Messy Art, Spoken Word. SPORTS: Boys & Girls Basketball, Middle School Boys Volleyball and Middle School Soccer. HIGH SCHOOL: Effective Reading and Writing Skills for 9th Graders, Financial Literacy, Geometry, Prep for Algebra I, Prep for Algebra II, Writing the College Essay. SPORTS: Branson Basketball Team Camp, High School Girls Lacrosse, Making Strides- Cross Country and Running. June 10-August 16. Email: summer_session@branson.org www.bransonsummer.org 415-455-7165

CAMP FUNDERBLAST: Games, arts & crafts, swimming, nature adventures, chill time & more in a fun, loving, safe environment. 5 Locations: Mill Valley: Scott Valley Swim & Tennis Club, Homestead Valley Community Association, Peace Lutheran Church. Fairfax: Saint Rita’s Campus. Petaluma: Legorns Park. Pre-K7th grade. Swimming at Homestead or Scott Valley w/ option to participate in Tennis Camp at Scott Valley. Homestead: 9AM-4PM. June 17-Aug. 16; Scott Valley: 9AM-4PM, June 17-Aug. 16; Peace Lutheran: 9AM-5PM, June 10-August 23; Fairfax: 9AM-4PM. June 17-Aug. 16. Petaluma 9AM-3pm June 10- 28 and July 22-August 9.

FUNDERBLAST.COM 415-843-1730

CARMEL VALLEY TENNIS CAMP est 1970: Tennis... and a whole lot more! Consistently picked by Tennis Magazine as a “Top 5” sleep away tennis camp in the USA. Excellent tennis instruction, healthy competition, conditioning, and numerous sports and social activities take place in Carmel Valley on a beautiful 38 acre private and secure setting for children 10-18.

CARMELVALLEYTENNISCAMP.COM 831-659-2615

CIRCUS CENTER SF — SUMMER CAMPS 2024: Run away with the circus this summer! Our week-long camps offer a fun, safe and supportive environment where children can test their limits and explore their creativity with professional circus artists. Through collaboration and teamwork, your child will develop a unique skillset, perform in a showcase at the end of each week, and make lifelong friends. Activities in-

clude: acrobatics, aerial arts, flying trapeze, juggling, clowning, stilts, equilibristics, songs and games. AGES: 7-13. DATES: 1-week sessions, June 10 – August 16.

CIRCUSCENTER.ORG/CAMP 415-759-8123

CITY OF SAN RAFAEL CHILD CARE DIVISION, KIDS CAMP is a fun-filled, action-packed summer program for school-age children. Located at Lucas Valley, Parkside and Vallecito Children’s Center. Each of our 3 sites has professional, caring enthusiastic staff that plan and present a wide variety of kid-friendly activities and special events in safe, facilities. Each week your child will have the opportunity to create, explore, swim, splash, play games and just enjoy being a kid! Centers are open June 17-Aug. 15 from 8:00AM to 5:30PM, Monday through Friday. Weekly rate: $365 For more information, contact Kelly Albrecht at 415-485-3386.

CITYOFSANRAFAEL.ORG 415-485-3386

COASTAL CAMP: A day at Coastal Camp is a day spent connecting with nature. With the Marin Headlands as our backdrop, campers learn more about the topics they love while exploring the coastal trails and marine setting. Our highly qualified staff engage campers’ interests and curiosity with a program that is flexible and adaptive to each group’s needs. Offering week-long sessions for campers entering grades K-12. Session dates run June — August 2024. Transportation is available from Marin (San Rafael, Mill Valley, and Marin City) & San Francisco).

COASTALCAMP.ORG 415-331-1548

...Continued on page 12

SUMMER CAMP at SAN DOMENICO

Cara Parks

San Domenico School, Freshman

San Domenico Summer Camps are the perfect way to spend your summer. Surrounded by 515 acres of rolling hills with summit views of the San Francisco Bay, the campus is gorgeous. Whether you are interested in playing water polo in the pool, hanging out in the garden for some animal-fun, or creating pottery in the art studios, they have something for everyone in the many week-long camp options for all ages.

San Domenico Summer Camps offer opportunities for the aspiring dancer, business leader, explorer, musician and athlete, with lots of chances for fun and creativity along the way. The summer camps allow you to try something new or continue learning about the activities you love, including cooking, arts and crafts, and outdoor activities. You can play volleyball on the brand new sand courts or make movies in the film lab, but whichever camp you choose, get ready for the best summer ever! My personal favorites are the Journalism and Dance camps. I had so much fun, and I can’t wait to go back this summer for more!

San Domenico Summer Camps give you the chance to learn from the amazing instructors, while making friends and memories

that will last even after the summer ends. I still remember my first day, I was a little nervous at first, but then, at the end of the day, I didn’t want to leave! Even if you don’t find exactly what you’re looking for, you’ll have a great time at any of the camps. Come to summer camp at SD this summer for some guaranteed fun!

BRANSON SUMMER SESSION: Effective Reading and Writing Skills for 9th Graders

By Skylar Lariviere ‘26, Ella Tsai ‘26, and Sadie Saavedra ‘26

The transition to high school is exciting but it can also be a little scary if you don’t know what to expect. The three of us took “Effective Reading and Writing Skills for 9th Graders” at Branson’s Summer Session before our freshman year. It’s just one of many programs that Branson runs for middle school and high school students over the summer including math and science prep courses, art, sports camps, coding, and even finance classes. We found that it really helped us to prepare to enter high school in the fall. Here are our experiences:

Skylar: My mom signed me up for Branson’s Summer Session, knowing from my brothers’ experience that the transition between 8th and 9th grades can be a big jump. English hasn’t always been easy for me, and taking this class helped me to ease in and

know what to expect when I began freshman English at Branson in the fall. I really appreciated my teacher’s lively approach, hearing other people’s ideas was fun, and I learned how to participate in group discussion.

Ella: In 8th grade I was struggling with critical analysis skills, so I wanted to work on it before I went into high school. Taking this week-long course gave me a sense of what I was going to be expected to do in 9th grade – and not only in English. I got to practice speaking out in class, and worked on my class participation. It taught me about how high school was going to work.

Sadie: Middle school English was tough for me, and this class was a good preview of what was to come in freshman English. In this class I got better at writing and was able to improve on my analysis of short stories – I went a lot deeper. In the end we wrote a big essay, and I was able to get lots of feedback.

We would recommend that other middle school and high school students take advantage of Branson’s summer opportunities. You don’t have to be a Branson student! The courses are small and personalized, the teachers are great, and you get plenty of 1:1 attention. The course we took together prepared us well for 9th grade English and gave us a sense of what teachers in high school would expect. Even though it’s summer and you may want a break, try Branson’s Summer Session. It will be a lot of fun!

Camps Summer

DAVE FROMER’S 43rd ANNUAL SOCCER CAMPS: June 17th - August 20th for boys and girls of all ability levels aged 5-12. Featuring a top-level coaching staff with an emphasis on skill development & fun! Coed and all-girl camp sessions offered weekly with sites throughout Marin County (Mill Valley, San Rafael & Larkspur). Plus a camp in North Lake Tahoe. Full-Day (M-F 9AM - 3PM) and Half-Day (M-F, 9AM - 12:30PM) options available. Supervision is available beginning at 8:30AM for all camps.

DAVEFROMERSOCCER.COM

415-383-0320

FASTFORWARD ADVENTURE REPORTERS LOS ANGELES and NEW YORK CITY: Designed for budding journalists and dedicated students who are fascinated by the world around them. Our youth reporters will interview Directors at DreamWorks Studios, musicians and CEO’S of fascinating LA companies. Their writing will be featured in future issues of the magazine. FASTFORWARD LOS ANGELES: 8 students, entering Grade 9; June 17 — 21.

FASTFORWARD NYC: Fascinating interviews set up with organizations: Marin Human Rights Watch, Museum of Broadway, Seth Myers, authors, actors, actresses, politicians and filmmakers. Students conduct 7-9 interviews p/week, developing interviewing & writing skills, learning that “listening to someone else can change your life.” July 22 — July 26. For details or questions:

Email: winifred@fastforwardweb.com

FASTFORWARDWEB.COM 415-272-3569

BLASTER CAMP: MARIN BLASTER CAMP: Safe, fun and exciting NERF blaster games and battles to develop speed, quickness, endurance and agility. The perfect way for kids to stay fit in the summer while playing outdoors, having fun, and making new friends. Week-long sessions available as well as daily drop-ins. Held at Strawberry Point School in Mill Valley June 24-July 26 and Memorial Park in San Anselmo, June 24-28 and July 15-19. NERFCAMP.COM 415-816-0529

MARIN GREENPLAY CAMP 2024: A Marin IJ Readers Best Summer Camp. Marin GreenPlay Camp is a favorite nature and adventure day and overnight camp now in its 15th summer for kids entering kindergarten through 12th grade. All outdoor, nature-based, and developmentally appropriate activities, depending on the camp program selected, including outdoor rock climbing, dog walking, geocaching and other appbased nature activities, tidepooling, boogie boarding, kayaking, exploring, nature art, service learning, karate, yoga, meditation and more! Weeklong sessions from June 24 - August 9. Full day (9AM-4PM) and half day (9 -1PM) available. Mill Valley, Tiburon, Larkspur and other locations in Marin and Tahoe.

MARINGREENPLAY.COM

415-264-2828

MARIN HORIZON SCHOOL SUMMER CAMP: Six week-long summer camp sessions for ages 3–7 that are fun AND academic! Every week has a different theme: Earth Explorers (June 17-21), Blowing in the Wind (June 24-28), Red, White, & Blue (July 1-3), Salute to the Sun (July 8-12), Water Works (July 15-19), and The Might Dot (July 22-26). All groups have a 12:1 camper to counselor ratio. Camp hours are 9AM–3PM; extended care from 8:30AM–9AM and 3PM-4:30PM. June 17 –July 26. Email:summercamp@marinhorizon.org

MARINHORIZON.ORG/SUMMER

415-388-8408 ext. 253

MARIN JCC CAMP KEHILLAH: Kids from all over Marin come to Camp Kehillah at the Osher Marin JCC in San Rafael to make new friends, strengthen their swim skills, and explore their artistic side. Each day is packed with swimming, art, music, science, sports, goofy theme days, overnight adventures, and field trips. While Camp Kehillah is rooted in Jewish values, everyone is welcome! Camp dates: June 17-August 16, 2024. Questions: Call: 415.444.8055 or email bmihalik@marinjcc.org

jcc.org/summercamp2024/ 415.444.8055

MARIN SHAKESPEARE COMPANY: Guided by professional theatre artists, explore Shakespeare’s amazing characters, language and stories while practicing teamwork, building confidence and making friends! Camps for ages 5-19 run June 17-August 9. Teen and Young Company campers spend three weeks honing acting skills through games and exercises,, while rehearsing for the performance of an abridged Shakespeare play. Young Company (8-12): June 17 – 28 (two week camp): Henry V, July 1–July 19: Twelfth Night, July 22–August 9: Julius Caesar (M-F 9AM-5PM). Teen Company (12-19): June 24–July 12, Much Ado About Nothing (M-F, 10AM-3PM). Our youngest campers (5-8) spend a week exploring creative dramatics, storytelling and build a short performance based on Shakespeare’s plays & characters. Shakespeare’s Stories: July 22–26: Magic and Mayhem, July 29–August 2: All the World’s a Stage, August 5 – 9: Witty Fools (M-F, 9AM-Noon)

MARINSHAKESPEARE.ORG/SUMMER-CAMPS 415-499-4487

MARIN WAVES TRACK CLUB: MARIN WAVES

TRACK CLUB MARIN WAVES TRACK CLUB a USATF Member Club since 2007: 6 National Champion Awards; 9 National Runner-Up Awards; 32 Total JO Youth All-American Awards. 20 AAU National Indoor/ Outdoor Top 8 Awards; 14 AAU West Coast Nationals Champions. Track & Field, Speed & Agility Training for All Sports, Cross Country, and Road Racing. Sessions include cardio work, dynamics, speed development, individualized workouts, strength building & flexibility training. Spring Track: MARCH 25 - JUNE 9. Summer Track: JUNE 9 - AUGUST 4. Age Groups: Youth (6-14), High School & Above. All ability levels: Beginners - Elite. Group Training sessions avail. 3 p/ wk. All-Comers & USATF Meets.

MARINWAVESTRACK.COM 415-272-1225

MILL VALLEY RECREATION — SUMMER CAMP

PROGRAMS: Kids Preschool—Teens have lots to choose from: Preschool-5th graders, Cool off with Splash Camp: Swim lessons & all types of indoor and outdoor activities and recreational swim for 1 week sessions, Extended Care is available for specific camps, contact us for more info.. Preschool Splash & Afternoon Camps AM & PM offer half-day options for the younger set. Sports & Specialty Camps: Camp PAASS, Legos, Theater, Tennis, All Sports, Technology, Chess, Baking, Art, & more. Teen opportunities include our CIT Program and Performing Arts. Register for camps at MyMVR.org. View our Spring/Summer Activity Guide at MILLVALLEYRECREATION.ORG for additional activities, special events and classes. MILLVALLEYRECREATION.ORG 415-383-1370

PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMY OF MARIN: PAAM offers a full summer schedule to fill your days with the performing arts! Weekly programs in Theater Arts and Dance are available throughout the summer. Students gain superior training from seasoned

professionals in a supportive and fun environment. Programs are grouped by age for students Ages 4 & up! Our Theater Arts camps culminate with a performance for the family. June 17th-August 16th.

PAAMARTS.COM

415-380-0887

POEKIE NOOK: Hand-sewing, beginning to advanced, beading, and other arts and crafts, for children ages 6 and up. What makes us unique is nurturing a child’s creative world through sewing one-of-a -kind plush animals along with their accessories and habitats. Schedule a special trial, if your child has never experienced the joy of making a “ Poekie”. Summer hourly package: 8 hours for $280. Please see our website for details. POEKIENOOK.COM 415-326-5202

ROSS ACADEMY MONTESSORI SCHOOL’S SUMMER MINI CAMP 2024: Continuing Montessori environment with regular staff the entire summer & lots of outdoor fun! Guest Appearances & Special Events.

AGES: Toddler Program 2-3 years. Primary Program 3-5 years. Held at Ross Academy Montessori School, 7 Thomas Drive, Mill Valley. June 17-August 9. 7AM6:15PM (Full Day) 9AM-Noon (Half Day). 2,4,6 & 8 week programs available (Minimum 2 consecutive weeks). 3 Day programs (Toddlers only).

Email: rams@rossacademymontessori.com

ROSSACADEMYMONTESSORISCHOOLS.COM

415-383-5777

ROSS RECREATION SUMMER CAMPS 2024: Summer Fun for Everyone! We have camps for all ages ~ there is something for every kind of kid! From themed weekly on-site activity camps, travel, exploration and adventure or sports camps, dance, art and more – your camper is sure to be impressed. Check out some of our camps: Ross Bears Kinder Camp, Sporty Girls Camp, Top Gun, Off the Block S.T.E.M. with LEGO®, Gone Fishin’! and more!

ROSSRECREATION.ORG 415-453-6020

SAN DOMENICO SCHOOL’S SUMMER PROGRAM: With camps for makers, artists, musicians, creators, and more! From academic enrichment to co-curriculars, you can build your own summer of fun and learning. Rock Band, Filmmaking, Ceramics, Dance, Journalism, Mathletics, Sewing, Theatre, and Entrepreneurship! Adventure camps that explore the beautiful, 515-acre campus! Sports camps including Nike Tennis & Basketball, Soccer, Water Polo, Volleyball, Baseball, Mountain Biking, and more. Camps are filling up quickly so contact us NOW. Ages 4 -17 | June 17–July 26. Contact us at: SANDOMENICO.ORG/COMMUNITY-PROGRAMS/SUMMER-PROGRAMS 415-258-1900 ext 1435

VILDA NATURE CAMPS: Vilda Nature Camps: Go kayaking, learn archery, hike, meet an owl face to face, do carpentry, swim, backpack, learn about wild edibles, work on nature based crafts, build a primitive shelter, make new friends, climb a tree, earn skill badges and much more all wrapped in lots of adventure and play. Vilda’s beloved nature day camps are an organic, all natural, free range, 100% awesome summer experience in the hills, lakes, bays and beaches of Marin, Petaluma and Tahoe/Truckee. Vilda’s highly trained adult instructors provide kids with a caring individualistic experience at a 1:7 instructor to camper ratio or better. Ages 4-13. Weeklong sessions available from Jun 17 - Aug 19.

Info@vildanature.org VILDANATURE.ORG 415-747-4840

CAMP FUNDERBLAST

Alexis Spencer & Paloma Anderson, Tam Valley School, 3rd Grade

Camp Funderblast is about spreading love and joy, and taking care of kids. We like going to Camp Funderblast because it is like a playdate with all our friends. We get to do fun cool stuff and sometimes we get to prepare activities for other kids, like one time we made a scavenger hunt for the younger kids. At camp you get to do Fun Times. A Fun Time is an activity that the counselors lead, and you get to choose what you want to do. We like the art Fun Times, dodgeball and anything related to nature. On water days we like Splish Splish Splash. We recommend new kids come to Camp Funderblast because everyone welcomes you when you’re new, on your birthday they celebrate you. We love it... and we think you’d really like it too!

A SUMMER LIKE NO OTHER

Splash Camp | Art | Theater | Sports Specialty | Counselor in Training (CIT) Adaptive Needs | *Extended Care | & More!

Camps Available for Preschool through Teens

*

Register today at MyMVR.org!

MILL VALLEY RECREATION SUMMER CAMPS

Brooks Beau Beyer, Park Elementary School, 3rd Grade

Sutton Beyer, Kindergarten, Old Mill School

We went to Splash Camp every week last summer. We like camp because all the counselors are our friends. We play games like four corners and freeze dance. There is an art project and swim lessons, but then we have open swim later without lessons and get to play games in the pool like sharks and minnows. Sometimes, we play sports on the field with our friends or go to Hauke Park. The bounce house we get to go on every day and the crafts were fun too!

Brooke: I enjoyed finally being tall enough to go down the water slide! I wasn’t tall enough last year, but my friends were.

Sutton: I didn’t pass the swim test, but I still got to swim with my friends…just not in the big pool.

We played with friends from school and sometimes friends from other schools. and friends from my baseball team that I don’t go to school with. We had lots of friends, and the counselors are the best friends to play with.

The counselors play football with us (the campers) versus them and it’s really fun because there are more of us, but the counselors are really fast. Water balloon fight was my best day. We liked throwing the balloons but not getting hit so we didn’t get wet.

In extended care, we learned how to play ping pong and billiards. We learned to swim better and got really good at coloring!

CAMP KEHILLAH

By BT Salle, Senior, Archie Williams High School

Camp Kehillah at Osher Marin JCC is a great variety camp for kids of a wide range of ages, from preschoolers to 8th graders. Camp Kehilla provides a welcoming environment for all campers, with fun days full of activities in four two-week sessions over the summer. At the beginning of each day, camp starts with us all in an opening circle where we sing songs and welcome everybody to camp. After that, campers split into age groups with their counselors. Typical days consist of various counselor run games along with blocks of “specialist time” that are run by specialists. These include sports time, art time, and swim time. The basketball gym and pool at the JCC are super high quality and fun to play in. There is also a nice field with a playground at camp. There’s always snacks at camp, but you bring your own lunch!

Camp Kehillah also does field trips. The younger kids might walk to the local farmer’s market, but there are other opportunities for the older kids to go farther, like to the beach or on an overnight camping trip. The highlight of camp for many kids is on Friday, when Shabbat is celebrated. Shabbat is the Jewish day of rest, but it includes everyone at camp. On Shabbat, we eat the Challah (a traditional Jewish bread) that we made that day and drink grape juice to celebrate.

PAAM - PERFORMING ARTS of MARIN

By Kate I., Bel-Aire Elementary School, 4th Grade

I participated in several PAAM 2023 summer camps: The Little Mermaid, Matilda, Frozen, and Encanto. I loved playing Ariel and singing “Part of Your World,” the best!

A typical camp day started with fun vocal warm-ups. Then I played acting games such as Park Bench and Improv. I learned dances for every musical song. At lunch I made new friends, jumped rope, joined hula hoop contests, and made chalk drawings.

At the end of the day, I worked on an arts/craft project such as making paper crowns.

•

MTS

Where learning is revered, and education is joyful.

MOUNT TAMALPAIS SCHOOL

K-8 School in Mill Valley | mttam.org

Alina Palacios, Junior

Dylan Whisenant, Senior

Carter West, Senior

Anna Han, Senior

Eve Reiter, Senior

WHERE EVERYONE CAN BELONG

AN INTERVIEW WITH JUDY LEE, HEAD OF GLOBAL BRAND EXPERIENCES

WRITER: SEMIRA ROBINSON, UCLA, FRESHMAN

REPORTERS: CAMI COLPITTS, HARPER DEAN, JORDAN POTTER, HALEY LEFFERTS, CHARLOTTE MARTIN, AMANDA MAUZY, LAUREN OLSEN, JOSIE HAYDEN-SMITH, EMERSON SWIFT,

JENNIFFER VALIENTE, YOGA WENG

When she was a student at Williams College triple majoring in political science, art history, and Asian studies,

Judy Lee wrote her senior thesis on propaganda in Mao’s China. It explored how the spreading of ideas to further a cause is most effective when it’s combined with art and visual communication, sparking an interest in advertising and a career that’s spanned cities, countries, and cultures. Today she’s the head of Global Brand Experiences and Programs at Pinterest.

After college, Lee “wanted to do something different. I wanted to be more creative. And after kind of tumbling, waiting around for about a year or two, I moved out to San Francisco.” After working at Gap, she transferred to the emerging tech industry, first at CNET and then AOL. After a pit stop at Pandora and a stint at Facebook, Lee joined image-sharing idea-spreading social media giant Pinterest.

“Brand Experiences are partially event marketing or experiential marketing,” says Lee. “And my job is, I lead a team of people that bring the Pinterest brand to life.” They do it by creating events and experiences that build off the digital platform. “When you think of Pinterest, it’s like, you can’t touch and feel it, it’s on your phone, right?” But what’s on that screen belongs to you. “It’s your Pinterest. It’s your aesthetic. I get to bring that to life and try to feel what it’s like to immerse people in the world of Pinterest.” Her team accomplishes this in many different ways, working on anything from corporate Investor Days to consulting on consum-

er pop-ups. “We really run the full gamut.”

As a form of personal media, Pinterest “was designed to be all about visual inspiration,” says Lee. “It’s where you’re the main character of your own story.” They strive to make each aspect of the brand “a positive place…accessible to people of all different abilities” and identities. The platform achieves this goal not only in their digital design but at Lee’s events. For example, she made sure an event in France included ramps and an open floor plan for accessibility, even though the French government didn’t require them.

Lee’s team is stationed all over the globe, working in a variety of events and locations. Half of her team is in London; others can be found in Dublin, Japan, or Australia. Lee spends a lot of her days in Pinterest’s New York office bouncing between Zoom meetings and company-wide Slack channels. “When you have a global job, you really have to mind your hours,” says Lee. “I can have a day where I start at 7 a.m., in the lead-up to Cannes, and I’m on a call at 3 a.m. with Switzerland.” Cannes, of course, is shorthand for the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Lee’s favorite event of the year.

It’s a very glamorous event. “When we go to Cannes and we’re on the Riviera, it’s what I like to call ‘resort fabulous,’ but make it business,” she says. “I remember putting on a very public Slack channel hints to some of our male colleagues that they need to up their fashion game — ‘if you’re wearing open toe I want to see groomed feet, if you’re wearing pants –’ and was quickly interrupted. My British colleague was like, you know that means underwear for men.” Lee laughs, “I was like trousers, trousers!” Working internationally can cause confusion when it comes to vocabulary, even if you’re supposedly using the same language. “We’re both speaking English, there’s just different nuances.” But Lee appreciates the challenge, using the globally collaborative nature of her job to deliver the best events possible.

Lee’s team travels to Cannes Lions two weeks early “because we work and build this huge activation,” doing their best to capture Pinterest’s

spirit of inclusivity and joy in each event. This year they built upon a popular trend. All over the world, young people were making Pinterest boards designed around a new aesthetic they wanted to adopt, piercings they couldn’t afford, or cute bags they wanted to own. Lee’s team “saw that Gen Z was using the platform to manifest their dreams, who they want to be.” They asked themselves, “How can we help people connect their dreams to reality?” The result was the first-ever Pinterest Manifestival, specially designed to help everyone manifest their own personalized dream.

The Manifestival’s open floor plan drew on the environment’s natural beauty, a gorgeous beach on the French Riviera. Their setup included stations for all of the biggest Pinterest trends, so attendees could walk in and get that second piercing or that fineline tattoo they’d pinned for months. The event even featured tooth gems as well as a customizable tote bag station and loads of Pinterest-branded merchandise. As a manifestation of Gen Z’s online aspirations, the Manifesti-

val brought every participant a little closer to their dreams.

Lee’s dedication to inclusivity expands beyond floor plans. With each project, “I intentionally reach out to different groups.” One group at Cannes Lions was “Gold House, which looks to uplevel the representation of Asians in media and entertainment. And so I did a happy hour with them.” Lee also tries to address cultural discrepancies at existing venues. “There’s a big Black community that goes to Cannes, but guess what, there’s nowhere for them to get their hair done. And so we got a lot of calls because we brought these inclusive hair stylists who could work on multiple, different-textured hair. It was special to get calls from, say, professional athletes saying, ‘We heard that you have stylists that know how to do our hair.’ We’re like, yeah, and they’re like, ‘You’re literally the only ones who’ve ever thought of that.’” Helping people is what Lee finds most rewarding. “It’s a huge win because I’m paying off that ethos of being inclusive and positive. “It’s that affirmative spirit

that makes Pinterest special. “We deliberately engineer it to be a positive, inclusive space. And what I mean by inclusive is that we have a lot of great tools on our platform that no one else has thought of.” Some of Lee’s favorites include the hair pattern search tool “so you can search for different hairstyles for your hair pattern,” and another that helps you find makeup to match your skin tone. During the pandemic, Lee wanted to see what a specific lipstick looked like on her. “I didn’t want filters because I wanted to see what it looked like on me, not with a full glamour filter on, and so I was able to try different lip colors on me and not anyone else.”

This kind of personalization epitomizes the message that your Pinterest is “a place that’s just for you,” where you can visualize your dreams on your own self, not anyone else’s. That’s why Lee loves working at Pinterest. “I’m very passionate about the diversity, equity, and inclusion space. And for me, the ultimate goal is belonging.” Pinterest is a place where everyone can belong.

Front, left to right: FastForward reporters: Amanda Mauzy, Emerson Swift, Harper Dean, Jordan Potter, Yoga Weng and Maxine Flasher-Duzgunes. Back, left to right: Lauren Olsen, Cami Colpitts, Josie HaydenSmith, Charlotte Martin, Elizabeth Luke (Pinterest Communications), Judy Lee, (Head of Global Brand Experiences, Pinterest), Semira Robinson, Jenniffer Valiente, and Haley Lefferts.

The Marin County Free Library’s Mission is to provide welcoming, equitable and inclusive opportunities for all to connect, learn and explore. A core strategy to achieve our Mission is providing resources and information that will help build equity in our community.

THRIFTING

= TIPS & TRICKS for Reusing, Repurposing and Recycling

By Meadow McPherson Marin School of Environmental Leadership Sophomore

Thrifting is one of the most sustainable and affordable ways you can expand your closet without hurting the environment! In the United States it is estimated that 11.3 tons of textile is thrown away yearly, much of this textile comes from clothing garments that are in a wearable condition, yet fashion companies keep churning out new clothing.

This creates an unsustainable cycle where we are all consuming more clothing than we actually need. In Marin, many people donate to thrift stores, but in order to keep the second-hand clothing cycle moving, we have to purchase from thrift stores as well! Many people are unaware of just how fun and accessible thrifting can be, so to encourage upcoming thrifters this article will offer tips about how to make your thrifting experience as successful as possible.

Before you Arrive

Know your store. Location influences what you can find at the thrift store and a brief look into the area your thrifting destination is located in can help you determine what styles and quality of items you will find.

Create a list with the type of items you are looking for. The thrift store environment can be overwhelming so consider writing down a list of specific items, styles, or brands you want to look for to better focus your thrifting.

Wear tight fitting clothing. Many thrift stores do not have fitting rooms, but by wearing fitted clothing you can try things on top of your clothes and get a more accurate gauge of how something will fit you.

Consider bringing a mask and gloves. Be prepared to search through the racks or bins! The clothes you are looking through are not necessarily clean, so think about bringing gloves and a mask, or maybe just some hand sanitizer.

Bring student ID. If you are currently a student in middle school, high school, or college consider bringing school identification as some thrift stores offer student discounts!

Bring some cash. Depending on what store you visit, they may or may not accept digital payments, so bring a few bills just in case! Bring a reusable bag. Reduce your waste and make it easier for you to transport your clothes!

At the Store

Pick a rack and search. If you’re not certain what you are looking for, pick a rack and go through every item to start in order to quickly get an idea of what type of clothing they offer and see all of the options available.

Check tags for brand names. You can find plenty of expensive brands at the thrift store, occasionally even brand new with tags! Shopping for name brands second hand is a great way to save money.

Look through a variety of sections. Thrift store employees may not be caught up to date on trends, and oftentimes clothes can be missorted. For example, lacy tank tops may be mistaken for sleepwear, cropped or fitted tees are often sorted into the kids

section, and hoodies are often placed in the men’s section. Keep this in mind when shopping!

Check for holes, stains, or damage before buying! Many thrifted clothes may show signs of wear such as pilling, holes, stains, or other forms of damage. Before you checkout, take a look over your clothes to see if they have any blemishes.

Avoid making impulse purchases. In the thrift store, finding something that fits and looks stylish can often be exciting, but before you purchase take some time to further consider whether this is something you will actually wear. Do you have an occasion to wear it to? Is the material comfortable? Do you just like this style because it is trendy? Make considerate purchases.

After the Store

Wash your clothes well! Even if the clothing you purchase is new and with tags, it has been stored among plenty of dirty clothes, so always wash your clothes before wearing them.

Most

stores continuously restock with new clothing daily, meaning you will see new pieces every time you visit!

FAIRFAX

720 CENTER BLVD.

MILL VALLEY

201 FLAMINGO RD.

GENATURAL.COM

Each month Sloat Garden Center offers a $250 garden grant to a new Marin County school.

“Why we love the garden”...

The garden makes me feel happy because you spend time with your friends. And not only that... you can learn, eat and see all — Jayla

I like the garden because we get out of the classroom and learn outdoors. — Jackson

The garden helps the environment and it’s — Leo

The garden is full of life and there is something different to do everytime we go there. — Kendra

I like the garden because we get to taste, dig, plant and have fun. — Kavi

The garden is like a spot of peace in the loudness of Lynwood. — Jonah

Me gusta el jardín porque todos podemos hacer algo divertido y podemos comer los cultivos y también cosechar lo que comemos. — Matias

Mill Valley: 401 Miller Ave. 415-388-0365 & 657 E. Blithedale Ave. 415-388-0102

Kentfield: 700 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. 415-454-0262

Novato: 2000 Novato Blvd. 415-897-2169

To learn more about our work with Bay Area school gardens, visit www.sloatgardens.com

I like the garden because we can all do something fun and we can eat the crops and also harvest what we eat. (Translation)

Mill Valley Middle School

FastForward visited Suzy Anderson’s 7th Grade students to conduct a writing workshop

Music, by Rafferty Kan

Wading through mountains of sheet music, you carefully tiptoe into the orchestra room; breezes of cool, fresh air wafting in through the miniscule crack in the door. Turning around, you gently push the steel door handle and look outside, absorbing all the people yelling and playing on their phones. Wincing from the chaos, you let the door go with a loud bang, sending pieces of forgotten sheet music wavering down. Picking one up, you discover it is the Telemann Viola Concerto, the Emerald Falcon, and Carpe Diem. Cautiously creeping through the room, you grab the nearest violin – a violin in a case named “Snow.” Pulling up a hard, metal chair, you carefully unzip the dual zippers surrounding the case. Unlatching the case, you finally draw out a beautiful violin, so lovely it glows golden as you pluck its strings. Four clear notes ring out in pure silence, painting the empty room in a rainbow of colors.

Baseball, by George Graham

I put my helmet on as I get ready to hit. There are runners on second and third, no outs, just got to get something on the ground to a score a run. I can hear my teammates cheering me on, I choke up on the bat. The pitcher gets his sign, then whoosh, he picks off at third, “Safe!” The pitcher walks back to the mound, glances at third base again, gets his sign, and then the pitch—it almost hits me. Their coach stands up at the buckets of balls, makes a gesture with his hands after calling for the blue team’s attention.

Time is called and he starts walking towards the mound. As he talks to the pitcher, I jog down towards the coach—he covers his mouth and tells me to be aggressive. By this time the pitcher is ready and I step in the batter’s box. The pitcher gets his sign as I take a deep breath, then the pitch comes. I see the spin of the ball as he releases the pitch. It’s a curve coming right at my head, but I won’t be fooled. I load up and as it curves into the bottom left zone, I make him pay. Thwack! I start sprinting, my teammates yelling at me to run as I dash to second and slide into third.

Theater, by Poppy Wintermute

I walk into a theater and look at the long, sleek stage and the rows upon rows of chairs waiting in anticipation for actors and actresses to leap into view. Wandering through wooden sets, hand painted and sculpted, carrying the rough scent of colorful chemicals, I step barefoot up to the rounded pews, decorated with wispy gold leaves, peeing at the empty theater down below. But the theater is never empty, and I am never alone. I can hear the faint sound of laughing and singing in the green room—footsteps up and down from the set storage to the stage. Big, black stage lights fade in and out, engulfing the expansive room in color, bathing it in greens, blues, reds, and purples. I think to myself, this is where I belong.

8th Grade

Tennis, by Charlie Lieginger

I feel the force of the ball hit my racket and zoom back across the net toward the other player, forcing air particles out of the way as it flies fast through the air. All is quiet except for our feet hitting the court firmly, and the intention and the grunt of the other player as he hits the ball back. The ball smacks hollowly against his racket, then it flies back toward me. My feet patter loudly as I scramble to get the ball. As I hit it back, I feel the care with which my opponent nurtured and trained that shot, and his disappointment when I hit it back with ease. I feel his anger as he realizes that he will not return my shot in time, as well as his desperation to try. The ball lands, and I breathe in and out, hoping, praying it will bounce twice. It does. My feet lengthen my body upwards in elation.

Confusion, by Julian Maybury

Confusion’s the kind of guy that will forever be asking for directions. “Which way is the…?” (Insert anywhere here, even if he’s been there a million times). He’s the guy – when you are walking around in a beautiful green forest with wind rustling through the trees and birds chirping – who will say, “Hey, I think we’re lost. You sure you know the way back, right?” And ruin the moment, even though he doesn’t mean to. He is just perpetually asking where we are and why we are there. He’s unsure of himself and always walks a little precariously.

Loneliness, by Amelia Loedolff

As I walked down the street I was lost in my thoughts, but suddenly a pole jumped out and hit me in the face. The pole hit me so hard I broke my nose and had to go to the ER. Once I received surgery and was released from the hospital, I was so mad at the pole I thought about suing it. But when I went to go see it again, I realized that it was just really lonely and had jumped out to hit me because it wanted me to be its friend. From that day forward, I did so much for that pole: I knit it sweaters, sang it songs, made it hot cocoa. But one day, the pole was

Bora Tekin, 7th Grade

Zoe Milum,

taken down because it was too old, and I was really lonely myself for a while. Then years later, another pole jumped out and hit me in the face…and I knew exactly what to do.

Dessert, by Owen Zech

I walk into a room full of the lovely scent of a freshly baked apple pie flowing into my nose. Then I see a white gooey lump of vanilla ice cream plopped down next to it, the ice cream dripping and oozing into the thick gold crust of the pie. I take a step closer, and I discover the tip of a dark mushy brownie peeking over the ice cream. I can’t resist and grab a fork and stab it into the brownie and pie. Its golden crust crumbles down and the apples inside flop and tumble out.

Water Polo, by Colin Ryckman

When playing water polo, you are swimming non-stop until you get subbed out or when the quarter ends. The ball is passed to me in “set” with a splash of water flying like birds for a second or two, and landing all over my face. Then I pick up the ball and rifle it at the cage over my defender and under the goalie. “GOAL!” We go back to the center of the pool ready for the ref to blow their whistle and start up the game again.

Soccer, by Ava McMahon

Running down the field I can feel my hair blow in the wind, as wisps fall out of my ponytail. The ball slides along the hot turf, skimming past the parents on the sidelines. The goal seems to be getting bigger and bigger, and soon the faces of the defenders come into view. My legs are pumping down the field with the ball trying to keep hold of it as my feet knock it forward. I slow as the sound of a teammate calling for the ball rings in my ear. The ball skids along the turf as I pass it. I turn around and start sprinting towards the end line. Soon my teammate hits the ball and it soars through the air, casting a

shadow on the ground. The ball goes further than I expected, so I sprint forward, batting the defender to my right. The goal shines in the distance like a prize waiting to be taken. The ball falls to the ground and bounces for a few times before my foot traps it. Before I have time to think, my foot sinks into the turf, my toe scooping the ball up to the sky. The ball goes up, and then starts to fall. My teammate stands where she should be and hammers the ball into the goal. The goalie soars through the air, her whole body protecting the goal. She snatches the ball. We will have to get one next time.

Anxiety, by Nola Barreiro

The feeling of anxiety pushes me down with a boulder of fear and stress. It covers my mouth and nose until I can no longer breathe. Anxiety pressures me to keep secrets and not speak. Its eyes judge me when I do something wrong. It has the power to control my brain and make me weak, stabbing my heart with a sword of darkness. When I fall to the ground, anxiety wins – it’s always there to make matters worse. My tears are full of it. It is everywhere. There is no escape.

Lacrosse, by Cara O’Connell

My foot stomps the ground leaving a cleat mark, forever there until someone else steps in that same spot. The head of my trusted stick wraps around my face, back and forth, back and forth. “Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!” blares in my ears, sometimes directed at me and other times not. A searing pain explodes in my right leg. Even though it hurts to walk, I must play the game! Grass hits my side as now it hurts too much to stand. The whistle blows and I’m carried out. I sit on the ground with a pulled hamstring and the grief of watching my team lose the championship game.

Mountain Biking, by Axel Kolterman

The dust kicks up behind me as the sound of cow bells are shaken by people in the stand. The dry, hot, and dusty landscape reaches up into the horizon as the gears scream and crack and the chain stretches. The power is kept at 300 watts down through the pedals and into the wheel, propelling me forward. The breeze hitting my face reminds me that this is what I love. I see my training, my progress, as I get closer to the finish line.

Things We Know to be True

Ms. Suzy Anderson’s students

I will always have someone to turn to

When we see a star die, we are seeing into the past

My favorite experience ever was swimming in the Great Barrier Reef

There is a one-dollar bill 3.8 feet under the sand at Bondi Beach in Australia

Goldfish can live for a very long time or a very short time

It’s fun to pretend to be someone you’re not on stage

Some of the most practiced religions were founded before the year 0

Michael Jackson died June 25, 2009

The world will go on without human beings

Greenhouse gases are bad for the environment

There are four strokes in swimming

Dark matter and energy make up 95% of the universe

Eritrea’s government oppressed their people

Unopened doors are most impactful

Happiness comes from people, not products

Starbucks is the place to meet someone

The Golden Gate Bridge was originally going to be painted yellow and black

Continued on Page 26

Hayes Hyman, 7th Grade

Luke Jorgenson, 7th Grade

Mill Valley Middle School

Sleeping, by Dashiell de Pala

The sun bears down on an empty field and suddenly, Mario falls out of the sky. But something’s off. The smell of cooking gone wrong, the cheap floors, the aisles with chips upon chips, the buzzing. I know where we are, but as to how we got in a 7 Eleven, I will never know. As I start to ask myself where the field went and why Mario was the cashier, the smoke alarm goes off. Beep! Beep! Beep! I hate the noise with a burning passion. I’ve always hated alarms. Smoke alarms, microwave alarms…I wake up and hear a familiar 7:00 a.m. beeping. Alarms!

Solving, by Ollie Efremov

Bright screens. Late nights. Words sprawled over a white field of paper, scattered notes. The musty smell of incense clings in the air, battling with a vanilla scented candle. A scene is replayed on the cracked screen of a phone. A moment of empathetic dialogue between two characters. A couple of words are scribbled on the paper. My eyes are wide open, the glare of technology reflected in the brown discs. The scene is replayed again. This time, I’ve caught some zeros and ones in the bottom left corner of the frame. Another clue. I write the code down, line by line, and start translating. My pencil snaps. I get up to sharpen it. The code runs through my mind, an electrical shock in my brain. What does this reveal? Is it foreshadowing? A link to a hidden website? An unlisted YouTube video? The stars outside my window are faint. I catch a glimpse of the disc from where I stand. The hour is so ungodly. I should get to bed before the birds start chirping. I open my phone, squinting at its brightness. I dump the information I’ve found to my friend, scattered and misfitted puzzle pieces. The taste of stale coffee lingers in my mouth. I climb under a blanket not bothering to remove the gadgets off the sheets beside me. I’ll go back to that binary code when the sun is up. For now, I’ll let the information ferment in the cracks of my brain.

Guitar, by Isaac Sutherland

The guitar is my favorite instrument – unlike the violin, the flute, or drums, the guitar can produce an infinite number of sounds. Perhaps the piano has more notes than the guitar, but its chords never sound as clean as a six-string acoustic. I have two guitars, one acoustic (a Cordoba) and one electric (a Jay Turser). Music genres like rock, country, blues, classical and more could never exist without the guitar. Many guitarists use a pick, but I use my finger for strumming, plucking, fingerpicking, pulloffs, and two-hand tapping. The main genre I play is alternative rock, like Linkin Park, or grunge rock, like Soundgarden or Nirvana.

Swimming, by Nicole Rekhtman

As I jump out of my little red car, my towel in my hand and my parka keeping me warm, I walk up the grey concrete steps as I hear water splashing and kids screaming and laughing. I feel the wind in my face as I stare at the aqua blue water. I smile and see my friends talking as they look my way and come running. We snap on our swim caps and tighten our goggles. We run towards the pool as our coach yells out the warm-up. I hesitate to jump into the icy water – I breathe in and exhale. I jump and for a second everything slows down. First my toes, then my legs, then the rest of my body is fully submerged by the chlorine. I feel calm and safe like I am where I am supposed to be. My head pops out of the water and the salty taste of the chlorine lingers in my mouth. My friends laugh and jump in after me. As I continue to swim, my mind is still. It’s just me and the water. My hands gracefully lift into the air as I do freestyle, calm and swift like the wind.

Surfing, by Myles Arthur

I love the soothing ocean that creates waves. I enjoy curving the board through steep slopes of water. I find it very calming to sit on my board waiting for a wave to pick me up. There are no special seasons for surfing so it can be done any time of the year. You can always get better but the very best way to get better is to surf!

Swimming, by Eliza Angelo

I feel the cool water rushing around me as my hands break the surface. My hands spread out so I can take my first stroke. As I take a breath, I can smell the chlorine rising up from the deep pool. Right before I turn my head back down, I hear the swim coaches shouting out a new set to the younger kids. As I reach the wall, I tuck in my chin to do a flip-turn. My legs slap the water audi-

bly before I push off into streamline. When I break out of streamline, I hear the sounds of thunderous kicks around me. The wall comes in closer and I reach out to meet it. As I finish my lap, I take off the goggles squeezing my face. Right as my eyes adjust to the bright sun shining in, my friend splashes me right in the face. The pool water gets in my mouth, and I glare at her as she laughs. I realize that I’ve been on the wall for longer than normal. I turn over to the neon red clock to check if I’ve missed my interval.

Baseball, by William King

You have nerves when you’re in the box, a deep breath away from feeling calm and confident. A sphere traveling towards you at speed limit, or maybe over. You have to compete to succeed. Both sides of the field, defense and offense, must be ready. Intensity is key, you must slow the game down and clear your brain, your skill will do the rest. I say this because the game is not easy, it will eat you up, make you want to quit. But you have to say no. Giving up is for the real losers out there. Like lots of people say, the game is 10% physical, but 90% mental.

Water Polo, by Cat Philip

I walk onto the pool deck, the smell of chlorine, the sound of water splashing, the sight of my teammates smiling as they pass the ball. I walk onto the pool deck and I see a family, a home. The excitement level rises. I see the powerful ball come shooting at my hand as if it were fired out of a canon. I catch it and my defender attacks.

Soccer, by Henry Squires

The running and passing and yelling. The smell of the jersey washed in the morning, flapping against your chest, with the pride of victory on your side. The ball – a little thing. Yet the most important thing on the field. Stitched with precaution, filled with the air of dreams.

Volleyball, by Kaleigh Randlett

When I enter the gym screeching shoes scrape the floor, but those noises don’t faze me. I see the colorful lines striking the sleek, shiny floor, marking my life. I take my position at the front of our wall, and I can feel her breath go through me. The sphere goes over my head zooming like a meteor, and it begins. Crashing waves of power striking each side, we are prepared. We fight, bump, set, spike. A direct hit into the left back corner, they didn’t stand a chance. My team crowds me, like a flower - now for the next game only a few more to go. Bump, set, SPIKE again, and again, and again. We lose, we win, we lose, we win. One more game I’m set in my position…I jump but I plummet and…rippp. My heel…it burns. My cheeks turn red. I feel eyes on me like raindrops in the snow. I am a fireball being put out…BUT NO! There’s another game.

Emilia Narganes, 7th Grade

DAVIDSON MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT BAND

United Markets congratulates these Davidson Band students and their long-time teacher, Dana Trillo.

The Band is comprised of four concert bands, and two jazz bands. The Davidson School Middle School Cougar Band is producing superior music again this year with several concerts throughout the year.

The Davidson Band has performed in local community events. The band will perform the National Anthem at the Oakland A’s vs the Boston Red Sox game on April 1st and compete in the Music in the Parks Festival at Great America on May 4th. The Band is blessed to have strong administrative support, parent involvement, and above-average kids! The Davidson PTO and the San Rafael’s Heads Up are the band’s ardent supporters.

The fine music the Davidson Bands produce is a testament to the hard work of the Davidson students, support of the school’s staff, and the ‘buy-in’ by their parents and community.

“The best thing about being in a band is that we play music that brings out our personalities and makes us feel like a part of something. The band is a friendly environment where many people make friends, and learning hard music makes us feel accomplished. The band makes you feel like part of a family and leaves room for everyone to grow and learn together. Even if we tend to fall behind, the patience of our teacher and the practicing of our pieces always pulls us together.” — Lila Paris, 8th Grade

“What I like about being in band is that it’s easy to make new friends, especially since the people you are next to have some of the same interests as you do. It is also really fun to learn something new every day.” — Adonis Martin, 8th Grade

“I like being able to interact with everyone in there and being able to play some fun songs.” — Lidia Gomez, 8th Grade

“What I like about music is being able to have a good time when I play music.” — Oscar Estrada, 8th Grade

“I like the feeling of being part of a group that all works towards the goal of producing music that uplifts the musicians and the people listening.” — Madalena Owen, 8th Grade

“I like how you can feel better whenever your playing music.” — Andy Mazariegos, 8th Grade

Front row, left to right: Mr. Dana Trillo (Teacher), Madalena Owen, Luca Fogliani and Nahum Arevalo. 2nd row, left to right: Jazmine Harmon, Sophia Sarceno Oxlaj, Lila Paris, Tasha Ly, Jaden Evans, Kellan Fischer, Michael Matyurin and Janelle Trujillo. 3rd row, left to right: Paxton Ishikawa, Turner Gould, Melissa Paxtor, Aylin De Leon, Andy Mazariegos, Oscar Estrada, Roandy Zaldivar, Kevin Lopez, Parisima Sanglokti, Mayli Maldonado and Gerson Carranza. Back row, left to right: Angela Chan, Dylan Xitamul Catzim, Finn Cornwell, Noah McGowan, Adonis Martin, Ethan Nguyen, Martin Bolanos Fernandez, Cristobal Herrera, Dylan Chavez, Freddy Ordonez, Maya Budesa, Lidia Gomez, Landon Chajon and Modesto Ramiriz.