Let's not strip our kids of their identities

Here is another thought on the school levy. If we do not pass the levy on Feb. 24, and if we have to cut sports, band, extracurricular activities, etc. we will be denying many kids their identity. Kids need plentiful and varied opportunities to explore their passions and to figure out who they are. Being a team captain, an officer of the National Honor Society, or a vice president of the Key Club are all great ways of learning leadership skills, but if clubs and teams get cut, kids will no longer have the practice situations they need before they go out into the real world.

Many kids feel “lost” until they click into a group of band members, a sports team, or a club. Their team becomes a way of telling the world who they are. Paulina is a swimmer, Nik is a jazz saxophonist, Nicole is a soccer player, Galen is a musician and a cross-country runner, Jennifer is a dancer, and Matt is a mathematician. How can we take this away from them? And by stripping individual kids of their identity, school pride dissolves, too. This would be a terrible scenario.

Please vote yes on the school levy that goes before voters on Feb. 24.

ANNE MITCHELL

Sandpoint