Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 16, 1993 TAG: 9309160040
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CODY LOWE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
As the sun was just climbing atop the Blue Ridge on Wednesday morning, about 45 people joined hands in a circle around the twin flagpoles at William Byrd High School.
They had come to school early to join in a program called "See You at the Pole" - a 3-year-old effort that encourages Christian students to pray together at least one day as the school year begins.
The William Byrd gathering included students from every class and from several Vinton-area churches.
"I wish we could have done this last year," Darren Perdue, a senior, said at the end of the prayers. Two friends of his commited suicide last year, and Perdue said he believes the example of unified prayer might have helped them.
"I hope this makes a difference for our school," he said.
Supplications for a productive, safe school year were a big part of the students' prayers.
"We need as much prayer as possible," said freshman Shikara Yeatts, the first student to arrive Wednesday. "I think this is great."
"I think it will have an impact on the school and other students," said Katie Hall, a junior.
The students at William Byrd were joined by at least one teacher - Carolyn Cecil - who is sponsor of a before-school Christian club called For Teens Only. Cecil got the prayers started.
Other adults - including a few churches' youth ministers - also participated in the prayer session, which was repeated with some variation at numerous other junior high and high schools in Western Virginia.
The Rev. Kevin Meadows, youth minister at Vinton Baptist Church, said this was the first year his church had really promoted the event, which was begun by Southern Baptists in Texas three years ago.
Students get a chance to "get together and take a stand for their faith," and some will see they are "not alone," Meadows said.
William Byrd Principal Bob Patterson said there is "quite a bit of support in the community for this type of activity."
"I've never had a single parent or student object" to any of the activities of the For Teens Only club, or other religious groups, such as Young Life or the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
The groups' meetings are before or after school so they "don't interfere with instruction," Patterson said. Students may be invited to attend any of the meetings, he said, but are not pressured to participate in any of them.
"There should be activities for students who wish to participate," he said.
Christian-rights legal organizations - such as the Rutherford Institute and the American Center for Law and Justice - had sent letters to at least 30,000 public schools across the country advising administrators that, in their opinion, such prayer gatherings are constitutional and should not be inhibited.
Kent Willis, executive director of the Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said his group's view of Wednesday's events were the same as with any school prayer - that it must be free of compulsion or sanction by school officials.
"We do not want to condemn prayer around the flagpole universally," he said. In fact, that would violate individuals' right to the free exercise of their religion.
Willis said the state ACLU was aware of the meetings but had received few inquiries about them, leading him to believe there were few concerns about their appropriateness.
Students and parents should be allowed to hold such events, he said, provided the school administration doesn't plan the event or encourage students to participate. Willis also noted that once a school decides it will allow "See You at the Pole," it becomes obliged to allow other groups reasonable access to the property for their events.
The prayers at William Byrd on Wednesday covered a variety of concerns - from sick friends to the upcoming elections - but most of the prayers offered thanks or praise.
Several prayers gave thanks for the students' courage to stand up for their religious convictions.
As the group prayed outside, a few students stood inside the school's front doors, staring at the assembly.
Nathan Babcock, a freshman, said he expected some students would take a ribbing for their public demonstration of their faith.
But, he said, it was an easy thing for him to do. "It's a privilege to be able to come out and pray."
by CNB