COMMENTARY:
Town Lessons from A Charlie Brown Christmas

By WAYNE CREED

December 25, 2012

Each morning after being harassed by his father and mother (“Joey, there’s no way you combed that hair! Did you brush your teeth?”), my son straps on his backpack and heads off to school. The combination of the weather and his mood will determine his mode of transportation for the day: skateboard, scooter, bike, feet.

Joey doesn’t have to catch a bus or be driven several miles up the road to Northampton High School or Broadwater. Instead, he commutes a block over to the Cape Charles Christian School where he is now in his fourth year. He began in the lower school and now is considered one of the upperclassmen.

It all began with a brief conversation, a whim, an idea: Could we? Is it possible?

Four years later, Cape Charles Christian School has entered its fourth Christmas holiday break. There have been many success stories in this town over the last four years, but this one is different. The spark was not ignited around some new, novel commercial endeavor, but around the idea of serving our children — students in Pre-K through 8th grade — creating an environment where our most dedicated, talented teachers could thrive, renovate and bring life to abandoned facilities, and create a connection to the Town through an active, stewardship-based participation in the community.

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Hillary Clinton has been mocked for saying “It takes a village.” But I believe, especially in the case of CCCS, that it really is true. Certainly the talented faculty and staff are the core of CCCS, but so many others play such a big role. All the volunteers, from parents and grandparents, to family and friends of the school, do so much to help keep the doors open and the classrooms filled. Without constant support from Trinity United Methodist Church, the school might never have found a home here.

Pastor Russell Goodrich and the wonderful folks at Cape Charles Baptist Church — especially Jenn Philpot (who also serves as Chapel Coordinator) — have been unwavering in their support through guidance, fund-raising, and the use of their facilities.

Clelia Shepherd and Arts Enter from Day 1 have been loyal partners, offering classes and instruction, as well as classrooms and the theater for all forms of artistic endeavors.

And let’s not forget the residents of Cape Charles — especially those who have chosen to be part of the board. They deserve hearty kudos. Without the brilliant intellect and out-of-the-box thinking of Cela Burge and John Burdiss, it would be hard to imagine the school still being here.

The one I’ve saved for last (and I know I’m speaking to the choir) is the heart, soul and spirit of CCCS — our dear friend, Berkley Rayfield, whose wisdom, business sense, and sheer will, belief, and faith, was the cement that made this dream a reality.

We don’t have many Christmas traditions in our house, but the ones we do have, we always keep, such as putting out cookies and milk for Santa, and a carrot for the reindeer. (When we were a young couple, without kids, we still put out the treats for Santa and his crew. Somehow, the cookies and milk were devoured during the night, and it wasn’t me that ate them).

Another tradition is watching A Charlie Brown Christmas.  (We have the DVD now, and I’m not sure how Charlie Brown would feel about the commercialization  of Christmas at this point, since without commercials the show is only three and half minutes long.)  It’s funny, but even after all these years, I still get choked up by Linus’ gut-wrenching explanation about the true meaning of Christmas.

“A place where kids can still ride a bike to a neighborhood school, eat a hamburger at Rayfield’s old-fashion  lunch counter, buy a homemade ice cream cone at Brown Dog Ice Cream Shop, walk to the beach in summer, play sandlot ball in the park, or 3-on-3 basketball in the old school gym.”

At some level, Linus may be talking about the Christian School and what the true meaning of Cape Charles should be. Maybe it’s not so much about fancy shops, glass balconies, shiny new harbors, manicured parks and fountains, or even festivals for tourists. Instead, it’s about a place where kids can still ride a bike to a neighborhood school, eat a hamburger at Rayfield’s old-fashion  lunch counter, buy a homemade ice cream cone at Brown Dog Ice Cream Shop, walk to the beach in summer, play sandlot ball in the park, or 3-on-3 basketball in the old school gym.

It’s about a place where folks are willing to help the poor, sick and less fortunate, as in Hebrews 10:25:  And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.

This past year the Town became divided over what our future should look like. For some, Cape Charles seems to have lost its way, opting for a Jersey Shore-like accumulation of commercial wealth at the expense of our more fundamental values.

Christmastime, and all the commercialism that it has attracted, just depresses Charlie Brown. But even Charlie Brown comes to realize that cynicism and depression are also fleeting.

The cure for me is the great work of the Cape Charles Christian School, and all that it means and does for my family and the community.

Last spring, Jenni Potts organized Track Day in the park, the school’s last running event of the season. My son, Joey, was the only one running a 5k that day, so I had to ride along with him to make sure he ran the course correctly (didn’t cheat!).

It was one of our glorious fall days on the Eastern Shore — deep blue skies and temps in the 70s. We left from the Gazebo in the park, turned right on Tazewell, and ran straight to the Bay. As we reached the sand, we turned right and headed for Washington, which we followed around to Fig and onto the Bay Creek Marina Shops and Aqua.

Starting to hit the wall, Joey pushed through to the bridges over Lake Foster, onto Randolph, back to Fig and finally the home stretch down Monroe and ending at the Gazebo. His time: 24:10.

A great finishing time, but what I remember most is the entire school waiting for him at the finish line, screaming, cheering and urging him on to the finish. As he crossed the finish line, he was hugged and mugged, patted on the back, had his hand shaken, and was even blushingly kissed.

Thanks to this school, I was able to savor a moment of peace and contentment for the first time in a while.  Sitting down in the warm grass, my face to the sun, I could let a little of last year’s struggles seep away, realizing that because of these wonderful people, all is not lost, and there is still hope for the future of this town and these kids.

Submissions to COMMENTARY are welcome on any subject relevant to Cape Charles. Shorter articles will be published as a Letter to the Editor.