MEAD, Wash--The deadline to vote for the latest school levy is getting close, and retired Mead school teacher Cash Stone knows just how devastating a failed levy can be.
Forty years ago, following two consecutively failed levies the Mead School District made drastic changes. They cut dozens of teacher positions, eliminated electives and extra-curricular activities, and went to a five-period school day.
"It was really difficult because colleagues of mine were gone," said Cash Stone. "But more importantly those students had done nothing wrong, had not mis-treated anyone and for them to lose that senior year in high school, all of our students were affected."
Stone was the wrestling coach at Mead for thirty-eight years. He says one casualty of the cuts was one of his star athletes, Dennis Trainor.
"Dennis was state champion as a junior, as a senior he and I were walking the halls because there were no extra-curricular activities," said Stone.
Stone hopes people will remember how hard those cuts hit the schools and students back then, and is confident that the community will choose to support the levy this time around.
"I would suggest to those people that their own self-interests make sure this levy passes because home values and things that go along with that are invariably tied to the success and support of a school," said Stone.
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