The Conifer Reflective Garden

A garden is a place of peace, a place of thought, especially at the Conifer Reflection Garden.

The Conifer Reflective Garden is located at the bottom of the stairs at the front of Conifer High School. This is a place people can go during lunch and is still considered on campus.

Created in 2011 by the Conifer Home and Garden club, in exchange for us letting them host a show at the school,  the garden was meant to be a place where students could go and reflect. It’s dedicated to “The Lobos We Have Lost.” 

When asked about the garden, most students had no idea it was even there. Even teachers, who have been at Conifer for years, such as Erika Schaetzle, who is going on her fifth year at CHS, don’t know what it was or how it got there. 

“I’ve never seen anyone sitting there…I’ve walked there before and been like ‘I think more people should sit there, enjoy that space, it’s beautiful’,” Schaetzle said.

Most students knew a few of the Conifer community it was dedicated to but still didn’t know the whole story.

One of those students was Clyde “Rusty” Gallegos, who passed away in a car crash near Deer Creek. Conifer Principal Greg Manier was Gallegos’ Biology teacher.

“Rusty had all kinds of character,” Manier said. “The one thing I really remember about him is he pierced his ear, in class, with a safety pin. I look over and Rusty’s ear is just dripping, drip, drip, drip, drip, and he had pierced his ear with a safety pin and some ice that we were using for a lab. He was a good dude, great kid, really funny. He definitely marched to his own drum.”

The district has policies about adding to the garden. They do not want schools to put up memorials, even if it is small.

“If strictly interpreted [the policy] says, even putting a plaque up is creating a memorial,” Manier said.

The garden, as is, is allowed by the district, because it is not being dedicated to one specific incident.

This garden is supposed to be an all-inclusive garden for anyone to sit at and be able to think about anyone or anything they need to. Now the Conifer Newcomers club won’t be taking care of the garden anymore, due to the library leaving, so maintenance of it is being handed over to the students.

“I’ve been to the garden with my Psych class. I asked my teacher about it and he told me it was a reflective garden that was made to honor those at Conifer who have passed away. It’s nice that our school has something like that and I would like the school to have it more decorated. It doesn’t really look like a garden like that,” junior Kanin Cadam said.