Hundreds of students at Alouette Elementary marked Pink Shirt Day on Wednesday, Feb. 25, with a Kindness Parade.
Every class took part in the parade, walking from the school grounds on Isaac Crescent, escorted by members of the Ridge Meadows RCMP, to two local retirement homes on 224 Street to deliver cards and treats to the residents.
Around 520 students participated.
“Our goal was to help students understand the impact their actions can have, and to give them an opportunity to spread joy within our community,” explained principal Jenn Gallop.
Classes spent all of February learning about kindness, and they wore pink every Wednesday in February in the lead up to this event, Gallop noted.
They also created colourful cards, along with thoughtful posters, and students at Maple Ridge Secondary School helped out by baking 200 cookies to bring as gifts as well.
Every class created two cards, one for each retirement community, and several classes went above and beyond by making additional artwork to share.
“With 23 divisions participating, students produced at least 46 heartfelt cards, along with extra pieces that helped brighten the residents’ day,” said Gallop.
The idea for the Kindness Parade grew from staff at the school who wanted to engage students in a more meaningful way.
“We wanted to help them understand that their behaviours have consequences, positive or negative, and that kindness is something that can spread just as easily,” she said, noting the parade offered a hands‑on opportunity for students to see the impact of their actions.
And, residents at Sunwood Retirement Living and Chartwell Willow Retirement Community were thrilled.
Dorothy Bird, a resident at Sunwood, was ecstatic to get a card with a plane on it, because, she said, she comes from England and used to live by an airport near Oxford.
“Oh, I’m thrilled,” she exclaimed.
“It brought tears to my eyes,” said another resident, Bonnie Bryce.
“It was just so meaningful and for the children to have such enthusiasm for something so beautiful,” she continued.
Kathy Andrichuk said she was surprised to see the lineup of students outside of the building when her neighbour told her to go out on her balcony and have a look.
“There must have been a million kids out there,” she said, not believing all of the children came from one school.
She received a card created by Varvara, a Grade 4 student at the school, who wished her “the best day ever!”
The card also included a joke: “What goes up but never down? Your age!”
Gallop noted that this was the school’s first time undertaking the Kindness Parade. But, she added, after seeing how much joy the event brought to both the students and the residents, that she envisions more collaboration in the future.