LEGEND SPRINGS HONORS CHILDREN’S GRIEF AWARENESS MONTH
By Kaylene Ashbridge, School Bereavement Liaison
Shout Out to Legend Springs Elementary School!
I was so honored to be invited to Legend Springs, one of our Deer Valley Schools that support the Grief Sensitive School Initiative/GSSI. During the month of November, Nicole Garcia DeVargas, the Legend Springs Gifted Specialist/SAGE/SPARK teacher with the support of Principal Basl and staff had all their students recognize Children’s Grief Awareness Month by reading The Goodbye Book and honoring their special person/pet/book character who had died by creating butterflies. The butterflies were displayed in their cafeteria to spell out HOPE.
What an amazing way to communicate to children that their school supports them in their grief, and that their community cares for each other!
The Student Council also raised $120 to support Billy’s Place. They collected donations when kids took selfies with their mascot, Lenny the Leopard, during a movie night. What an amazing gift that their students want to help others. In a day where one can feel lost and isolated, my heart grew two sizes bigger, as I stood to accept their gift.
Legend Springs is one of many schools that are committed to building a school community that recognizes the need to understand that grief is shared by all of us, and that we support each other in that journey. Deer Valley Unified School District has trained most of their schools, so they are now a part of the Grief Sensitive School Initiative (GSSI). You can learn more about GSSI, an initiative of the New York Life Foundation right here.
