Change can be scary, and so can starting school.
To help make things a little easier, Dixie Dickson and a group of seniors at the Laurie Schwenk Senior Activity Center wrote letters of support to every kindergartner – that’s 125 children – at Don Whitt Elementary School.
“Starting something new, even for us old people, starting something new is scary,” said Dixie Dickson, Senior Program Manager for the City of Sachse. “If you’re a kindergartner, it’s a whole new experience unless you’ve been to preschool.”
Debby Willis taught Language Arts for over 40 years. The proud grandmother was looking forward to today for weeks.
“I was just dead sure I wanted to come today because I love children,” she said, holding a stack of cards. “I can’t wait to see the children.”
With the kids fresh from recess, Debby was at the head of the class sharing a poem with wide-eyed students.
“Being the age that I am, I hope that these children can experience a lot of things and not get too stuck on phones and technology and video games, but instead get out and play,” she said.
The act of kindness goes both ways. Studies show that active seniors who interact with younger generations experience less depression and have better overall health.
“It’s horrible to stay home and look at four walls, and think about how your body is aging and hurting,” Dickson said. “I mean, you’re devastated then. You need to be down here with all this social stuff going on.”
Stephanie Upton with Mustang Creek Estates of Sachse, a new senior living development going up near the school, is the brainchild behind “Cards for Kinders.”
“Being a kindergartner is scary. Going to school for the first time is scary,” she said. “We wanted to do something special that would let them know we’re on their side.”
With the school jitters gone, it’s now a day to remember, one full of a special kind of well-wishes, from one generation to another.