From the desk of Sandra Fritcher, Lower School Principal:

Have you ever wondered what God looks like?  Well, children at the Lower School, especially the younger ones, ask that question often.  One of the ways we answer that question is through service projects.  We want our students, all of them, to not only learn about God, but to also experience how God teaches us to live.  Service projects allow that to happen.

Scripture (Galations 5:13-14) teaches us that we are to serve one another.  Jesus modeled servanthood many times in His life, and we want our students to learn what Christ-like behavior involves.  So, beginning in Pre-K , the teachers decide on an activity that our little ones can understand and actually do.  This year, the Pre-K classes are making Valentine cards for nursing home residents.  They will deliver these cards next Friday to share this love with the residents, Pre-K style.  What a wonderful way for a little one to feel the accomplishment and the satisfaction of helping another person feel better.

Servant-like traits are cultivated in the other grades as well.  Our kindergarten students will be collecting needed resources for the Promise Academy in Tyler.  This is a new school in north Tyler, and many things are needed.  Items needed include Bibles, picture books, school markers, and school glue.  These things will help this school have what it needs for its students.

First grade students will be going to The Hamptons Assisted Living facility in the spring to provide musical entertainment, love, and comfort for the residents.

Second graders collected toys in December for underprivileged families.  They delivered these items to St. Paul Children’s Foundation in Tyler, and learned how St. Paul shares with its community.

In the spring, third graders will be sending stuffed animals to the cancer unit of Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth.  They have learned that children receiving treatment for cancer receive a stuffed animal when they go to the hospital.  They also learned that the stuffed animals provide comfort for these children.

Fourth graders wrote letters to soldiers during the week of Veteran’s Day.  These letters were then included in care packages sent to active military personnel, veterans, and wounded warriors.

Fifth grade students will be providing transitional containers, such as duffel bags, laundry bags, or backpacks, for kids entering the foster care system.  A representative from Duffels for Hope will speak to the fifth graders about how important these bags are for these foster children since they have had to leave their homes and belongings.

All Lower School students made Valentine cards in Mrs. Larios’ art class in order to share love and comfort for sick and elderly people in hospitals.  These Valentines were taken to KVNE radio station for delivery.

Cadet Singers will be sharing love through music in April when they go to local nursing homes to provide mini concerts.

Mrs. England, our librarian, has been collecting lightly used shoes for the library’s service project.  These shoes will be weighed and a donation based on the weight will be sent to the Bullard Community Library.  The shoes will then be sent to villages in developing countries so they can be used by the people in these villages.

Research indicates that kids who have servant mindsets have higher GPAs, better reading comprehension, as well as better critical thinking and problem solving skills.  We appreciate and respect that research, but at the Lower School, we believe serving and giving are character building blocks.  God’s great love becomes real to our children when they serve others.  They learn what it means to be cheerful givers.  Through service projects, the Lower School students learn to think of others.  They learn to be compassionate of others.  They learn basic kindness toward others.  They learn charity toward others.  They learn to love others.  And in all of that, they begin to understand what God looks like.