CALENDAR REMINDER:
Thanksgiving - No School
As I woke this morning, my phone lit up with the words:
"CALENDAR REMINDER: Thanksgiving - No School."
It was almost as though my phone was implying that I should be thankful that there was 'no school.'
I'd be lying if I didn't say there was some truth in the fact that I am thankful that there is no school today. However, the real fact of the matter is, I am so thankful for our Rundle community that having 'no school' is hardly a reward. In the moments that followed, I grabbed my gratitude journal and started jotting just a few of the things that make me so grateful for our entire Rundle community.
Here's what I wrote:
1) I am grateful for our incredible students. All 1300 Academy, College and Studio students truly live the values of "Together: Be Kind, Be Curious, Be Well." Each day we see them doing small and large acts of kindness. Things such as thanking their teachers after class and holding the door for fellow classmates are the norm, not the exception.
2) I am grateful for our parent body. If we have 1300 students, we have roughly 2600 parents. Without exception, our parent body is supportive of everything we do at Rundle. Whether it is raising funds for a scholarship program or supporting the teacher appreciation week; the parents at Rundle are always there to help out. During these incredibly uncertain times, it is easy to see division, anxiety and anger in our greater society. Although there has been much healthy debate and discussion, we have not seen the challenges of division inside our school community. It takes great courage, trust and support to achieve this ideal and for this, I thank our parent community!
3) I am grateful for our teachers and staff. Rundle has approximately 200 staff. Inside these 200 individuals, we see the same number of talented role players - each doing their part to support and sustain our Rundle programs. From coaching sports to directing plays to deliver the most dynamic content - Rundle is blessed with a world-class team who are dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in education. Beyond the classrooms and co-curricular programs, we see talented business office staff, facilities teams and aftercare programming professionals delivering programs and services to all who come in contact with anything Rundle!
4) I am grateful for my family. As we all know, although we live, play and work in this wonderful community - the work can take an incredible amount of time and is often filled with stress and challenge. I am blessed with a true 'Rundle family.' My wife understands the challenges and adversity firsthand as she not only supports our family at home, she supports our students at school. Sarah is a leader of our student services team and works tirelessly to assist our College students to find the post-secondary placement of their choosing. Beyond this, she supports our boys (Emmett, 6; Andy, 4) and me at home. We are fortunate to have Emmett attend Grade 1 this year and feel so fortunate that he is able to experience a Rundle education. I am also so thankful for my parents and my parents-in-law. Without the extended support that they provide us each day, we certainly would not be as effective and connected as we are.
I could go on, our community is so immense, dynamic and incredible. To be clear, as I reflect on the "Thanksgiving - No School" message, it probably should have read,
"Thankful - For School."
Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!
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