Community, Smart, and Love

Community, smart, and love

These are the three words that Mr. Hines said kept coming to his mind when he thinks about Mr. Merritt. I agree. Mr. Merritt was all about community, the community of Sunderland and the smaller community of teachers, staff, and students here at Sunderland Elementary School. Mr. Merritt was a smart and generous man. He made thoughtful decisions every day regarding what was best for students here at SES. Most of all, Mr. Merritt was a loving man. He loved his job, his staff and faculty, and most importantly he loved the students.  He will be greatly missed by all of us who were lucky enough to know him.

Community, love, and kindness.  That has been the focus in our classroom the past two days. Monday we came together as a classroom community in morning meeting. With the guidance of the counselor from Whately Elementary School, we discussed what happened. We discussed how we need to show our friends and teachers extra kindness to respect what they may be feeling. Students practiced this at morning meeting when they greeted a friend with a compliment.  This morning the whole school community gathered in the cafeteria to sing and remember Mr. Merritt. What an appropriate way to honor a man who loved music.

I want to take a minute to thank all of the parents who have offered a kind word or a hug. These thoughtful gestures have meant so much to me. In the coming days and weeks I look forward to continuing to put community, love, and kindness in the forefront.