Falcon Friday is #FalconStrong

If we have learned nothing else about our school over the last week, my hope is that we learned that we are #BetterTogether and that we can build a sense of #CommUNITY through our words and actions.  Last Friday, it was amazing to see hallways full of blue #FalconStrong shirts!  It was even more fun to see the pictures and moments posted on Twitter and Instagram of classes, homerooms, and whole teams participating in the day together!

This week brought new events to celebrate.  As we prepare for our Mini-THON next week, I think the idea of CommUNITY offers a new perspective.

Today, I had the opportunity to share some of my thoughts about why we have a Mini-THON.  Mini-THON is so much bigger than me, us, Cedar Crest Middle School.  Mini-THON isn't about how much money we raise or how long we stand on our feet or what t-shirt design we wear.  Mini-THON is about coming together as a CommUNITY to make a difference for children who have cancer and the families that support them.

Sometimes our Four Diamonds Families are people we know, and sometimes they are strangers.  Sometimes they are toddlers, and sometimes they are teenagers.  Sometimes they are boys, and sometimes they are girls.  But, when they stand on our stage and tell us their heroic stories, they are people.  People who work in our community, attend our school, play on our team, live in our neighborhood, and share our world.

Mini-THON is about CommUNITY...Mini-THON is a perfect example of everything we asked our community leaders to define for us last week:  How can we, at Cedar Crest Middle School, make a difference and build a better community?  Serve...Give...Care...Lead...

The messages of kindness, acceptance, tolerance, inclusion, and compassion from our CommUNITY Day ring true in any situation, and on any occasion...But, couple it with an amazing opportunity for our students to put it into action for the most worthwhile cause...Kids helping kids...Breaking down walls...Searching for a better tomorrow...Building community...That is what it is all about! 

Mini-THON will always be one of the best "YES" answers that I ever gave at Cedar Crest Middle School.  Nine years ago as a first-year principal, I did not know what I was saying "yes" to--but now I have learned...I said yes to nine years of dancing, fun, compassion, and kindness...Nine years of teaching students to think beyond themselves and to put others first...Nine years of building community...Nine years of teaching students that they matter, and they do make a difference!

Proud to be FTK (For The Kids)!