03/01/2020
“Esme” now lives at Montavilla’s Vestal Elementary School in the Wy-east room. What an extraordinary experience! Right away, an alum-parent (see pic) donated 3 bags of fabrics that she’d recently inherited from her Mom’s quilt shop. Another parent connected me to the school counselor (see pic), and it all came together in a flash. As I quickly learned, the entire school is in acute mourning after losing first-grader Lola and her younger brother Bill to a sneaker wave on the coast, Jan 11th. Witnessing firsthand the strength of the community spirit for these kids—and for one another—and being able to create a 7’ wrap-around, comfort-buddy “Esme,” has been a real privilege. I came away with my heart overflowing, sure that we humans have a real intelligence for caring for one another. Which, considering the gravity of our shared challenges—the number of stressed/traumatized kids whose emo-cognitive-hormonal wellbeing is at stake—is no small thing.
