Paradise Pointe Life Enrichment Director Kreighton Steinke, CEO and Administrator Darlinda Copeland and Director of Marketing Meagan Arrington celebrate the 40 school blessing boxes made by Paradise Pointe residents. Courtesy photo
Allison and Brittany Cowart on their first day of school at Pierson Elementary, where the mother-daughter duo are teaching second grade next door to one another for the first time. Allison is celebrating her 30th year of teaching, while Brittany is beginning her first official year in the classroom. Courtesy photo
Carolyn Monroe put her experience as a former teacher to work packing school blessing boxes for students heading back to the classroom. She packed the most boxes out of everyone who participated. Courtesy photo
Life Enrichment Director Kreighton Steinke and resident Vera Brock work together to pack pencil boxes for local students. Courtesy photo
Residents at Paradise Pointe Assisted Living and Memory Care in Ormond Beach recently got together to create school blessing boxes for local students in need.
Each month, Paradise Pointe Director of Marketing Meagan Arrington gathers with residents for a “Made with Meagan" hands-on activity. For August, the group decided to give back to local schools, according to a press release.
Paradise Pointe chose to sponsor two second-grade classrooms this year at Pierson Elementary School — classrooms belonging to a mother-daughter teaching duo who are sharing a milestone.
Teacher Allison Cowart is celebrating her 30th year of teaching, while her daughter, Brittany Cowart, is beginning her first year as a teacher. The two educators will be teaching right next door to one another.
“It was important to us to support these two teachers because of what this year means for their family,” Arrington said. “Thirty years of teaching is an incredible milestone, and Brittany beginning her first official year while teaching right next door to her mom is such a special story. We wanted to celebrate them and let them know their community is cheering them on.”
To honor these teachers, Paradise Pointe residents assembled personalized pencil boxes for the students in the teachers' classrooms. They filled them with colored pencils, crayons, glue and sticky notes. They also provided gift cards for each teacher so they could enjoy a meal as they headed into the first week of school.
One of the residents who participated in the activity, Carolyn Monroe, used to be a second-grade teacher. While reminiscing about her teaching days, the press release notes, she recalled a funny moment when one of her students asked her if she was related to Marilyn Monroe.
“We had so much fun putting these together,” Arrington said. “It was really special to see our residents get excited about giving back to students and teachers. They were sharing their own memories from school, talking about their favorite teachers and knowing that something they made with their own hands was going to a child who could use it.”
