Kindergarten students send notes of thanks to Henry Ford Hospital workers

FOX 2 - "It's just simple little sentences that come from the hearts of kindergarteners," said teacher Rachel Kinney. "And it was adorable."
 
Trying to find a creative way to thank our frontline heroes, Kinney, a third grade teacher at Michigan Virtual Charter Academy in Grand Rapids, had an idea. 

Kinney lives in metro Detroit and saw the way her husband and his coworkers at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit have been under pressure with the wave of COVID-19 patients.
 
"It's been really crazy and super stressful. So it was such a nice gesture," Kinney said.
 
Kinney and her kids created cards to send to healthcare workers, but, Rachel's coworker, kindergarten teacher Jennifer Gane called upon all of her classroom kiddos, creating nearly 40 cards and letters.

"I had no idea that Jen had them printed off and set on my doorstep," Kinney said. 

Rachel's husband, who works as a nurse practitioner at Henry Ford, brought the colorful cards to work.
 
"They put them all over the windows, all up and down the neuro ICU unit," she said. "There were so many of them and we received such an outreach and they were so happy."

One student, Abby wrote: "Thank you for caring for the sick people." Another student, Odin, wrote: "Thank you for helping people feel better." And Arabella said "Nurses are nice and friendly and funny." 

"We are always trying to teach empathy with our students," Gane said. "So I thought what a great time to do that and give to the community."

Rachel and Jennifer said since sending out the cards and letters, some of their students are taking it a step further and sending out loving messages to family members they can't see right now.

"It's really spiraled into something really wonderful," Gane said.

And the reaction from the kids - when seeing the photos and even a video one health care workers created: priceless.

"When we got the pictures and I was able to share them with the students - and they were actually able to show it and read it so they loved that," Gane said. 

Jennifer also recruiting students and teachers from other classes - and even from their sister school, Michigan Great Lakes Virtual Academy. Hoping these folks know, just how much they're appreciated.

"We appreciate you so much," she said. "And we know how it must be scary for you and your families. We really do."