Like doctors and nurses, teachers are on the front lines ensuring that every child stays healthy and is a success at school.
But unlike health care workers, Coquitlam educators never heard a 7 p.m. cheer for their hard work in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
That all changed Thursday, when a Dr. Charles Best secondary parent group officially thanked their school workers with signs, car honks and poinsettias.
“They should be honoured,” said Will Davis, who chairs the Best Parent Advisory Council and is a dad to five children, including two sons who go to the Coquitlam high school on Como Lake Avenue.
Although the school has a been hit four times with a coronavirus exposure, the response of Best staff has been “top shelf,” said Davis.
With a student population of 1,500, Davis said it’s not surprising there were cases but, through it all, his sons did OK, even though one had to isolate for 14 days because he is a friend with a teen who tested positive for COVID-19.
Davis also has a daughter in pre-school, and a child each at Maillard middle school and at Rochester elementary.
All the parents whose children go to the schools agreed staff —including custodians, education assistants, administrators, clerks and other school workers — should be recognized for their work.
As a result, the Maillard and Rochester Parent Advisory Councils delivered poinsettia plants to those schools, too.
“The pandemic has thrown these schools off kilter and we need to recognize that and support our staff,” Davis said.
In all, more than 225 poinsettias have been dropped off at the three schools — paid for through school PAC funds at a reduced rate offered by the nursery.
To avoid gathering, teachers picked up their plants at a specific spot determined by the school principal. And while parents didn’t get to meet with their child’s educators face-to-face, school workers got a glimpse of parent appreciation for their hard work during this challenging year.
