Could Coronavirus Close Ray’s School?

by Mary Jane | Mar 9, 2020 | The Kindness Connection Blog

Every day seems to bring new concerns about the Coronavirus. It’s no different in Shady Pines Story Town. Seven-year-old Ray Robinson looks at a flier he found on the school’s bulletin board.chool. It has a bunch of instructions about what to expect if the elementary school has to close down for awhile.

So far there are no known cases of Coronavirus here, but folks in the small Southern town want to be prepared in case that changes. Schools in other states have had to close because someone tested positive.

The The Shady Pines Gazette news team has been reporting all the latest developments. Most recently, editor and reporter, Zulah Talmadge, brought us preventative steps you should be taking like washing your hands thoroughly, not touching your face with your hands and keeping surfaces on devices and around the house super clean. You can read the whole list HERE.

Meanwhile, Edna Sanders brought us 17 tips about the best foods to eat right now to help boost your immune system and keep sickness at bay. You can read all about that in her latest edition of, EDNA’S KITCHEN.

Now as Ray reads through what might happen if his school is forced to close for a couple of weeks or more, he has a lot of questions. If someone at school does get Coronavirus, will he have to be tested? What do they do to test you? He knows that kids aren’t really getting sick from the virus, but they might be spreading it without knowing.

“Oh, my gosh, what else might have to change?” Ray wonders. Will he still be able to go to the Shady Pines Community Center and play with Boomer and Halley? Edna Sanders works at the Center and often brings her “kids” Boomerang, an Australian Shepherd dog, and Halley’s Comet, a silver streak of a cat, with her. Ray loves to go on rounds with them at the Center after school and sometimes they play in nearby Stonewall Park.

Will the Center stay open? Oh, no! What about his mom? Ray’s mom works two jobs to make ends meet. What will she do if Shady Pines Elementary does close and Ray has to stay home for two weeks? Ray tells people that his mom works a lot to stay busy so she won’t worry about her husband. Ray’s dad is in the military and is deployed again. They aren’t sure where he is except he’s somewhere overseas. He’s been gone a long time already and they don’t know when he’ll be back. “Oh, my gosh,” says Ray, “what happens if he is quarantined overseas?”

Ray used to worry a lot about his dad, too. In fact, it got so bad that the young boy wouldn’t even speak. He just shut down. It was Boomer and Halley who helped him find his voice again. They are really important because he loves them so much.

Ray’s mom says the animals have brought out some wonderful qualities in her son. He’s always been kind, but now he goes out of his way to do nice things for people. He’s also more compassionate and caring of others than he was before meeting those two lively critters.

In fact, Ray’s mom found an article about a kindness campaign that was started to urge people to be kinder to one another during the coronavirus outbreak. She cut out this quote and is posting it everywhere she goes.

“Kindness, and care and concern for each other should be very much part of our lives. The Covid-19 outbreak is not just a test of our medical response system but is also a test of the character and values of our people.”

Ray really likes the quote because that’s The Shady Pines Way!

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Shady Pines Prepares for Coronavirus

by Mary Jane | Feb 27, 2020 | The Kindness Connection Blog, Breaking News

“Oh, my,” says Zulah Talmadge. “Folks are really worried about this Coronavirus, especially parents with young children. The phones haven’t stopped ringing here at The Shady Pines Gazette.” There are no cases of the flu-like illness in Shady Pines Story Town, but that hasn’t stopped people from being afraid. What started in China where people of all ages were getting sick and even dying, has now spread to other countries all over the world.

As editor and reporter for the hometown newspaper, Zulah wants to make sure she stays up to date on all the latest information. She is looking through any report she can find to help her tell parents what they can do to keep their kids and family members safe.

“I guess there’s one thing I really want to know,” says Zulah. “What role do children play in spreading this virus?” Lucky for Zulah, she found an article written by two reporters who write about health issues and have taken on this very topic. They are HELEN BRANSWELL @HelenBranswell and MEGAN THIELKING @meggophone.

Zulah will post their article in our FORUMS section for members of the Shady Pines community to read in full. But basically, this is what caught Zulah’s attention.

“From what I can tell, these reporters say parents are frightened because no one can say for sure that this virus won’t cause severe disease in children,” says Zulah. “And, since its symptoms are like the flu, kids may be helping to increase the spread of the virus. We know that during flu season, kids often get sick and pass flu viruses on to their parents, grandparents, teachers, and caregivers.”

There are some things parents can do right now. I’ll keep updates coming as we learn more. In the meantime, stay safe and lean on other members of our wonderful community for support. After all, that’s The Shady Pines Way!

Make sure everyone in the family is covering their mouth when they cough. staying home if they feel sick and washing their hands many times during the day with warm, soapy, water. (All good things to do during flu season)
Use a disinfectant cleaner to wipe surfaces you use all the time, like your phone.
You might want to do some homework on whether Shady Pines Elementary School is considering closing if and when the virus starts circulating here. I’ll be asking those questions, too, and we’ll all want to know how those dismissals would be handled. I’ll also check with the middle school and high scool in nearby River City.

“Listen everybody, Scoop, the Cub Reporter and I will keep updates coming as we learn more from our own reporting. In the meantime, stay safe and lean on other members of our wonderful community for support. After all, that’s The Shady Pines Way!”