The cafeteria at Grapevine Elementary was an exciting place to start the day Friday, September 29, as students could be heard chanting in their loudest voices the words “Heart Heroes!”
The event was a kick-off assembly for the American Heart Association’s Kids Heart Challenge™, and at GES, heart health holds special significance. Two of the school’s students, a third and fifth grader who are siblings and were both born with heart conditions, are volunteering with the AHA as “Heart Heroes.”
“They’ve been through a lot, but feel very supported and loved by the school,” said Amber Robinson, mother of the two students. “This is one other way that the school is supporting us through this journey of health.”
During the assembly, Jonas and Willow Robinson were called up and presented with superhero capes as well as gold medals from the AHA.
“We are going to keep our own hearts healthy,” Amanda Heffley, regional vice president of school engagement for the AHA shared at the opening of the assembly. She then asked students, “What are we going to do?”
“Keep our hearts healthy!” they responded in their loudest voices.
“During our three weeks, we are also going to help people who have sick hearts,” Heffley added. Again she asked students, “What are we going to do?”
“Help people with sick hearts!”
The remainder of the assembly informed students about the AHA’s challenge.
Michelle Basil, the school’s P.E. teacher added that in her class, “We have two awesome units coming up with rope jumping and Drum Fit, during which we will test our hearts and learn about them. We will also be doing some math as we find out how many beats per minute we have.”
The end of the assembly was even louder as some special drawings were announced.
The loudest cheer, however, was the announcement that Principal Nancy Hale and Coach Basil have agreed to be “slimed” by students who show a high level of participation.
For Willow, the day was special for a different reason.
“I like helping other kids with sick hearts. It makes me happy.”