A sweet surprise

After Mary Ellen Grode heard a message in church, she set out to put it into action.

The story was about a group of people in a small community who wanted to show students they were loved. So, they made cookies and delivered them to a school.

“I thought to myself, ‘We can do that here and show some love for the kids,'” she recalled.

Not one to sit around, the Washougal fitness instructor found six others to help her whip up or purchase an array of cookies to deliver to fourth- and fifth-graders at Cape Horn-Skye Elementary School.

“There are so many bad things happening out there,” Grode said. “The kids hear about shootings, bombings and bullies. We just wanted to show them that they are loved and that people in the world still do care and do nice things.”

Grode spearheaded the effort, assisted by friends who know each other through church and exercise class. They are Andi Crockford, Linda Syrylo, Jeanie Confer, Heather Elliot, Pam Sodja and Judi Schell.

According to Grode, as the women demonstrated the value of sharing with the students, they felt the students projecting back the values of politeness and gratitude.

“It was a wonderful experience,” she said. “The kids were so nice, well-behaved and appreciative.”

The leftover cookies were donated to local firefighters.

“The whole experience was a lot of fun and I want to do it again,” Grode said.

Cape Horn-Skye Principal Mary Lou Woody said having community members show their support for students was, “amazing.”

“I love our school and community,” she added.