Meadows Elementary students and volunteers are staying connected through the challenges of 2020 by writing letters to one another as Pen Pals. Beginning in June as a way for volunteers to remotely support the school community, a total of 25 pen pals began exchanging cards, letters, and drawings every week or two. Over 150 letters have been exchanged in the 4 months since!

Student participants range all the way from Kindergarten to 5th grade, and are getting extra practice with handwriting, art, and conversational skills during this time of remote learning. The majority of students are excited to continue writing to their pen pals past the initial summer project into the 20-21 school year. Volunteers say that their student pen pals are “delightful” and “very impressive" and have generously sent their pen pals extra treats like stickers, masks, books, and art supplies!

The Pen Pals project is expanding to Lydia Hawk Elementary this fall with volunteers from the school community, Evergreen State College, and the Jubilee Community - stay tuned!