One of the parents at Somerset Parkland Academy, Jennifer Knight, approached the school the week before Thanksgiving with an idea to bring the on-campus kids together with the virtual students at one fun holiday event to give the kids a sense of normalcy during this crazy 2020 year.
With the support of Principal Geyler Castro and Vice- Principal Meg Campbell, Jennifer began raising money through sponsorships and in-kind donations to bring the Winter Caravan to life. She recruited her husband, Patrick, to deal with all the logistics and set-up work and the project began to grow in size and scope as they had to plan how to entertain nearly 200 cars coming through a caravan before they even reached the final stations ofPolar Express, Hanukkah, Frozen, Grinch, Candyland, Santa’s Workshop, and the Photo with Santa.
On December 17, 2020, each attendee made their way around the school parking lot, while enjoying costumed characters and stilt walkers parading around the caravan. DJ Cruz provided a fun Christmas light show with games.
Somerset Parkland wanted to end the year with flair as this Winter Caravan is another creative idea to allow the virtual students to experience the same holiday event as the in-person students.
At the end of the day, it was all for the kids and the joy on their faces made it all worth it.