Both Tom Cavalli and Jessica King’s classed are pictured wearing their new hats when they were delivered earlier
this month. Standing behind the students are (L-R) Tom Cavalli, United Methodist Women’s representatives Jo
Meili and Lana Houston, and Jessica King. (Courtesy Photo)
By Jennifer McDaniel for the Lincoln Sentinel
Handmade gifts from a local church group are making brisk fall days easier to weather for Lincoln Elementary School kindergartners.
Earlier this month, Lincoln United Methodist Women members Lana Houston and Jo Meili delivered several hand-knitted stocking caps to kindergarten teachers Jessica King and Tom Cavalli.
The women visited King during a recent in-service day and asked if she and Cavalli had a need for the caps since the children were often outside.
The kindergartners, King said, are outside five times a day, walking back and forth from the main elementary building for various reasons, such as lunch, art, gym, music, and recess.
“They thought since we were going back and forth outside during the day, they would make sure our heads were warm,” King wrote in an email to parents. “Our hearts are now, too.”
When the hats were delivered, kindergartners selected from a variety of styles and colors spread out across a classroom table.
“They made hats for 25 kids, and extras so the kids could pick what they wanted,” she said. “They even made ear warmers for Tom and me to keep our ears warm, and we’ve worn them every day.”
Students were so excited, King said, they could hardly contain themselves.
“For the kids, it was a total surprise,” she said. “…They were genuinely excited, and so we had to prepare them that they were going to go in to receive a gift. Within a half-hour, we were going outside, and the kids pulled their new hats out of their backpacks. They were literally beside themselves as 5-year-olds can be.”
King said she, Cavalli and the students were thankful for the warm, handmade hats, and appreciated how the local organization thought of them.
“We gave them enough hugs when they delivered them I think the women knew how much the kids loved their hats that were knitted for them,” she wrote.
