On December 14, 2017, Riverside held it’s annual Christmas party for the staff’s children in the library. The party was put on by the counselling department for school staff to kick off the season with their kids.
“It’s an opportunity for staff to have children at school and to basically have a family Christmas party. Sometimes the young kids lose out a bit when their parents are teachers because staff is so busy at work during this time of year, epecially this year with the late date for the break. Work sometimes makes it hard not to be able to spend time with your kids, so this party makes up for it and creates lots of fun for the children,” said Ms. Bindy Johal, a counsellor at Riverside.
Some of the activities done at the party were: cookie decorating, making ornaments, and colouring. Both, staff and kids also got surprise visits from Santa Claus (Riverside’s own Mr. Ciolfitto) who brought gifts to the children. Mrs. Claus (Ms Buteau), an elf (Mr. Giles), and Liege the reindeer also joined the festivities.
Each year, the Christmas party ends up having multiple teachers, staff, and children attending because of how well organized it is. The party makes the kids excited, and wanting to keep coming back each year for more holiday fun. “It’s dedicated for all staff not just the teachers, so we had about 35 kids come to the Christmas Party,” said Johal.
Ms. Bree Mireau, a science teacher at Riverside, brought her kids to the Christmas party and shared their magical experience. “The kids had a lot of fun and they especially remembered it from last year. What makes this party so unique is that there is a Santa dog. Ever since last year, both Nate and Maelle Mireau have remembered that there is a Santa dog. They also enjoyed the cookie making and the craft making, and getting to see Santa and the elves,” said Mireau.
Both, staff and students enjoyed this year’s extravagant Christmas party. This family school tradition should hopefully continue to be held each year to help bring Christmas to families that are super busy. Happy Holidays Riverside!
