Everyone loves gifts and the grads of 2021 from Chemainus Secondary School were especially grateful to receive them.
Chemainus Secondary School teacher Joninne Pinnell organized a public Facebook group called Cowichan Valley Grad Ninja 2021 as a way to show support and acknowledge the grads during a very different kind of year with COVID-19.
Quite a few Chemainus Secondary grads participated and it brought smiles to their faces to overcome the challenging time of trying to celebrate grad as normally as possible.
The students felt it was a great way to showcase their achievements.
Parents posted a photo on the Facebook page, with a write-up explaining a bit about their family graduate, and listing their interests, goals and achievements. Random community members could then choose to send a message to a particular parent and ‘adopt’ a grad, secretly having a surprise gift delivered to their doorstep Ninja-style.
People not only enjoyed celebrating the grads in this way, but also to read about each of them in the class. Photos were posted following the secret gift deliveries as well. The expressions on the grads’ faces and the thrill of being spoiled spoke volumes.