Being kind is a quality that all Palisade students embody. Our bulldogs express kindness in every imaginable way, including empathy, acceptance, generosity, and pure simple smiles. It’s not always easy to be the bigger person, so Kindness is Contagious (KIC) Week encourages Grand Valley students to choose kindness.
Palisade, Grand Junction, Fruita, and Central’s Student Councils have worked together diligently to organize a fun and mindful week that connects students. Freshman Alexis Lopez is the head of the KIC committee this year. Lopez has communicated with the other schools in order to make these upcoming events run smoothly. “I had to attend a lot of meetings with Junction and Central. I planned spirit days and events like the drive in, designed crew necks and stickers,” explains Lopez.
KIC swag is what a lot of people look forward to during this vibrant week. Each year there is a catchy design created by one of the schools. All the schools come up with ideas and pitch them. “We had some difficulties deciding which crewneck would be the best fit. However, we chose a design which was created by Morgan Montgomery,” admits Lopez. Nevertheless, it is always a huge success! Palisade students are still seen strutting the halls with past KIC merch, usually branded with smiley faces and the catchphrase, ‘Just Be Nice’.
Lopez adds, “Being able to do all these things with different schools and seeing more into the planning of the events has been pretty fun.”
Sophomore Claire Powell loves KIC week. “It’s a fun change of pace in the middle of the semester,” admits Powell. Truly, this week is about uniting all four schools. Powell reflects, “I think it’s important because even though we live in the same valley, we are so divided. Being able to come together and collaborate on ideas makes a statement that we can all work together despite general competition.”
Powell concludes, “It’s cool to see how freshmen react to all the excitement. Last year, I was caught off guard because everyone had KIC gear from previous years. It was nice to participate and now I can collect each year’s sweater.”
This Friday, on February 23rd, there will be a Popcorn handout to kick off the week of festivities. On Tuesday, there will be an assembly filled with student led games and competitions. As a conclusion, there will be a drive in on Friday, March 1st at 6pm. Have fun this upcoming week Bulldogs! Remember, just be nice!
