Butler Catholic School students Guerin Hammonds, third grader, back, and his brother, Gunnar, a kindergartner, work at home on cards to be placed in community meals distributed to those in need.

With classes on hold, Butler Catholic School put out a call to its families: Art class can still happen at home.

During the last week, parents of Butler Catholic students have had their children draw little welcome cards. The cards were collected by the school to then be tucked this week into meals being distributed to senior citizens and others in need by some of the community meal organizations including Katie's Kitchen.

The school was told Katie's Kitchen served 98 people March 19.

For families like the Hammonds, the cards offered a happy return to educational activities, plus a good exercise in volunteer work.

Jen Hammonds, mother of 8-year-old Guerin and 6-year-old Gunnar, said she and her husband, Ian, have been keeping the boys sane by implementing a regular daily schedule with time for activities such as reading or outdoor play time. Their regular routines have all been supplanted by the school needing to shut its doors and wait out the coronavirus.

Introducing the card-drawing session to their new routine was easy.

“We called it art class,” Hammonds said.

The boys took to it quickly, as they had recently been watching instructional drawing videos online. Together, they produced about a dozen cards.“No act of kindness is ever wasted,” Hammonds said. “So by making cards, it is an act of kindness that can brighten someone's day during this uncertain time our community is currently going through.”Dianna Edwards, a mother of four children ranging in ages from 9 to 3, said she was very thankful that the school's staff was organizing the card effort.Her three oldest children — Tommy, Anthony and Joey — are all Butler Catholic students. They got help from their little sister Emily in making the cards.

“We told them that some people don't have enough food, so they go to this kitchen to get their food,” Edwards said. “Right now, they can't go to the kitchen, but they're still getting their food in bags, and we want to give them something happy when they open it. We want to make them smile.”Edwards said she's been thinking about how much joy children spread wherever they go, and she's been wanting ways to make sure everyone gets their fill.“I can take it for granted very easily because it's flooding my house,” she said.The cards served as a good way to physically export their good feelings to people who need it. Her children made about a dozen.“They drew all these smiley faces and gave encouragement,” Edwards said. “They loved it.”

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Eryka Slomer, first grade at Butler Catholic, makes cards to cheer seniors who will be receiving food during the corona virus pandemic. Marchsubmitted photo March 2020

Anna Claire Dudley, a sixth grader at Butler Catholic School, shows a card she made.