One thing the pandemic has brought into clear focus for me is the importance of keeping personal connections. Social distancing makes that tough—admittedly, quarantines make it tougher. Like many CA students, I, too, had to spend time in quarantine after a COVID-19 exposure. I hear from families often about how hard this year has been, because of the loss of connecting with other CA families.
Maintaining human connection is critical to our well-being. According to Mayo Clinic Behavioral Health practitioner Jennifer Wickham, everyone needs a varying amount of real social contact to maintain mental and physical health. Bonding as a CA community is an aspect of our school most valued by our families. It’s regrettable that we have not been able to be together physically. Wickham encourages us to get creative in maintaining and creating connections. CA is doing exactly that on April 22, and I hope that everyone in the Colorado Academy universe will attend Lovefest.
Our auction/concert committee got creative and found a way for all of us to engage virtually, and in doing so, we are creating some quality time for us all. We won’t be able to be together physically, but the live feed will allow you to share reactions, chat with everyone on the livestream, have a shared experience, and come together to support our school’s financial aid program. Registration is free.
I am sure you have seen other Lovefest communications. Highlights include:
- Performances by the amazing music artist Nathaniel Rateliff—who is fresh off appearing on Saturday Night Live
- A silent auction with super-fun teacher experiences
- A live auction with experiences that are sure to make memories
- Free registration that gets you automatically entered to win amazing prizes
CA families have missed out on too much. I mean it when I say we created this event for our whole community. We still can’t get together for events, given the large crowd we are sure to draw. And to me that is what makes Lovefest something to look forward to.
You are sure to laugh, relax, enjoy some cool tunes, cheer on those who win drawings, and so much more.
It’s best to not dwell on the fact that we still can’t be together, and to reframe our thinking in that we get to come together in creative and different ways. My hope is that it’s truly only a matter of time until we can hold in-person events. We have a lot to look forward to in the coming school year. What I’m most looking forward to is the opportunity to build—and build upon—the personal connections so special at CA.