More than a wave

TORRINGTON – While students and teachers in Goshen County will be taking their first steps onto new ground this week as the curriculum moves entirely online, teachers and students from Torrington schools braved the cold and blowing snow on Friday to see each other in person one more time.
When those same teachers and students left school on March 13, the Friday before Spring Break, they didn’t know that might have been the last regular school day of the year. Governor Mark Gordon announced on Friday that school buildings would remain closed until at least April 30. But as COVID-19 – the novel coronavirus that’s responsible for thousands of deaths in the United States and many more around the globe – spreads and shows no signs of slowing down, teachers and students are wondering if March 13 might have been the last regular day.
And so, with snow blowing in their windows and signs taped to their windshields to remind their students how much they care, teachers from every school building in Torrington formed a parade some 40 cars in length simply to wave to some familiar faces around town. School Resource Officer Jeff Ryall led the way in his Torrington Police Department patrol car, blaring the siren to let kids know their teachers were on the way.
Gerald Wilmoth, a teacher at Torrington Middle School, was one of the chief organizers for the parade.
“As a teacher, I have really missed seeing my students and have talked to other teachers and students who feel the same way,” he said. “So finding a way for everyone to have the opportunity to see each other while social distancing and staying safe was great for everyone.
“We had about 35-40 cars participate in the parade. I thought that was a great turnout.”
Despite the bitter cold, Wilmoth said he and his colleagues got the chance to greet a lot of students, many of whom made signs to greet the procession.

“We did see a lot of students,” he said. “Some were in windows waving, some standing outside, and others drove and parked cars on streets that we were passing by in order to hold up signs and wave.”
Goshen County School District No. 1 Superintendent Ryan Kramer said once he got all of the details about the parade, he threw his complete support behind the idea.
“This was organized by a couple of administrators at Torrington Middle School,” Kramer said. “They took it over all on their own and went for it.
“We had a couple of questions and talked about it,” he said. “We wanted to be sure they were following recommendations – maintaining a safe distance, staying at home. We didn’t want them going to various street corners and congregating.”
Wave parades are becoming commonplace as school districts around the country deal with lengthening shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The northwest Iowa school district Kramer worked in prior to coming to Goshen County recently announced they have one planned for next week, for example, he said.
“It’s becoming a common theme to show students how much their teachers care about them and are thinking about them,” Kramer said. “Teachers are thinking about their students constantly.”
While continuing the education in the district, there are other needs students and their families have during this crisis, Kramer said. As important are their emotional and mental health – something the school district is as concerned about as the “Three-R’s.”
“One of the main messages we’re trying to uphold is the safety and security of our students is a priority,” he said. “We’re reaching out to families not only on their educational needs, but to see how they’re doing – their mental health and the family’s mental health.
“Education can’t happen unless we take care of those needs first,” Kramer said. “How can we help our neighbors get through this crisis and come out the other end, better than we started?”
The wave parade was one small thing to aid that mission.
It was a way to break the monotony of social distancing while staying safe, and according to Wilmoth, it was a display of just how much the teachers and kids care about – and miss – each other.
“I think seeing all the kids that came out to see their teachers was great,” he said. “But also at the end of the parade watching all the teachers drive by honking and waving was special. We have a great district full of amazing teachers and this shows how much they all care about their students.
“The teachers miss the kids and the kids miss the teachers.”