06/14/2026
Sometimes, it just takes 575 fifth and sixth graders to remind everyone what kindness truly looks like. This is the story behind our last-day-of-school photo.
The planning for the last day began months ago, involving our PAC parents, secretaries, administrators, counselor, and coaches. For the sake of time, let’s concentrate just on the school photo. While it sounds like a simple task, we decided tie-dye shirts would be an amazing keepsake for the students. What followed was weeks of research, ordering supplies, mapping out time frame, and designing the shirts. Then came the logistics of handing out by size, rubber-banding, and finally, tie-dying at Field Day! Hours of work were poured in just for these t-shirts (a massive thank you to Mrs. Gannon for leading the tie-dye charge!).
But how could we get the coolest photo? During Covid, we had a drone come in to take videos for us. With such a large group this year, I wanted to recreate that magic. To fund the purchase of our own drone, we needed a big fundraiser—and thus, the RW Color Run was born and all the work to put on THE BEST COLOR RUN!
Months later, here we were on the final day of school. Everyone gathered in front of the RW Office Entry. Staff stood in their "Remarkable Worthy" shirts lined up behind the students, who were seated elbow-to-elbow on the sidewalks. Almost everyone was sporting their freshly tie-dyed RW shirts. Instructions were given, and I stood with the drone in my hand, ready to launch.
The drone connected, but it couldn't identify its surroundings. I didn't panic at first; I’ve used this drone for multiple events. But after powering it down and back on multiple times and resetting the system, panic began to creep in. I moved out in front of the kids, hoping that getting further from the building would allow it to calibrate. Success! The drone moved to the next stage—but now, it wouldn't recognize the subject.
By this point, I could feel the temperature rising and sweat forming. After 15 minutes of technical difficulties, I could hear the noise level growing steadily. It wasn't bad behavior, just the natural restlessness of over 600 individuals waiting in the heat.
Seeing the moment slipping away, Mr. McCreedy connected to my outdoor speaker and started blasting music. Instantly, the restlessness gave way to the kids singing and swaying. I grabbed a staff member's phone to snap some backup videos and pictures just in case. But seeing the jovial nature of the crowd and how well-mannered the kids were being gave me the hope to try the drone just one more time.
By now, you’ve probably guessed the ending. The drone suddenly worked perfectly! Instead of a photo of kids just sitting and waving, if you look closely, you can actually make out dance moves. What was supposed to be a quick End-of-Year photo turned into a 40-minute party filled with singing, signing shirts, line dancing, and pure joy.
The worst fifteen minutes of my day turned into one the best twenty minute periods of the year. All because 575 fifth and sixth graders, from all walks of life, chose to show kindness and embody our Positivity Project traits.
I am incredibly proud of these students, our staff, our volunteers, and everything we have accomplished in this first year of RW as a fifth and sixth-grade building.
Wyatt
