"We are all here and we are a Wildcat family!" is the message the School District of Belleville wants to convey to their Belleville community. But, Belleville teachers wanted to do more than just say it - they wanted to show their students how much they care as we face this pandemic together. This message is the central idea the School District of Belleville sought to remind its learning community of with its gift of Wildcat yard signs (distributed by teachers and staff) just before the winter school break set in. It truly began as a grassroots effort when discussions about how to reach all their Belleville families started earlier this fall. Teachers wanted to show just how much they all care about their Belleville students, but getting their message out required support from the larger Wildcat community.

Belleville teachers first went with their idea to their administrative team, and they embraced it! Staff donations rolled in and were quickly joined by the financial support of donors like Brother Love Music Festival, Christen Brothers Service, Mike O'Connor - State Farm Insurance, Forever56 Foundation, the Belleville PTO and many more local sponsors who chose to donate to support the cause of remembering our Wildcats when times have been isolating with closures due to the COVID pandemic.

A message of caring is what the School District of Belleville wants to convey to its learning community at this difficult time, as staff members made use of the regular school bus routes to deliver these special yard signs acknowledging: "A Belleville Wildcat Lives Here" before break commenced. Children's faces lit up as signs found their way one by one into students' snow covered lawns!

The School District of Belleville is just thrilled to have received aid on many levels to ultimately deliver on their mission of caring this holiday season and the desire to show just how much they care has been infectious - just look at the word "Seniors" stretched out in holiday lights as you take a drive on Hwy 69 past the Belleville Elementary School, past the pool, and look to your left toward the Belleville High School - you'll see the Belleville learning community is honoring their class of 2021 too!

Photo courtesy of Marie Perry

Several teachers and staff members recently delivered Wildcat yard signs to their student's yards, to show how much they care about their students.

Belleville's MS/HS Principal Heather Schmitz embraces her district's supportive actions: "We have not seen the majority of our students in over 9 months, our staff wanted to find as many ways as they possibly could to show our students our Wildcat Pride. These messages, through the lights and signs, show our unity in this difficult time. We are looking forward to seeing our students as semester two begins!"

2020 has been a tough year, but it will go down as one we will never forget, and Belleville is working hard to remember its students as we all live through this challenging time. After all, in the opinion of the Belleville community, there was no better time to send out a message of support, kindness, and hope for the future than during the 2020 holiday season.