Assisting Parents
Parents, we’re here for you. How can we help?
The phrase “assisting parents” is included in the mission of ZCS, and we see this aspect of our mission lived out each day in our hallways, classrooms, playgrounds, hiking trails, and specials. Stacy Deters, Dir. of Student Support Services, recently shared this story with our Board, and it reminds me how ZCS leans into difficult seasons with families:
“It is such an honor to have a front-row seat to see the ways God is working in students’ hearts. On Monday, a student was having difficulty coming into school and separating from their parent. Another student, who has struggled with debilitating anxiety for the past year, came up alongside her. She talked her through various strategies, comforted her, stuck with her, and ended up successfully walking her to her classroom and getting her engaged in her day.
It was a genuine act of love and kindness and a beautiful moment of how God uses each of us and our stories to influence those around us. Interactions like this are an outcome of a community firmly believing that we are better when we welcome and celebrate all members of the body of Christ!”
I loved hearing about this moment because it tells the story of how one student’s success in overcoming hardship ultimately translated into help for another. These types of “small” victories are huge wins in the life of our school. We’re all in this together!
As a parent, I know there are days we could all use extra hands or where it would be so helpful to know the *right* way to approach a new scenario with one of our children. Feeling like the answers evade us can be tricky, especially when we love our children so much. Often, the seasons we find ourselves needing the most help surprise us and come with a sense of loneliness, confusion, and frustration. In these moments, I’m so thankful to have the support of a place like ZCS to partner with us in instructing and guiding our children. Our teachers and support staff have walked through hundreds of these seasons with families and desire to lean in and support or assist parents however possible.
Every day, the investments we make into the emotional and spiritual aspects of a child’s life are adding up for long-term impact. When a child’s support structure exists both at home and school, our efforts as influencers in their lives add up to results we can feel confident about as caregivers and stewards. Then, we witness even more of our mission coming to fruition as we “enable students to function to their fullest potential in contemporary society as Christian citizens who personally respond in loving obedience to God’s revealed will.” This is powerful, and it’s how we burn bright, together.
Parents, we’re here for you. How can we help?
Burn Bright,
Peter Jenkins, Dir. of Advancement