Only thing missing from Dunham School parade was hugs

There was one thing missing from last week’s Dunham Elementary School’s Teacher Appreciation Parade - the hugs.

The love was certainly apparent as cars loaded with kids and parents slowly cruised by teachers and school staff waving, honking and beaming with smiles that could be seen through protective masks. The visitors came bearing gifts of flowers, cards and other tributes for the mentors they had only seen on screen for the past six weeks.

“This is the most amazing thing I’ve seen in my years in education,” said Dunham Principal Daniel Hoffman.

Dunham is a small rural school located on Roblar Road a few miles north of Petaluma. Its student population of less than 200 comes from all over the county. ”About 90 percent of our students come from other school districts,” Hoffman said, explaining that parents are attracted to the school because of its small size and personalized education.

“The staff has worked especially hard to keep the young kids learning,” said Parent Teacher Organization President Dustin King. “With so few students, there is only one class per grade. This means, unlike larger schools, each teacher had to create a new way of learning with a new guideline all of their own, there were no other classes to help share work.”

As a show of appreciation, the PTO arranged to bring the students to the teachers, who lined the school sidewalk, careful to wear masks and observe 6-feet of distancing,

“We haven’t seen the students since March 13,” observed teacher Connie Bratten. “My emotions and my heart are just over the moon.”

“It means a great deal to us to have our parents reach out to us,” Hoffman said. “We are grateful to them for doing this for us.

“We would much prefer having the kids back in school; to see their smiling faces in the classrooms and on the playgrounds, but this is amazing.”