Rotary Club of Peterborough Kawartha has donated its second Buddy Bench to a Peterborough school.
On Thursday, Rotary representatives and school staff unveiled a new bench at Roger Neilson Public School on Erskine Avenue.
Kawartha Rotarian Donna Geary and her son Nate Loch initiated the program which led to the first bench being presented last year to St. Catherine’s Catholic Elementary School.
Loch recalled his past experiences of both inclusiveness and exclusiveness in both elementary and high school — of being both the victim and the perpetrator of bullying.
“The Buddy Bench is something that I really wish I had growing up, as it’s something whose intent is to celebrate friendship with those we may not know and is a good social tool for the kids of Roger Neilson to combat the problem of bullying,” he said.
A buddy bench is a way for kids to find new friends or seek out support. Children who are looking for someone to play with or in need of support can sit on the bench, and that invites others to join them.
“By understanding one another, we find similarities we might not have found, and unlikely friendships can form from even the smallest of encounters. I hope that the Buddy Bench helps create some of these unlikely friendships and helps keep as a reminder that we all could be on that bench at one point in our lives. Looking for a friend, looking for someone to listen, to simply just be a presence even for a moment.”
Principal Denise Humphries praised the gift for the school.
“We hope that the Buddy Bench provides an opportunity for students to foster new friendships, build empathy and reinforce inclusiveness,” she said.