King School is partnering with the American School of Warsaw to support Ukrainian children who have fled their country due to the Russian invasion and sought refuge in Poland. This week, King is collecting school supplies such as crayons, markers, pencil cases, notebooks, pens, and pencils to send to Ukrainian children who are attending the school in Warsaw. 

King School’s sixth grade students revved their engines as they built custom-designed Lego cars for students in Peru and Costa Rica. The design process included competition, as students raced against one another, using balloons to propel the cars forward. After perfecting their designs, the students disassembled the cars, carefully packaged them up, and sent them off to fellow students in Peru and Costa Rica. The collaboration is part of King’s partnership with the Orphaned Starfish Foundation (OSF). 

In alignment with King School’s commitment to community, King is collaborating with Darien-based nonprofit Person to Person this holiday season. The relationship is not new, but with each year, it grows more plentiful. King recently hosted the most successful food drive to date, donating 5,814 pounds of food to the Person to Person pantry.

Kindness is central at King, so when a few students found a pocket of free time after school, it was recognized as an opportunity, and “Give Back Tuesday'' was born. “We thought of community-based partnerships and a way that would really reach home during the holiday season,” said Ben Magidson, Associate Head of Middle School and Middle School Dean of Student Life. Magidson began working with members of the community to spearhead the initiative.

It was a chilly February day in 2020 when students from the King Cares B1C Homework Club recognized the potential in the space outside the Building One Community (B1C) center. Maybe some window boxes would brighten the space and improve the view for the B1C community, Covid snarled progress, but the students continued to deliberate, and what started as a discussion about flower pots, grew into a community garden called “Common Ground.”

Thank you to all the students and staffulty across the school who created 350 grab-and-go snack bags decorated with messages of gratitude and Happy Valentine's Day wishes. Their outreach supported the healthcare workers vaccinating the public at Stamford Hospital and the healthcare workers at Long Ridge Post-Acute Care.

In late January, Grade 7 students enjoyed a day of service and activities at Building One Community: The Center for Immigrant Opportunity, Long Ridge Rehabilitation Center, and Trap't Escape Room. Students worked with local communities for a morning of meaningful service and collaborated as a team for afternoon activities.

To round out Homecoming weekend, student-athletes from the fall sports teams welcomed over 125 runners, volunteers, alumni, family members, and friends to the 6th Annual King Cares 5K. The event benefits two non-profit organizations, the Orphaned Starfish Foundation (OSF) and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Stamford and Greenwich.

A group of soccer players from Colombia spent the week at King enjoying activities with host families, participating in soccer practice with the Varsity Vikings, attending Homecoming, and running in the King Cares 5K.