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Valentine's Day is a unique holiday. Some consider it a commercial money grab, some view it as an occasion for a candle-lit dinner and a rose bouquet, and some just ignore it entirely. My view on Valentine's Day is no different than my view on Sunny Way, and on life in general. Any reason to spread smiles, warmth, and joy in this chaotic world is enough for me.
Back in November 2025, I made hand-turkey holiday cards that I delivered around the community, complete with tiny hats and feathers. While I enjoyed the nostalgia and felt like a kid again, it looked like an arts and crafts explosion on my dining room table.
For Valentine's Day this year, I wanted to do another spree of wholesome, hand-made cards. A good friend and business partner made the suggestion to reach out to local daycares and elementary schools, which set me on a different path entirely. How cool would it be to have children of our community create cards for our seniors? And that's exactly what I did.
Being a huge theatre nerd, I asked my thespian community whether anyone knew any teachers or instructors that might be willing to help me. Did you know the Venn Diagram between theatre enthusiasts and educators is almost a circle? Add that to the list of family friends and mutuals, and soon enough I had roughly 150 cards to give out.
I even reached out to my former pre-school teacher at Woodhome Preschool Center and was met with such enthusiasm.
Roughly 2 decades ago, Mrs. Sunny was my very first teacher. After all this time, it was so surreal to see the impact she is still making on children today. It was such a full circle moment to be working with her on this community-wide project.
In addition to Woodhome Preschool Center, the following organizations also helped me by having their students make cards for me to distribute:
Towson Presbyterian Preschool
Deerfield Elementary School
Forest Hill Elementary School
Shady Spring Elementary School
Perry Hall Middle School
I had an overwhelming mountain of hand-made Valentine's Day cards, each uniquely made with love from children aged 2 to 12 in Baltimore and Harford Counties. In the end of my tour of Baltimore and Harford Counties, I made 14 different stops to senior centers, assisted livings, and rehab clinics, each with at least one card from every organization I worked with. I had one senior center ask to hang the cards up for all of their members to see. I even had a senior community allow me to personally hand out the cards to the residents.
I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to brighten so many people's days. Seriously.
If you are wondering what's next for Sunny Way's community engagement efforts, well, so am I! This was not a one-and-done campaign, but an ongoing outlet for all of the energy I have to give back. If you have any suggestions, requests, or even want to add your organization to either side of future campaigns, my inbox is always open.
Until next time!
- Kara Kaskel, Owner and Senior Move Partner
February 2026
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