A special Christmas visit for children at the Therapeutic Learning Centre for Autism.
A group of drama students from Holy Names Catholic High School crafted a collection of puppets that they presented to the children, which will be used at the facility for storytelling, therapy sessions, and play.
The Centre is located at 895 Erie Street East.
The puppetry project showcases the students' artistic flair and emphasizes sustainability and creative innovation, with puppets made from colourful fabrics and recycled materials.
The unique puppets were presented to the children for the Christmas season.
Bianca Mancina, a dramatic arts teacher at Holy Names, says the thoughtful initiative helps to bring some joy to the children and also instills a sense of community spirit in the young students.
Mancina says she took a puppetry course in university, and thought she should put it to good use.
"We're learning how to actually make the puppets and manipulate them, and from there we make a puppetry scene. So I thought the students probably wouldn't be taking them home, and it would probably be a good idea to donate them. Since they can be put to good use for therapy classes and autistic children, and things like that," she said.
The Therapeutic Learning Centre was chosen in part because Mancina knows the person who is in charge, Michael Vonella.
"Mike is a friend of mine and I know what he does for a living, so I thought this would be a good opportunity. And it's local too, so I thought this would be great to have in the community as well. I thought it would be great to have my students actually see where their puppets are going to, and to see that it's a good cause."
Grade 10 student Luke Joseph says it means a lot to him to be able to give back to these children through what they created at school.
"I actually learned to like puppetry, and I learned a lot about the difference nuances and the different ways puppetry can be used," he continued. "Like how it can be used in a therapeutic way with children with autism, like how it's being used today."
Mancina, who's in her first year teaching at Holy Names, says everything turned out really well and she's planning on doing more of these donations in the future.
There were 76 students involved in the project, and of the puppets created 15 were donated to the Therapeutic Learning Centre, while the rest will stay at Holy Names for special education students there to use.
