READYVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Going through something traumatic like a tornado is never easy. It can be scary for adults and even scarier for young children.
The Readyville community is still picking up the pieces after an EF2 tornado ripped through their community, earlier this month.
It's been a rough start getting back into the routine of learning at Cannon North Elementary.
"It was probably the most surreal thing I’ve ever seen. Power lines down everywhere and it was dark. People were looking for each other," Cannon North Elementary Principal Karen King said.
On April 1, heavy winds reaching 130 miles per hour ripped through the community. Dozens of buildings were damaged.
"I have several students with windows blown, and thankfully no one was hurt," King said.
King knows every student was affected in some way.
"Either they’re going to drive through it on the bus. Their house was actually affected. They were hiding and scared or had family friends affected," King explained.
King had the tough challenge of how to address the “bear” in the classroom: how to comfort over 200 students?
She worked with a local ministry, community members, teachers, and staff to collect and give out teddy bears. The stuffed animals were given out to students to comfort them and used as a jumping-off point to get kids to talk about their feelings.
Third grader Brantley Flowers new pal, Maverick Flowers, is already making him feel fearless.
"Since I’ve got him, I take him everywhere I go. He helps me not get scared of anything," Flowers said.
Principal King said the stuffed animals help teachers address the trauma students experienced.
She knows forgetting about your worries and your strife is never easy.
"We love our kids like we love them like family. Our philosophy is they don’t care what we have to teach them until they know we care about them," King said
Brantley plans to keep his bear forever. All of the bears were donated to the school by community members, churches...and local Walgreens.
The school has a few spare bears for students, in case they lose or forget them at home.
