At Sunset Park Public School, a small classroom initiative has grown into a vibrant, school-wide movement that connects student well-being, environmental stewardship, and community partnership in powerful, lasting ways. This inspiring transformation is embodied in the school’s Mighty Gardeners project, which highlights how creativity and community can nurture both young minds and the environment.
Last year, educators Jessica Blais and Deanna Riching launched a classroom project focused on community partnerships. During this project, Warren Lindsay from C.G.B. North Bay visited and offered a tree donation. In a light-hearted moment, Blais and Riching jokingly suggested a full garden makeover, and to everyone’s surprise, the idea blossomed. That spontaneous moment sparked what would become a school-wide transformation.
The vision expanded further in the fall as Sunset Park engaged in the work of The Third Path, a student well-being framework developed by Dr. David Tranter. Tranter’s eight conditions of well-being, safety, regulation, belonging, positivity, engagement, identity, mastery, and meaning became the foundation for a new school-wide initiative. Blais and Riching created The Mighty Gardeners to bring those eight conditions to life. In this program, each condition is transformed into a “superpower,” embodied by a unique superhero character. These playful, empowering characters help students connect deeply with important concepts like safety, belonging, regulation, and more.
To make these ideas accessible to children of all ages, Blais and Riching use creative storytelling and visual imagery. Each condition has been translated into simple, relatable language and brought to life in ways that engage and inspire students. This imaginative approach has created a common language of well-being throughout the school, sparking joy, excitement, and a strong sense of connection among students and staff alike.
At the heart of the project is the school-wide Peace Snake, a vibrant pathway of student-painted rocks winding through two large garden spaces. Students from Kindergarten through Grade 6 were placed in one of eight cross-grade “superpower” teams. Together, they have painted their rocks in colours representing their team’s well-being theme, cleared and prepared the garden beds, and helped plant all of the new plants and flowers.
The flowers and plants all came from Laporte’s Nursery, Sunset Park’s official nursery partner. Their support and generous donations, which included several beautiful flower baskets, have brought colour, beauty, and life to every corner of the garden.
The project’s success would not have been possible without the dedication and support of community members. Shawn Blais, owner and operator of Blais & Sons Electric, has spent countless hours helping construct the Peace Snake and assisting with planting throughout the garden. His hands-on commitment and generous support have been vital to bringing this vision to life.
The Mighty Gardeners initiative has also been entered into the national Communities in Bloom competition and will serve as an official site for the City of North Bay’s Centennial celebrations.
This initiative is already opening doors to rich cross-curricular learning in science, literacy, art, environmental studies, and social-emotional development. As a living classroom, the garden will provide meaningful, hands-on experiences that foster connection, responsibility, and creativity in students for years to come.
An official opening ceremony will take place on Monday, June 23 at 3:30 p.m. at Sunset Park Public School. The school looks forward to welcoming Mayor Peter Chirico, community partners who made the project possible, and all members of the public who would like to come celebrate and explore this inspiring new space.
