April 30 was a special day for Alice Eilan, a second-grade student at Steckel Elementary School. Only a week after her eighth birthday, students and administration surprised Alice with a swing just for her.

Alice is confined to a wheelchair or a walker after a brain injury that left her with orthopedic and speech and language impairments. According to her family and the staff at Steckel Elementary, these challenges have done nothing to dull Alice’s spirit. Alice’s smile is famous among the halls at the school, along with her cheerful demeanor and playful spirit.

“She is the happiest little girl you could ever meet, and it shows,” Samantha Solomon, Alice’s homeroom and math teacher, said. “When the other students met her, they immediately took to her. Children are innately curious but, more importantly, kind.”

Students in Morgan Kelly’s third-grade class were asked to write persuasive letters to Principal Cora Snyder as part of an assignment. The theme was how to make Steckel a safer or better place. While some students wrote about changes to the cafeteria or improvements to the school store, five of the students all chose the same issue - Alice’s inability to play with them at recess.

Villianis, Bridget, Alexis, Aiden and Danica all expressed their concerns that Alice does not get to play the same as other students.

“She just has to stay on the blacktop and watch us play,” Alexis said.

These students wanted to help Alice be able to enjoy recess as much as they do.

“Alice didn’t even get to go on the equipment. I wanted to get Alice a swing,” Bridget said.

When Snyder saw the letters asking for a swing for Alice, she saw an opportunity. She sent the letters back to the students with questions and challenged the students to step up and find out more information. The students did research into different swings, making sure they were all compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. They even presented different fundraising options, such as selling homemade slime, to be able to pay for the swing.

“After seeing this amazing work directly from students and the amount of empathy and kindness that was shown, I had to make sure they got a swing for their friend,” Snyder said.

According to Snyder, the process to get the swing - from the day the students wrote the letters to the ribbon cutting - took about two months.

According to Shams Eilan, Alice’s mother, the swing has always been Alice’s favorite piece of playground equipment, but it is hard to find swings for special needs.

“As you know, all kids enjoy outside recess, but it was a challenge for Alice because there was nothing in the playground to fit her needs. She used to come back home and tell me that she was not happy at recess time,” she said.

The staff and other students used to bring things to Alice and keep her occupied at recess, but she still felt she was missing out.

“The swing was her dream,” Eilan said.

“It wasn’t fair. She didn’t have the freedom to swing. She just gets pushed around all day. She has the freedom to swing now,” Danica said.

The whole school came out to surprise Alice with her new swing at the grand reveal. The students and staff all wore pink, Alice’s favorite color, in her honor. As she came out, everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Alice. Her birthday was April 23.

The swing was decorated with pink streamers and balloons. The most notable decoration was a large unicorn balloon. Solomon’s class held a large banner for Alice reading, “Steckel loves Alice!”

Superintendent Dr. Lori Hackett and Assistant Superintendent Christopher Schiffert attended the event.

“When Alice finally came out and saw the swing, I don’t think there was a dry eye outside,” Solomon reported.

Alice chose her brother, Elias, to be the first person to swing her. Elias is a third-grade student at Steckel. Also attending the event was her mother; father, Majed; grandmother, Mariam; and her aunt, Hala.

“Seeing Alice in her swing for the first time was incredible. Her smile that day was a treasure for us as a family. I thought I was flying above the cloud with a heart full of joy,” Eilan said.

“Her radiant smile truly made the sunny day even brighter,” Kelly reflected.

Jen Hittinger is a paraeducator in the school district and works with Alice one on one.

“Alice is one of the most positive, cheerful children I have ever met. There has not been a single day that she has not smiled. And in the days following the swing reveal, her smile is even bigger and brighter,” she said.

She will move with Alice through the grades as she gets older.

According to Hittinger, who made the banner held by Solomon’s class, Alice’s positive attitude and constant hard work have won her a leadership award and Student of the Month recognition.

“We have all grown to love Alice so much. She is a major part of our school,” Snyder said.

Snyder noted that Alice is well loved among the students and staff at the school. She talked about Alice’s smile, good nature and positivity. She even mentioned Alice will race down the hallway with staff members.

“You always hear about all of the negativity in the world, but to witness young children wanting to do something generous for their classmate is truly amazing,” Hittinger reflected.

Snyder noted that children will do amazing things if given the opportunity and a little nudge.

“They rose above the expectations we set for them and took care of one of their own. They surprised a friend with a new swing with the power of kindness and action,” Snyder said.

“It is still hard for me to find words to express how amazed I am that 8- and 9-year-old students were so selfless and thought of how they could better our school for someone else,” Kelly noted.

“Inclusion, acceptance and friendship - that’s what it’s all about,” Solomon said.

“These kids will stay in my heart forever because Alice’s dream came true because of them,” Eilan said. “These great kids prove the power of words. They have such a big heart full of love and kindness.

“This lesson teaches how to love, how to care and how to respect,” she added. “No matter what our abilities or disabilities are, we are still human beings.”