Haylee Foos, third grader from Woonsocket, is shown here with the “Buddy Bench” she purchased for her school’s playground to help prevent kids from feeling left out or having no one to play with.

What started as a boredom breaker in a car ride turned out to be a project for a cause for Haylee Foos, a third grader from Woonsocket. While doodling in the back seat on a trip to Mitchell with her mom and aunt, Foos made a sign that stated, “Bully Free Zone.” She told her mom that she thought her sign would make a great car/window sticker after she noticed that strangers were waving and giving her a thumbs up as she held her sign in the car window.

Once Foos saw that there was some appreciation for her message, she thought that maybe she could sell the stickers and make some money to donate a “Buddy Bench” to her school. According to her mother, the idea for a “Buddy Bench” came to Foos because she had just recently read about “Buddy Benches,” and she thought that one of those benches would be a great addition to the Woonsocket School’s playground.

The concept behind the “Buddy Bench” is that it is a bench where kids can sit if they are looking for someone to play with and are too nervous or shy to go ask someone to play. When other kids see someone sitting on the bench, they can go and ask them to play or talk.

…Read on and see an additional photo in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal!