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This isn’t the first time we’ve written about it in this space, but we continue to feel the love for the great three-pronged partnership between the Suffolk Sheriff’s Office, the Autumn Care nursing home and Elephant’s Fork Elementary School.

For the past several years, students at Elephant’s Fork have been creating special, handmade cards for residents at Autumn Care for various occasions, including Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. These cards are then delivered by the Suffolk Sheriff’s Office deputies and staff to the residents at the nursing home, who could always use a little extra attention and joy in their lives.

For the students who are creating the cards, the project not only gives them some fun practice in penmanship and art but, more importantly, helps them learn to empathize with others and find something kind to say to a complete stranger.

The sheriff’s deputies also are displaying great community service when they facilitate this partnership and deliver the cards at the end.

“That’s what I think we were put on earth here to do,” said Sheriff E.C. Harris, talking of being kind to others.

The residents at Autumn Care surely appreciate this kind gesture of several times yearly visits and a handmade card to brighten their day. Many people in nursing homes spend long days without visits from family, and a little something to lift them up is just what’s needed. They are at the receiving end of this partnership, and the schoolchildren and sheriff’s deputies deserve to be thanked for their service to the elderly of our community.