After months of helping their peers at recess, 33 fifth-graders at Peter Kirk Elementary will pass on their duties at Kelsey’s Corner to next year’s students.

The five-month-old Kelsey’s Corner project was created in January with a mission to make recess more engaging by encouraging volunteers to befriend or connect others with fun games during recess.

It was started to honor fifth-grader Kelsey Jensen who came up with the idea, but unexpectedly passed away soon after the initial project launched last year.

Every day at recess the students alternate between days to meet at a corner on the outskirts of the Peter Kirk playground. They put on special vests and bring out a tub of toys and sports equipment.

“They spread around the playground and look for those kids that really don’t have anything to play, or you know, they don’t have any friends, or they want to play a game but aren’t sure how to get into it,” said Erika Keck, a fourth-grade teacher and co-organizer of Kelsey’s Corner. “So they’re just kind of on the lookout for those kids who maybe are just walking by themselves … because that was a really big concern for Kelsey.”

Last spring, then-fourth-graders Kelsey and her best friend Sophie Voskuil created Kid’s Corner in an effort to give their peers something more to do during recess, such as playing new games or meeting new friends.

“They really wanted to keep a positive spin on it,” said Kelsey’s mom Carol Jensen. “It wasn’t a place for kids that didn’t have any friends to go. It was a place to just be able to have something to do if your friends were sick that day or if you were sick of what you normally do at recess.”

Jensen said Kelsey expressed it could be awkward making friends at recess when her friend was gone on vacation or wasn’t at school that day.

Keck, who was Kelsey’s fourth-grade teacher, said it also bothered Kelsey that some kids didn’t have anyone to play with at recess and she wanted them to have a place to play and feel safe and included.

The girls made a sign, which is still hanging on the side of a school building, and they created a schedule. With the help of some teachers, the girls convinced many student volunteers to help out.

But Kid’s Corner was a success for only a few weeks.

It was difficult for teachers to help run Kid’s Corner during their lunch breaks, and, on top of it all, the school year ended.

Jensen said Kid’s Corner eventually lost steam.

Then one day last December, Kelsey’s family suffered a horrific experience.

“She was a completely healthy 10-year-old one minute … ,” Jensen said of Kelsey. “And she complained of a headache and got super nauseous and had to lay down, and was unconscious within five minutes.”

After the paramedics arrived to take her to Harborview Medical Center, doctors discovered Kelsey had an arterial veinal malfunction, which caused a rupture in her cerebellum.

“We spent 10 days in Harborview, keeping her stable and trying to assess how much damage there was to her brain stem,” Jensen said. “But after 10 days, we found out the damage was too much for her to be able to wake up … “

Jensen described her daughter as energetic, fun-loving and happy.

“I mean every mom thinks their kid is perfect but she was an amazing girl,” Jensen said.

After Kelsey passed away, teachers in the school’s culture committee approached Jensen with the idea to continue Kelsey’s mission of helping kids at recess.

This time it would be called “Kelsey’s Corner.”

“We thought this would be a wonderful way to keep her memory alive and also pass on her desire to make sure everyone has something to do at recess,” said Michele Liggett, a third-grade teacher at Peter Kirk, who helped organize Kelsey’s Corner.

Kelsey’s mom also donated some of the funds towards the program that the family received from the Kelsey Jensen Memorial Fund.

Now, students and teachers report nothing but success.

“[Kid’s Corner] didn’t work as well as Kelsey’s Corner is now, but I think it worked better [this year] because we’re doing it because it’s something that she wanted,” said fifth-grader Lauren Bowser, who was friends with Kelsey last year.

Many of the teachers are not only thrilled at Kelsey’s Corner’s success, but because many boys unexpectedly gave up their recess to volunteer for the recess project.

Evan Liggett said he got involved with Kelsey’s Corner, despite not knowing her very well.

“I didn’t really know her too well but once I found out how she was sick and how she passed away, I felt like I should help out somehow,” said Evan. “I think she would have been proud of what we’re doing and how we’re helping out.”

Evan describes a time when he asked a boy if he wanted help playing a game but was turned down. Then, after seeing the boy crying, he offered to play basketball together, to which he accepted the offer.

Michele Liggett said her students have come in from recess beaming about how a fifth-grader played with them from Kelsey’s Corner.

“The biggest benefit I’ve seen is the younger kids, like the kindergarten through second or third, they love having fifth-graders that will actually play with and engage them,” Liggett said. “I think it’s the greatest thing ever.”

Principal Sandra Dennehy said she is thrilled so many students were interested in the leadership role of being a Kelsey’s Corner volunteer and she hopes the idea will spread to other schools in the area.

Keck said she anticipates she will organize Kelsey’s Corner’s student meetings, scheduling and volunteer coordination next year. But next year could include an application process for fifth-grade students.

“Next year, we’re probably going to have a smaller group just because it’s easier to manage with less kids,” Keck said. “We want to make sure we have commitment and we have kids that this is a priority instead of just having something to do at recess, that this is a priority to help other kids.”

Dennehy and Keck said a video explaining what Kelsey’s Corner is will be presented at the beginning of the school year assembly to get students excited and further spread the word to other schools.

“As Kelsey’s class moves on to middle school, we want to make sure the story stays at Peter Kirk and if other schools pick it up, that it remains with them as well,” Dennehy said. “It’s been a really amazing thing to watch the kids and really the entire staff embrace this.”

Kelsey Jensen and her younger sister, Lulu, age 8. A fifth-grader at Peter Kirk Elementary, Kelsey died unexpectedly last December. Contributed

Peter Kirk Elementary fifth graders get ready to volunteer as part of Kelsey’s Corner, a project that was started by Kelsey Jensen. Carrie Rodriguez, Kirkland Reporter

Peter Kirk Elementary fourth-grader Ritusha Samal (right) shows fifth-grader Alexa Clark (sitting) how to finger knit during a recent recess, as fifth-grader Tabitha Padgett looks on. Carrie Rodriguez, Kirkland Reporter