UNION COUNTY, N.C. — In a year filled with challenges and change, a little cheer goes a long way.
A Union County principal took that “cheer” to a new level on the last day of school.
There isn’t much Terry Vaughn won’t do to make his students at Kensington Elementary smile.
"Anything you can do to just bring levity to the situation. To just bring a smile to people’s faces, on the final day of what’s been an eternity of a semester," said Terry Vaughn, the principal at Kensington Elementary.
Vaughn knew his students needed a laugh. So he "elfed" himself.
"My comfort levels, what I'm comfortable with kind of goes to the wayside and do whatever I think the kids want," said Vaughn.
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Just like that popular, sneaky little elf on the shelf, Vaughn made some mischief wherever he went.
He was spotted hula hooping on the roof, sneaking snacks on the playground and even climbing into a display case. It took a little bit of magic for that one.
"I look pretty thin in general, but that’s 200 pounds of man that’s shoved into a piece of glass," he joked.
This is the second year he has morphed into an elf, and the word’s gotten around that principal Vaughn isn’t afraid of a good costume.
Parents and staff helped him dress up as the conductor from Polar Express, he even rode a train through the halls.
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"I had to climb on a ladder and hop inside the train and while not every educator will turn into a real-life elf," he said.
Vaughn said he knows his silly stunts for smiles this season is really no different than what most teachers do every day.
"This is one small elementary school in an entire nation filled with principals and educators that are going to bat for kids every day and going above and beyond to make things exciting and magical," he said.