Written By Olena Riznyk
MOUNT BRYDGES – When 11-year-old Kaylee Needham saw a friend trip on a deteriorating pathway at Caradoc Public School, she asked her dad if they could fix it.
It happened during a cross-country event at the school. Kaylee’s mother, Nikki, who works at the school, later sent her husband, Matt, a photo showing the condition of the pathway. Kaylee wanted to know if there was something they could do about it.
“When your 11-year-old daughter asks you to do something, and you realize she is trying to help others—there is only one logical answer,” Matt said.
In this case, her dad was in a position to help. Matt Needham owns Ronson Paving & Construction, and the company took on the project. Rather than patching the worst sections, the old pathway was completely removed and a new one was installed.
The new pathway is about 350 feet long and 10 feet wide. Matt estimated the project at approximately $20,000. Ronson Paving donated the time, materials and labour needed to complete the work, with the cost of the project covered by the Needham family and the company rather than the school.
Kevin Kingma and Levi Kap of Kingma & Kap also helped bring attention to the project, sharing the Needham family’s story through photos and video.
By the time students returned to Caradoc Public School, the old pathway had been replaced, and principal Kelly Fortney said students noticed the difference. “We are extremely grateful to Ronson Paving for their generous donation of services to repave our school pathway,” Fortney said. “Our students were amazed when they returned to see the transformation, and most importantly, the pathway is now more accessible for all users.”
Fortney said the donation will continue to make a difference for the school community.
For Matt, the project also came back to how it began. His 11-year-old daughter had seen a friend trip on the pathway, noticed there was a problem and asked if her family could do something about it. That question eventually led to the entire pathway being replaced.
Looking back at what started the project, Matt said Kaylee’s actions meant a lot to him. “It makes me happy knowing we have done a decent job raising Kaylee by her actions taken,” he said.
