The following article was written by Candace Craw-Goldman and Co-Authored by Ari Kopel.

I’m having lunch today with my friend Lucinda. We have known each other since kindergarten. Our family moved while I was still in elementary school so we lost touch. After nearly 50 years, we are friends again to my great delight. It’s lovely to be able to visit with Lucinda. Not only because she was a sweet childhood friend, but also because she made an impression upon me when I was 5 years old that affects me greatly, even to this very day. My sweet friend Lucinda defines what it means to stand up to a bully.

Kindergarten 1966

Lucinda (the dark haired girl in the photo) and I (with blond hair) walked into a kindergarten world with short dresses and bobby socks and wide eyes. Such a big building, so many children, all those tall adults…