My friend Yvonne and I settled into the SilverCity recliners to watch the famous Mr. Rogers, a preschool icon of the best in children’s television for over 30 years. I was eager to hear his message. As a young adult in the ‘60s, I had glanced at Mr. Rogers’ program and dismissed it as juvenile, even saccharine. How wrong I was.
As “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” unfolded, I was pulled into the amazing talent of this intelligent, faith-filled artistic, caring man who understood children and treated each one with the utmost kindness and respect.
Through his mantra, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” and the activities of life in an onscreen cartoonish neighborhood, Mr. Rogers taught children about the tender virtues of love, patience and respect while living and loving in their own neighborhood.
The huge swath of Mr. Rogers’ influence was demonstrated when a group of young adult passengers on a subway recognized Mr. Rogers and launched into a spontaneous and rousing rendition of his theme song. Without doubt, I realized that Mr. Rogers’ work had left an indelible mark on lives that spanned several generations.
Mr. Roger’s life was devoted not only to children but also to his employees and everyone whom he met. In fact, the movie’s focus was seen through the eyes of journalist Tom Junod, a young husband and father whose life and the lives of his family were changed radically due to Mr. Roger’s influence.
I hope you can make time to see “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”.
A documentary on the life of Mr. Rogers, “Won’t You Be My Neighbor” is currently on Netflix.
Submitted by Sister Jean Moylan