Stratford Girl Gets Birthday Parade From Milford PD, Classmates

STRATFORD, CT — In early March, Kinsley Morris’s parents sent out save-the-dates for her fourth birthday party, a horse-themed celebration with pony rides at a local farm. They invited her classmates from St. Mary School and the Lee Lund Studio of Dance. Then, the new coronavirus outbreak hit.

With schools and businesses closed and the public under state order to remain 6 feet from each other to prevent transmission of the virus, which was associated with the death of more than 1,500 Connecticut residents as of Wednesday, Kinsley’s party couldn't happen. But, the Stratford girl did get to see her friends, from a safe distance, of course.

On Saturday, 20 cars surprised Kinsley by parading past her Houstatonic Avenue home, according to her mother, Cindy Carrasquilla. With the help of a Milford officer, who is the father of one of Kinsley’s classmates, three police cars led the caravan. With sirens on, the police wished Kinsley a happy birthday over their megaphones. Her friends from St. Mary and Lee Lund followed. Even her dance teachers were there.

“Today was a memorable birthday for one little girl,” Carrasquilla said in an email Saturday.