More than 600 students and staff members carried that message with them as they spent most of the day Friday volunteering at 40 different locations in and around Barry County. And for most, it was a day that made them feel like much more than high school students. It made them feel a sense of pride, purpose and accomplishment as they gave thanks to their community.
“I think service day is super cool. I have done something different all four years and I love it. I love seeing different ways we can help the community and just say thank you so much for supporting us. It’s my favorite day of the year,” said senior Erin Bull.
Classmate Lynn Cross agreed. “I love being able to help even if it’s in just a small way. I think it’s very important that we keep service day going and keep giving back.”
From Freeport to Caledonia, Yankee Springs to Leighton Township, Barry County Expo Center, YMCA camps and downtown Middleville, students shared their service time.
They pulled weeds, prepped and planted gardens, washed windows, picked up trash, raked baseball fields, gave fresh coats of paint in parks, cleaned classrooms, helped ready summer camps and parks, helped with organization at a local grocery store, added protective laminate to book covers, read and played games with younger students, and even placed American flags on veteran’s gravesites in cemeteries - to name just a few of the days’ tasks.
“It’s all about giving back to the community that supports us so much,” said junior Brody Hammer as he helped Page students celebrate meeting their reading challenges. “The younger kids look up to us as high school students. They’ll be in our shoes in a few years, and I hope they will get the chance to do this too.”
Freshman Avery Branch walked slowly through Mt. Hope cemetery reading names and looking for markers for veterans. She carefully placed an American flag in each holder she found. “I like being able to do this and to be able to help honor the veterans. I like seeing about their lives,” she said.
Jalen DeVore, who helped at Page with a Survivor-style challenge, said the day just made him feel good. “It feels rewarding just to help and to realize how much these kids look up to us.”
At Carveth Village, Activities Director Jamie Holes was all smiles as she watched students playing Bingo with several of the senior citizens. “It means a lot to our residents here and it’s so wonderful to see these kids and how patient and kind they are with our senior citizens here. They just bring so many smiles. It’s so wonderful,” she said.
High school junior Julia Hart said she takes a lot away from service day. “I like service day so much. Middleville is such a giving community, and they support the schools so much. I like being able to give back as a way of saying thank you. It’s important and it reminds us of how grateful we are.”
“Agreed,” said senior Emma Reil. “It’s so important to give back. We have such a great community, and they support us so much.”
Not far from the high school, a group of students got a brief history lesson as they volunteered at the site of the district’s first school built in 1931. “This is Spirit Park. All these bricks in the foundation area came from the old school,” Don Williamson told student volunteers.
Williamson is the artist who designed the sculpture model of the old building that sits atop a brick foundation. He said it was important to him to have the old building recognized and donated to the district.
Engraved bricks at Spirit Park, located at 509 East Main Street in front of McFall Elementary, form a flowing “river” down the hillside. Bricks are engraved with alumni names and years of their graduation, or teachers’ names with their years of service. More engraved bricks are added each year and can be purchased for $50 at Spirit Park Bricks.
Assistant High School Principal Jeff Dock thanked the teachers and staff who also worked alongside the students. A special thanks went to the transportation department and all the bus drivers who worked long after their regular morning routes to deliver students to all the various work locations.
“Today is going to be a great day,” Dock told students as they first gathered in the auditorium before heading out for their work assignments. “Today is about giving back to this community that gives us so much. So, thank you students and everyone for being here and being part of this day.”
Senior Kaitlyn Rose said she wouldn’t miss this day. “I love service day so much. You get to have fun and help people. It’s the best. I hope they have this day every year.”