One of the values we try to instill in our students is giving back to the community, so we recently took our middle school mentoring pairs (and a few high school pairs) on two community service park events to get them started! It was the first time volunteering for many of our mentees. On one bright and sunny Saturday morning, we were tasked with replenishing the old dirt in the perennial gardens with fresh new soil at Battery Park. The soil project included tilling the ground, filling up wheel barrels with soil, bringing it to the flower beds, and spreading it on the edges and between the plants with shovels and rakes.
On the following Saturday, we headed over to Sara D. Roosevelt Park in the Lower East Side. Mentees enthusiastically spread wood chips and picked up garbage in the flower beds.
We all left appreciating the hard work that goes into park maintenance and enjoyed two beautiful days in the sun as a bonus!
