This semester, the campus wide Day of Service was held on April 22nd, falling on Earth Day! The day was all about fixing the environment around us and we ended up cleaning up the grounds of a local community center.
When we arrived at the site it started to rain pretty heavily, but the work still needed to be completed. After some time the rain lightened up and we headed to talk to the community partner who had all the tasks that needed to be done for the day. We started with weeding all the trees and remove the sign that was right outside the front of the building. Everyone was carrying mulch to different locations and picking up the trash that surrounded the front lawn. It was so sad to see all of the things that were just thrown on the ground in front and in the back of the building.
After we finished weeding, it was time to rake all the leaves that were collecting in the trees so that we could mulch the area and make it look nicer. It was a tough task especially since it was raining and all the leaves began to stick together. After about an hour and a half we had finished our tasks for the day and put together over 15 bags of trash. It was awesome to see all our hard work pay off and that the grounds were looking better than before.
What was great was the fact that I was able to do this service with some of my amazing friends. I was happy that they still wanted to come out in the pouring rain to help out our community. The people that were volunteering were so much fun to work with and made the experience ten times better. It was great to get to know new people and learn about the other service projects they have participated in on our campus and in the surrounding area.
If you have the opportunity to participate in the Day of Service next semester I would highly recommend doing it! It is a great way to get involved on campus and a fun way to bond with some of your friends.