Hello Fellow Readers, It’s humbling to witness our youth working together to weed out undesirables- making way for new beginnings, and offering a helping hand. Nearly 500 students, teachers, and staff of Blair Academy, located in Blairstown NJ, mobilized on May 19th to help over 20 nonprofits in their annual Day of Service.
Volunteers sprucing up the Pocket Park in downtown Blairstown NJ, Photograph by William Cohea
Enthusiastic volunteers arrived in t-shirts that touted their Day of Service initiatives of helping, serving, supporting, and promoting a gambit of human, environmental and animal wellbeing necessities. I had the privilege of joining an ambitious group of twenty who helped spruce up the Pocket Park in downtown Blairstown. In our team were a few folks who maintain the beautiful grounds of Blair Academy bringing their expertise and equipment, even a truckload of plants to fill gaps in the garden, adding to the team’s generosity of weeding, planting, and spreading mulch.
Day of Service Initiatives, Photograph William Cohea
High school volunteers helped over 20 non-profits
Carolyn Conforti, Dean of Campus Life, shared other projects going on throughout our community and credited Joanne Brandwood in charge of orchestrating the logistics of the Blair volunteers helping Project Self Sufficiency, the Center for Prevention and Counseling, and the Manna House soup kitchen all in Newton NJ. Then there’s the Women’s Resources in Monroe County PA and the St. Joseph’s Center in Scranton PA, to name just a few. I asked if the volunteers could pick their project of choice. Carolyn shared that students and faculty didn’t know precisely where their project would be but could indicate whether they preferred to work inside or out. They all arrived with an attitude of “can do” for the project at hand despite the extraordinarily hot and humid spring day.
“Worm Entrepreneurs,” Photograph William Cohea
“Worm Entrepreneurs” on a fast track in business
A few of the students took upon themselves to collect worms by bartering with a local deli that sells tackle. I’m not sure their planned exchange was a strategy of bargaining worms for a sandwich, but I regard the “worm entrepreneurs” on a fast track career in business.
Also amongst our group was Bliss, a seeing-eye dog in training and Carolyn who volunteered to raise her first year of life. She quickly tributes the students helping to expose Bliss to daily life amongst the community. I asked if it will be difficult when it’s time to say goodbye. Carolyn replied, “Bliss wants to work, and it is an honor to help her prepare for service.”
Blair Academy’s contribution to instilling the importance of community volunteering and environmental understanding is an example for all. If all of us serve our earth and each other, our garden of life would surely be a more beautiful place. Garden dilemmas? Askmarystone@gmail.com
Reviewing the park design before the plants and volunteers arriving. Photograph by William Cohea
Patti Doell (left) and Gina Trish (right) who worked with me in developing the Pocket Park Design, Photograph William Cohea
Special thanks to a dear friend and photographer William Cohea, who volunteered to photograph the ambitious volunteers during Blair Academy’s Day of Service.
Column Updated 7/19/20
