Published: May 22, 2008 12:42 pm      

Volunteers spruce up grounds at Haida Manor

BY ANNETTE DEAN

COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS DIRECTOR

It is said that April showers bring May flowers, and that they did.

The Penn’s Woods Council, Boy Scouts of America teamed up with Annette Dean (project director) and Jen Raehl of Communities in Schools (CIS) to complete a service-learning project with Cambria Heights Middle School pupils.

Together these pupils, teachers and mentors worked diligently to landscape and beautify the grounds that surround the Golden Living Center, also known as Haida Manor, in Hastings.

The project date was April 24, but planning began weeks before.

Cortney Snowball and Karl Ziegenfus of the Penn’s Woods Council met with Jenny Fees (site coordinator for CIS) and Cheryl Swires (paraprofessional for CIS) along with the pupils of Cambria Heights to discuss the plans, explain what job each pupil would carry out, answer questions, and most importantly, explain the purpose of service learning.

Successful service-learning is a multifaceted teaching and learning process.

Though each service-learning project is tailored to meet specific goals and community needs, several things are critical for success.

Among these are young people, genuine community need, connections to learning objectives, reflection, partnerships and making it happen.

The day had arrived and along with it, the 25 pupils at Golden Living Center, Haida Manor.

Everyone began working at 8:30 a.m., sawing, measuring, drilling, digging, planting and hauling until it was time to get back on the bus at 2:15 and head home.

Upon completion, the pupils not only built a bench, that had flower boxes at each end, for the residents of Haida Manor to sit on, but they had landscaped the entire front of the building, all the while the residents were coming out to observe.

To celebrate their success, CIS sponsored a pizza party at Haida Manor.

Here the pupils wrote about the experience and the following are a few of the things the pupils said:

“I think it was a great opportunity to help the senior citizens and make a nice place for them. They can enjoy the scenery. I am glad we did it for the community and town, and I had a great time.”

Mark Hill

“We built flower boxes and planted flowers. We got a little dirty. We had a lot of fun.”

Travis Mell

“I really liked this trip, it was fun. I’m sure we did a good job and I would love to go and help the community again.”

Sergey Cook

When the pupils began this undertaking, it was all about building a few benches and plant-ing flowers. After it was over, they realized it was really about giving back, bridging intergenerational and cultural gaps and becoming role models and leaders.