On Sept. 11, 633 juniors volunteered at 40 different locations across Johnson and Marion County for the 21st annual Day of Caring. Students did everything from landscaping to painting to playing games with residents at retirement homes. All of this community service was performed in conjunction with the United Way's Day of Caring.
Juniors Halle Booher, Susan May, Meredith Fain and Kristen Garrison paint arrows on the driveway at Smith Valley Baptist Church. "It's so much fun working with our friends on a beautiful day," said Fain. With temperatures around 75 degrees, the temperate weather allowed for activities inside and outdoors.
Spreading mulch at Crabapple Creek, Jake Totten, Blake Smith and Isabelle Snyder laugh while working. According to Snyder, the best part of the day was "giving back to the community." Snyder was part of FACS Teacher Lindy Scott's STaR which worked to refresh both playgrounds, dodging preschool children playing. "It's just cool to see the way we changed how the kids feel about their playground," she said.
Hailey Bellian stuffs pillows at Smith Valley Baptist Church with her STaR. "We were stuffing pillows for patients at Community Hospital," Bellian said. "My favorite thing about participating is spending the day trying to help people. It was a fun team building experience. We came closer together because there are new people in our STaR this year. We got to know the new people better--their strengths and their weaknesses."
Teagan Bixler and Kennedy Brim carry tubes into a shed for the winter. "We stacked the blue tubes in the shed. My favorite memory is when we frisbeed the tubes across the river so it wasn't so much walking. I loved working with my STaR because I got to talk to some of the people I don't normally get to," Brim said.
