One item on next Monday’s Great Bend USD 428 Board of Education meeting agenda is to approve the fifth annual Community Service Day at Great Bend High School.
In the prior four years the GBHS Student Council has organized an all-day school-wide Community Service Day, and plans to hold the fifth one on April 26. Hundreds of high school students, supervised by teachers, will conduct service projects in the area. Past projects have included painting, picking up trash and planting trees at sites such as Brit Spaugh Park and Zoo, the Barton County Courthouse, the Golden Belt Humane Society, the Hungry Heart Soup Kitchen and the Barton County Landfill.
This is not the only time that USD 428 students are encouraged to volunteer. Activities Director David Meter has asked each team to come up with an annual service project. Some student organizations also require community service.
Students may miss one day of classroom instruction this spring, but let’s hope the life lessons learned that day will be worthwhile. For those who benefit from their actions, this can be a lesson, too. This can be a chance to see the next generation in a positive light, and to consider where our help may also be needed in this community.