Each time I consider the school’s mission statement and its third critical phrase”empowering meaningful contribution with our six core values”I immediately think of Community Service Day.
Today was dedicated to serving others under the watchful eye and thoughtful organization of Koreen McQuilton and a team of faculty. While the activities were variedmaking blankets, dog toys, paracord bracelets, and greeting cards; gardening and farm work to help address food insecurity; trail maintenance and cleanup; plant kit fundraisers; and furniture paintingtheir purpose was singular. They were all intended to improve the lives of others, or more to the point, to contribute meaningfully with excellence, respect, honesty, responsibility, caring, and joy. This notion of servicenot to be served, but to servetakes center stage on Community Service Day, and it runs through our curriculum and our promise every day.
During the pandemic, many of us have had a sense that the world has gotten much smaller. Many have found the biggest challenge to be isolation due to seemingly endless limitations and restrictions that have hindered our ability to connect with one another. Zoom experiences for everything from meetings to exercise to family celebrations and maintaining physical distance when we can be together have limited our sense of being part of a broader community. Perhaps that is why today’s service felt especially meaningful and emotionally powerful. Today was about connection, among students, among colleagues, and with all of us to a wide, complex, and beautiful world that is coming back into view.
Click here to see a photo gallery of Community Service Day.
