As the month of February drew to a close, the Stone Ridge Parents’ Association organized an all-school service opportunity for the students in Lower, Middle, and Upper School alike. Rarely are the older grades afforded the chance to do service along side the younger students, so several Upper and Middle Schoolers quickly jumped on the opportunity. After sharing a snack of goldfish and Hershey kisses, the students set out on the first project. The Lower Schools waited patiently for the older girls to pass out bread, meat, and cheese to make sandwiches and pack them in bags. Once prompted to start, it only took a matter of minutes before the entire stack of bread was gone and the sandwiches were neatly enclosed in small, plastic bags ready to send to S.O.M.E. and be handed out the next day.
With one project done, the students moved on to a more creative one where they made dog toys for the Washington Animal Rescue League. Using tennis balls and strips of T-shirts that the parents had collected in the previous weeks, the girls made enough toys to fill up several boxes. When those supplies ran out, they grabbed markers and paper to make “Adopt Me” signs for the dogs and cats who desperately need homes. These will also be sent over to WARL and distributed in the next few weeks. Although it was difficult to keep the masses of Lower Schoolers on task, the Middle and Upper Schoolers as well as parents facilitated the event making it a worthwhile and productive event for students of all ages.
