Calhoun Leadership Class Community Clean-Up

I had two leadership classes that collaborated on the community clean up.  Between the two classes there were a total of 23 student athletes.  Between the planning and actual cleaning, the students spent approximately 3 1/2 hours on the project, two plus hours of which were the actual cleaning of the community.   Below is a write up that was done for the district website with additional information.

Calhoun Leadership Class Community Clean-Up

The Leadership Classes at Calhoun High School, taught by Brian Joyce, organized and participated in a community clean-up on the morning of Friday, October 9th. The plan was inspired by student, Adam Selcedo, who shared that when he was out on a jog on Merrick Avenue he was upset about all the garbage that he saw on the streets and sidewalks. He took the idea of coordinating a clean up effort to Mr. Joyce who, along with the fellow students, were enthusiastic about making a difference.  Adam states that during the clean up, he was impressed to see that “the students were putting a great amount of effort” into cleaning up our neighborhood. Student Nicole Devlin reflected, “ I couldn’t believe the amount of garbage that was left by my peers. There was garbage from whole pizza boxes to straws to water bottles. It was absolutely disgusting to see garbage just a couple of feet away from a garbage can.” While the clean-up campaign had a positive impact on the community, it was also impactful to our students. Vinny Devito shared that “knowing that what we did had people appreciative of us made me feel good and proud about what I was doing.”  Frankie Depalo commented that “after completing the clean up, I felt like I accomplished something great. It made me realize how easily I can brighten other people’s day by completing small tasks.” “The walk back was my favorite part. As I looked in the streets, I couldn’t help but smile,” said Nicole Devlin.  We thank them for their efforts and can all be reminded about how our everyday efforts can help make a difference.