Students spread out across the county in 32 different locations raking, pulling weeds, painting benches, cleaning playgrounds, placing American flags on the gravesites of veterans, prepping the middle school community garden, cleaning out the bus garage, planting seedlings, visiting and playing Bingo with residents at Carveth Village. And that’s just a few of the high school’s annual service day activities.
It was a day where they practiced what they heard the motivational speaker Timmy “The Dreamer” Bishop talk about when he said, “The secret of living is giving.” He addressed the students prior to their service day assignments.
During his motivational talk, called “Dreamology 101,” students were given a piece of paper where they were asked to write down their school dreams and then their future dreams in what would become their “dreamer contract.” Students signed and dated the paper and were told to keep it in a special place.
“Believe in your dreams, put in the work and take action - then your dreams can come true,” said Bishop. “The secret of living is not about what we get - but about what we give.”
He said to make their dreams come true, students must put in the work and become a student to learn how to make their dreams reality. They must find “dream mates” who share a similar vision and they must prioritize happiness. Lastly, he said the secret of living is giving and in doing that, people will fulfill their own dreams.
High School Principal Tony Petersen said giving is what service day is all about. “It’s a day when we get to thank our community by sending our students out to give and not just receive. It’s a great opportunity for our students to learn about ways they can give back and a great way for them to realize life isn’t always about just themselves.”
Assistant Principal Jeff Dock agreed. “We take one day to give back to the community - it’s the least we can do to show our appreciation for all this community does for us. Our goal eventually is to have every student out in the community.” This year more than 500 students left the high school for their community service work while others stayed at the high school for projects.
Dock said even though students weren’t learning their usual classroom lessons there were a lot of lessons to be learned from the day - how to work together, to try new things, and to appreciate what this community offers to them. “It’s also a chance for us all to realize the world doesn’t revolve around us. When we put others first, we only become better.”
Even as students raked and pulled weeds, cleaned, or hauled brush - there were smiles and laughter and a different kind of school day filled with different kinds of memories. They worked alongside friends and some worked with other students they didn’t know very well at all. They saw their teachers roll up their sleeves and work right alongside them.
“I think this is the best day we have all year. I just think it’s a really good day,” said one student while she worked pulling weeds.
At Spirit Park - located in front of McFall Elementary, students worked alongside TK Alumni to clear grass around the edge of the brick pavers, give benches a fresh coat of bright blue paint, and pull weeds from the cracks between the bricks.
Dust was flying in the bus garage where students swept away all the dirt and gravel that accumulated from the daily routes. Nearby, at the middle school, students helped prepare the community garden for another season of growing. Another group worked in the community garden near Lee Elementary School and still another group planted the first seedlings in a new hydroponics center for the food service department.
Around Carveth Village, students pulled weeds while others played Bingo with residents. Downtown Middleville, students pulled weeds from flower beds and raked leaves and debris preparing the beds for fresh mulch.
A sea of American flags adorning gravesites of veterans at four different cemeteries were put in place by students. Parks, ball fields and classrooms were prepped and cleaned for use. Teams of students helped at Camp Manitoulin, Camp O’Malley, YMCA Camp Algonquin, the Barry County Expo Center, and in Yankee Springs clear the bike trail and in other areas helped remove invasive species of plants.
Back at the high school, some students even braved a Mental Health Awareness ice bath challenge carefully monitored by Bishop where he continued to inspire students.
Other students decorated IV bags for DeVos Children’s Hospital, made bookmarks for retirement centers, decorated brown paper bags for Kids Food Basket, painted kindness rocks, made dog toys for animal shelters, and sewed sleeping bags for homeless people. They learned how to respond to emergencies, and how the fire and EMS services respond to calls.
“The kids work hard, and we just want to keep making this service day better every year,” said Dock.
Petersen agreed. “This is a good day for our students and our community."