Community Service Day continues tradition

Friday was North Branch Area Public Schools Community Service Day. This was the third year our students and staff have partnered with cities and civic groups to help get the area ship-shape for the upcoming summer.

Over those three years our students and staff have performed a number of wonderful duties in and around the district and I get a real sense of pride when I am driving around the district and see that work on display; the fresh coats of paint on the Lions park bathrooms in Stacy and the ball field bleachers in Sunrise, the beautiful flower gardens at the Villages of North Branch, and the squeaky clean windows at the local public library, to name a few.

There are far more service projects that aren’t as obvious but just as important. We have performed road clean-up in North Branch, groomed and tidied parks and other public areas in Harris, Stacy, and Sunrise Twsp. The partnerships that have been created across the district have been very beneficial for the community and, especially, for students.

It is very rewarding to hear from those partners after the fact. They tell how much they value the students and staff and how appreciative they are of the service projects we perform.

This year, Community Service Day included a musical concert for the lunch crowd at the Chisago County Senior Center, with songs performed by middle school music students. I hope it was a hit!

All of us hope you appreciate Community Service Day as much as we appreciate providing the service and, most importantly, the valuable lesson for students about taking care of the people and places in their community. That is a lesson worth learning over and over again in life.

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