Mid-Pen students, staff, and parent volunteers fanned out across the South Bay on Wednesday, October 23, for our Fall Community Service Day. Since its inception 24 years ago, the biannual event allows Dragons to lend a hand at various non-profit organizations in the area.
Students are able to select where they want to spend the day, but their options depend on when they receive the sign-up sheets! Who choses which Core class signs up first? It’s based on a random drawing. Watch our students in action on sign-up day!
Dragons were put to work in a variety of ways, from shelving library books, serving seniors their lunch, cleaning horse stalls, to helping a non-profit pack up their store in preparation for a move.
Jon Austin, Mid-Pen’s community service coordinator, has organized the school’s volunteer activities for more than 14 years. Dragons participate in two community service days each year. Sophomores, juniors, and seniors have additional service requirements that they must complete independently.
For many students, Community Service Day is an introduction to volunteering, said Jon. “When students end up making a long-term commitment to an organization, it’s often a place they found through our community service day.”
Mid-Pen students volunteered at:
Hidden Villa in Los Altos
Animal Assisted Happiness in Sunnyvale:
Deer Hollow Farm in Cupertino
La Comida Senior Nutrition in Palo Alto
EPA Made Shop in Menlo Park
National Center for Equine Facility Therapy in Woodside
Aside from giving back to their community, Dragons also have the opportunity to spend time together. “Community Service Day gives students, staff, and our parent volunteers a chance to get to know each other outside of school in a different context," added Jon. "Those connections add to their overall experience of the day."
Keep watch for our Spring Community Service Day in 2020!
A special thanks to Jon for organizing the day, to our parent volunteers who drove students to their locations and also participated, and to all of the non-profit organizations for welcoming the Mid-Pen Dragons.