State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry students made contributions all their own by spending time at various locations in downtown Syracuse and surrounding areas in the school’s Campus Day of Community Service on Saturday.

The students volunteered at locations such as the Ronald McDonald House, the Westcott Community Center, the Rescue Mission Warehouse in Liverpool, the Sarah House, the Museum of Science and Technology, the Samaritan Center and St. Francis Adult Day Care Center, participating in both indoor and outdoor service projects. The projects were organized by the Office of Student Activities.

‘We sent about 40 students to area agencies,’ said Leah Flynn, assistant director of student activities. ‘It was very successful.’

An additional 100 first-year ESF students spent the afternoon off of South Salina Street at Heath Park cleaning and beautifying the area. The students spent about three hours clearing out dead trees and making space in the outside area, Flynn said.

Kira Gosh, an education graduate student who helped organize the event with Flynn, said that she was personally impressed by the amount of students that wanted to take part.

‘It was just the students that went and it’s been successful,’ Gosh said. ‘There’s never been a problem with anything, they’re really responsible.’

Gosh spent the day at the Westcott Community Center, where students bagged flower bulbs for an upcoming fundraiser for the center.

Additional projects included putting a peace garden outside of the MoST and participating in various forms of yard work at the Ronald McDonald House.

ESF sophomore Addie Cappello, a wildlife science major, spent the day at the Ronald McDonald House cleaning the inside of the house and raking.

‘A lot of people just want to help out,’ Cappello said. ‘Even though you might not want to get up early and go do it, afterwards you feel good about yourself for it.’

Cappello is part of the honors society, in which a minimum of five service hours is required of the members.

Community service doesn’t have to be an infrequent event for students who are willing to get involved.

‘For honors society we adopted a street last year so we clean on Clarendon Street every month or so for a couple hours and pick up trash, and clean up the street,’ Cappello said.

The Campus Day of Community Service is held once in the fall, and once in the spring, according to Gosh, because of the positive and enthusiastic response of the students.

‘Students put in about 65,000 hours of community service at ESF … they’re really involved,’ Flynn said.

Published on September 23, 2006 at 12:00 pm