For the fourth year in a row students from Woodhaven headed for downtown Edmonton to help those less fortunate then themselves. On Thursday twenty students, led by Mr. Teliani, volunteered at the Mustard Seed Mission. They received a tour then helped with the sorting of donations.
On Friday our students went to three locations. I, along with our student teacher Mr. Wangler took sixteen students to the Boyle St. Co op where they served coffee followed by a full lunch service. Our students worked hard, were very respectful and were praised by the Boyle St. staff for the quality of their work. Mr. McLachlin took another fifteen students to Operation Friendship, an inner city seniors residence to spend time with the residents. Our students played games, served food and generally engaged in conversation with the seniors. Mr. Chan and Miss Hunt along with student teacher Mr. Timm took students to West Edmonton Mall and Westmount shopping centers to collect donations on behalf of the Salvation Army.
All of these experiences helped the organizations we were working with, which is great. Coming back on the bus and listening to the conversations among the students, I know for sure we all were paid back ten fold for the experience. Our students gain perspective on the range of issues our society is dealing with, they gain experience and confidence in dealing with the public, they gain knowledge that their volunteer efforts are valuable and important. I sincerely hope that this trip opens the door for them helping out personally in the future.
Many thanks to Ms. Neumann who organized the day for us. The agencies we work with keep inviting us back because Ms. Neumann does such an outstanding job in preparing the students and creating a schedule that works with military like precision.
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