Good things happen
Good things happen when members of a service club, two youth groups and a cluster of basketball players descend on the yards of residents with leaf-covered lawns. Those good things add up to 11 homes with clean turfs and nearly 300 bags of leaves ear-marked for the mulch pile.
Involved in the effort were members of St. Johns Kiwanis Club, sponsor of middle school Builders Club and high school Good Wins Key club. Caleb Miller joined the group and recruited a number of basketball buddies to round out the near 70 person endeavor.
Principal coordinators included St. Johns Schools staff member Kari Simon-Pieters, Jan Havlik, Kiwanis member and director of the Kiwanis sponsored Builders Club and Denise Uribe, leader of the Good Wins Key club.
Aside from Ms Havlik, other Kiwanis members participating in the project were Hal Rice, Mark Smith, Greg Teichman, Jay Eccleton and Rod Fuller.
“We had a crisp, sunny day to rake with hard working and spirited St. Johns students,” explained Ms Simon-Pieters. “We cleared eleven yards and all the leaves from one yard filled 66 bags!”
Most of the residents of the yards cleared were unaware of the arrival of the workers. Donna Eisler, one surprised occupant said: “While I was gone my leaves disappeared from the lawn.” She expressed her appreciation. “Thank you so much for your work and for all the work of the young people. It is appreciated and a very nice thing for them to do.”
Ms Havlik pointed out that both Builders Club and Good Wins Key Club are sponsored by St. Johns Kiwanis. Members in each group are encouraged to be aware of the importance of community involvement and the benefits derived from providing service activities such as the leaf raking project.