More than 200 first-year students spent an August afternoon working with their campus peers and energetic Oberlin townspeople as everyone pitched in to improve three local schoolyards. It was Oberlin's second annual Day of Awareness.
Some students planted bulbs, others painted outdoor play equipment or added sand and mulch under swings to cushion inevitable spills. The shovel crew dug deep holes in the earth to receive all the newly donated shrubs, and others erected the 14 birdhouses built by residents of Kendal especially for the project.
At Eastwood Elementary School, volunteers created a garden that science classes will tend in the spring; it will be planted again next summer as part of a young people's nature program. After the hard work was done at HeadStart in Depot Park, weary students cheerfully clowned for the photographer (above).
The schools, the College's Center for Service and Learning, and the Oberlin Interagency Council coordinated the Day of Awareness, and the City of Oberlin donated gardening equipment, paint, and mulch.
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