Horizon Dec 2023 - Flipbook - Page 24
COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS BEYOND THE CAMPUS
Terri Wilson, Upper School Community Service Coordinator
One of the many beauties of
volunteering is that there are endless
ways to get involved and make a
difference. Community service holds
great significance to our students’
educational experience here at
Shelton. In 2022-23 our students
volunteered more than 9,500 hours.
Here’s a look at some of our students
making a difference.
Aidan Jones, Perot Museum of
Nature and Science: 120 hours
“I started volunteering at the Perot
Museum last year. I am on the Teen Crew
for the summer sessions. The Teen Crew at
Perot exists to increase interest in STEMrelated careers for all teens. Being on the
Crew also helps you develop skills needed
to explore certain careers.
“A typical day can go like this. We meet in the mornings at
8:30 a.m. before the museum opens. This is the super fun part
because we can explore while no one else is in the museum.
We get ‘top secret’ information on the museum exhibits
and we get to go behind the scenes. After this, we have
assignments for the day. On some days, I was in the dinosaur
exhibit and on other days, I was in robotics. Sometimes I
helped with the elementary kids’ camps.
Chloe Weathers, Guatemala: 50 hours
“The Village of Hope in Guatemala really impacted
my life. I helped the kids, grew closer to the Lord
and got to know a different community. During
my time in Guatemala, I helped teen moms be a
kid again by taking care of their babies while they
played soccer and hung out with their friends. I
also got to know them. Even though we didn’t
speak fluent Spanish, that didn’t stop us from
connecting with them and getting to know them. We also had
work days, when we did a project around the village, including
painting a house or pouring concrete. I learned how grateful I
am to live in America in a lovely house with a lovely family.”
Feed My Starving
Children, Seniors
Seniors volunteered
at Feed My Starving
Children on their
Community Service
Day in the spring.
Seniors made a
significant impact this year by serving more than 3,900 hours.
The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical
Garden, Holiday at the Arboretum, Juniors
Juniors volunteered at Holiday at the
Arboretum.
“It has been a great experience for me to get hands-on
instruction and to learn how to problem solve with other
team members.”
Kylie Gingold, Camp
Champions: 100 hours
“For three weeks of
no air conditioning,
phones, or electricity, I
did things every day like
pick up trash all over
campus and even on
the highway. I served
breakfast, lunch and dinner to the campers. In the cafeteria,
also known as the ‘Fillin’ Station,’ I swept the floors, took
out the garbage, cleaned the table and filled pitchers with
Gatorade and water for the next meal. I also gave out snacks
in the middle of the day. In addition, I organized the mail, set
up many activities and led campers around all day. I will never
forget how much work it was, but I’m so glad I did it!”
Feed My Starving Children, Juniors
Juniors volunteered at Feed
My Starving Children on their
Community Service Day. Feed My
Starving Children is a nonprofit
organization empowering
volunteers to pack meals for the
malnourished in nearly 70 countries.
22
DECEMBER 2023
THE HORIZON
SHELTON SCHOOL
Children’s Hunger Fund, the Boys Basketball
Team and Coach DeBryan Tyson
For the second year, the Boys Basketball team partnered with the
Children’s Hunger Fund to build boxes. The boxes were filled with
food by the Children’s Hunger Fund. This year the boys built more
than 500 boxes. This has been a great opportunity for the boys to
do something for those in need, but also a good time for the team
to bond. This year was even more special because we also had
parents and players from the Middle School team participate.
Nathan Spence, Camp Barnabas: 120 hours
“By working at Camp Barnabas, I learned how to work with
people who have mental and physical disabilities. While I
was there, I worked with twins. They could not speak so
communication was limited. The twins were a joy to work with.”