By Sara Beth Williams–
More than a dozen students spent part of their Spring Break giving back to the local community by helping establish a gardening center at a local K-8 school in Citrus Heights.
15 to 20 junior high and high schoolers from The Heights Church in Citrus Heights spent March 25-27 helping with cleaning, painting, and building garden boxes at Woodside K-8. Student Ministries Pastor Bronson Aalgaard led the group of students, along with other parent and community volunteers, in the “Love This City” outreach project, which is the church’s second annual event.
“It all started from wanting to serve the community in a bigger capacity,” Aalgaard said last week, adding that he wanted students to see how they can impact current and future generations.
At Woodside K-8, the students and community volunteers helped build several garden boxes, repainted existing garden boxes in the school’s courtyard, and pressure washed and painted a wall slated to become an outdoor garden center for a new Innovative Schools program set to launch at Woodside K-8 in the 2024-25 school year.
On Thursday, March 28, the team of students and volunteers spent the last day of the outreach event helping package and distribute food to families at the Sunrise Food Closet in Citrus Heights. The food closet, run by the Sunrise Christian Food Ministry, operates from Advent Lutheran Church on San Juan Avenue.
In a newsletter update following the event, Heights Church praised the students for “sacrificing their Spring Break to love others and bless this community!”
