Milton Hershey School Students Give Back to the Community for Day of Service
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once stated, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?’” At Milton Hershey School, we use Dr. King’s words to empower our students to give to others during our annual Day of Service. Held every June, all MHS freshmen, sophomores, and juniors go out into the community on the last Thursday of the school year to give back.
“The Day of Service originally started as a ‘day on’ for MLK Day in January, but having the event in January brought weather issues,” said Nate Martin, MHS Assistant Principal. “By moving the event to the last Thursday of the school year, we were able to develop more intentional curriculum for MLK Day itself while also providing the opportunity to go into the community to give back later in the school year.”
Approximately 800 students and more than 100 teachers participated in the 2022 Day of Service. They volunteered at more than 35 different locations including non-profits, senior centers, food banks, and more. From clearing trails, assembling care packages, eating lunch with nursing home residents, mulching flower beds at libraries, and removing trash from struggling neighborhoods, MHS students got to put the skills they learned while attending MHS into practice in the community.
“There are so many benefits for our students to participate in activities like this,” said Martin. “It gives them a meaningful and tangible way to impact the community but also allows them to practice the skills they learned while in our care. The sense of pride and storytelling when we all come back together for an ice cream social at the end of the day is one of the highlights of every year.”
