Leaf-Raking!

Today representatives from our athletic teams went leaf raking in Oswego!  SAAC (student athlete advisory committee) set up this volunteer activity for us.  It has been something that happens every year, and it’s really cool because we get to help out the older people in the community and also make Oswego look nice!  The athletes split up in teams of 5-10 people and get a list of lawns to rake.  All senior citizens or other people in need have the opportunity to sign up, and I think they are all very grateful for this.  It was great being able to help these people out, but it was also a really fun time!

One of the houses that I went to was a former Women’s Swim coach, Grace Mowatt.  She shared stories with us about when she used to coach the team.  It was really fun hearing about how different things were before, and how our program has evolved.  Grace and her husband even gave us pizza and cider!  At least that was pretty exciting for me… like most other college kids, I always love free food. :-p    I could tell how grateful they were, and that really made the whole thing worthwhile.  At the other house that I raked, I got to jump in a huuuuuge pile of leaves.. that’s always fun, no matter how old you are!  The pic below is right as i was jumping into the pile of leaves… with just my feet sticking out :-p

Community service is something that a lot of people dread doing, or think that it will not be much fun, but I’m telling you right now that it is as fun as you make it.  I used to really hate raking the leaves in my yard growing up because it was a chore that I had to help with every year.   To be honest, the first time I signed up to do the leaf raking in Oswego,  I wasn’t very excited about it, but it ended up being a lot of fun.  I got to go out and do something different for the weekend, I bonded with my teammates, and I made a difference in my community.  That really beats sitting on the couch all day.  I even got back in time to watch the football game!  (GO BILLS!)  The bottom line is, get yourself involved in community service, because there are lots of people out there that need our help.