This particular act of community service was to help a local organization called A Foundation 4 Kids get its warehouse in order and package toys for children. Even though the seniors had to miss out on a minimum day on campus, the work and effort that went into the project was well worth it. There was not a single student at the warehouse that did not have an important role to fill. Whether it was organizing the shelves, restocking important necessities, or packaging educational toys, everyone was involved with making the day a success.
All of the volunteers, including a group of teachers who were there to work just as hard, arrived early in the cold morning to check in and receive their assignments. The student volunteers were divided into two major groups, one working outside of the warehouse, and one inside of it. Each group was given special tasks to complete, but every job was crucial to making the service go smoothly. Everyone participating made the best out of the community service, which was not expected to be as fun as it actually was.
Although there was no academic school work to be done, the service work in the name of Notre Dame High School was much more rewarding.
For the time that the students, who were joined by Riverside police officers, spent helping A Foundation 4 Kids, all of the tasks that normally took weeks were able to be completed in record time. Not a single item was out of place or unorganized by the time the volunteers had finished inside the warehouse.
Outside, the second group of students and teachers were able to package hundreds of educational toys and exceed the expected quota.
The project was organized by Notre Dame’s own Principal Mr. Matt Luttringer, and Riverside Police Officer Ryan Ralisback, who made this whole event possible. Both of these exceptional leaders are graduates of Notre Dame Class of 1993.
Without the leadership provided by both men, as well as fellow Officer Javier Cabrera, the Notre Dame seniors may have not been able to do the exceptional work they did for the foundation.
When the day of hard work and service finally came to an end, some students were surprised at how fast the time had gone by. Some even wanted to come back to volunteer on their own time, as they had a really awesome time doing work for a noble cause.
All in all, the service project was a great success for the Riverside Police officers and for the Notre Dame Class of 2014.