The girls flag football team left school on Monday to volunteer at the Ecumenical Hunger Program, a non-profit organization based in East Palo Alto that assists families experiencing financial hardship.
During the day, the students helped organize the closet, prepare bags of groceries, and distribute them to families in need. “My favorite moment was helping two different mothers with kids, holding their basket as they’re picking out fruit, and seeing the kids look super happy,” junior Audrey Majzun said. “Seeing their gratitude and being able to engage with the community in that way felt great.”
Andy Stuart, the head of M-A’s Service Learning Center, emphasized how hands-on opportunities are especially important for high school students because they help foster stronger involvement towards their local community. “Service learning is powerful,” Stuart said. “It connects students to something bigger than themselves and helps with resilience, wellness, and connection.”
“I think as people, we tend to experience things on a surface level, but the reflection allows us to see how we really benefited from experiences on a deeper level and connect with other people through that,” Majzun said. “It’s a place of maturity and a really important part of service learning is getting to that reflection and learning and growing from your service experience.”
“When I was working, sorting through a big pile of clothes, this one guy that worked there would come and drop more piles off and he just had a huge smile on his face,” sophomore Elena Martinez Fernandez said. “He was running back and forth, bringing donations in, and it just stuck with me how happy he was to be helping them.”
For sports teams, service days are a great way to bond with each other and establish a culture of support. “It’s a really positive experience because you’re getting to help people and collaborate with people you already know in a different way,” Majzun said.
“It teaches teens that they can make an impact at a young age,” Fernandez said. “A lot of people think that, since we’re still in high school, we can’t really do much to help. But there’s a lot we can do, even if it’s just a little bit at a time.”
