“It’s good to get your hands dirty and do something that’s not just for you — it’s for people that need your help,” said Service Day Chair, Carolyn Young.
About 50 of those volunteers from Gordon Food Service and Mercy Health spent their day at the Clark County Fairgrounds, giving some much needed love and elbow grease to barrels that serve as trash cans and barricades.
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Mercy Health volunteer Michele Hemphill said painting what seemed like a mountain of barrels — actually got done a lot faster than she thought.
Once volunteers were done with that task, they didn’t stop. Some people headed over to another building to help with a different painting project.
“Money only goes so far. You need bodies. You need hands. You need people,” Hemphill said. “What a better way to give back to your community than take off one day and do what you can to make it a better place?”
While Hemphill and her colleagues had the cover of the goat barn to shield off the rain, several others endured the elements outside to serve.
A handful of Speedway employees were stationed at the Salvation Army in Springfield doing landscape work.
Volunteers made light work of hauling and spreading mulch, pulling out weeds and planting flowers around the building’s perimeter.
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The fairgrounds and Salvation Army were just two of the over 50 sites across the county that volunteers worked at on Friday.
Young said in addition to the local businesses that participated, students from Emmanuel Christian Academy and Springfield Catholic Central were also on hand to help.
She said she hopes by their participation, serving others will become a lifetime habit.
The day of service was held in conjunction with Keep Clark County Beautiful’s Downtown Cleanup in Springfield.
“Every time we can add another project and add more people to this day,” Young said. “It creates an impact,”
50 — sites across the county that were serviced
1,100 — volunteers from local businesses and schools
7,000 — service hours donated by volunteers in 2018
The Springfield News-Sun is committed to covering efforts to improve the county’s community spaces, including nonprofits, parks and streets.
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