Key Club volunteers to spend day with Loveland students

Small chairs,  small desks and a lot of small people makes anyone feel like a giant. On Wednesday, Nov. 16,  Key Club went on a trip to Loveland Elementary. The students read books, helped with math homework and played outside during recess. Key Club is supported by the Kiwanis club. In other words, Key Club is a service learning club. The presidents of Key Club are seniors Danielle Dircks and Katya Ward. Their goal is to give back to the community through different projects and activities.

“Danielle came up with the idea of working with the elementary schools. She was the one to set up the time with Loveland. We wanted to be able to give back to our own school district so that is why we decided on this project,” Ward said. “We hope to be able to switch off and hopefully go to most or even all the elementary schools.”

When the high school students walked into the classroom the first graders were immediately jittery and eager to be with the highschoolers. Dircks experienced this first hand.

“One of the kids decided that we were going to be best friends. We ended up going out to recess with them and all of the kids ran out first and then the rest of us followed. The little kid ran out far ahead of us but then stopped and waited for me because he wanted to play with me,” Dircks said. “It was absolutely hilarious. Reminded me of the pure innocence and simplicity of children.”

Not only were the first graders impacted by the highschoolers, but the highschoolers were affected by the first graders.

“It really brightened my day because being around kids, you can’t help but feel happier and lighter when with them,” Ward said. “They are just so innocent and cute that I couldn’t stop smiling.”

Helping your community improve by doing various tasks is helpful, no matter how big or small the tasks appear to be. Dircks stresses the importance of volunteering and how we as students can make an impact on the community or even the city.

“It can be beneficial in many different ways and on many different scales. The kids that we were helping will probably remember hanging out with highschoolers for awhile. Or at least we helped to brighten their day,” Dircks said. “However, giving back on a larger scale like donating money or time to worthy cause such as the homeless shelter can help give back to members of our community and show that we care.”

If you are interested in joining Key Club and giving back to your community, you can contact Danielle Dircks ([email protected]) or Katya Ward ([email protected]).