The North Reading Community EarlyAct Club recently completed another service project to thank local heroes. During a preparation meeting for the theme, the students identified plow crews as local heroes. Youth Services Director Amy Luckiewicz explained, “The meeting was right after our fifth or sixth snow storm. The kids started talking about how hard this winter was and they all agreed that the local DPW and plow crews deserved a thank you for helping them get to school safely.” The students created a list of supplies the crews could use and hand-packed over 20 “care packages” to gift to the workers. The packages included candy, lip balm, tissues, and more. After packaging the gifts, the students left them in the offices of the DPW as a surprise with a note explaining the gifts. “The kids loved the surprise element,” Luckiewicz noted. “They knew it wasn’t expected and we had a great talk about going good things randomly in the community.” At the following meeting, the students, in turn, had a surprise for them. The DPW and plow workers had written a note of thanks to the students in return. “When I read the note aloud, every one of the students was smiling. They knew they had done something small to show appreciation.”
About the North Reading Community EarlyAct Club
The club is designed for students grades 3-5, representing all schools in North Reading. Based on a Rotary International model, the projects and meetings focus on the values of gratitude, community, leadership, commitment, and inclusion. The club meets twice per month to plan and implement a local or international humanitarian project. Initiated just this past March, the group was formed by 4 parent volunteers: Sandy Garniss, Samantha Miller, Karen Buscemi, and Leslie Schultz in partnership with North Reading Rotary Club’s Peter Majane and Director of Youth Services Amy Luckiewicz. For more information on how to register a student in the North Reading Community EarlyAct Club or its sister club at North Reading Middle School, email youthservices@northreadingma.gov or call Amy at 978.357.5281.
