Students fill gap at Phinizy Swamp
Hiking through a swamp can be a little messy.
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Nicole Abbott and Josiah Johns, both Augusta Preparatory School sophomores, pick up a piece of lumber that was part of a boardwalk project at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park.
Photo by Charmain Z. Brackett
To allow Phinizy Swamp Nature Park visitors to enjoy the scenic vistas without getting their shoes wet, Ruth Mead, the park's education specialist, has enlisted the help of volunteers to construct a series of boardwalks.
"We're a nonprofit organization. We don't have the money to build boardwalks," she said. "There's an area that floods. A couple of years ago, Eagle Scouts started building boardwalks."
With each Eagle Scout project, another section of boardwalk would be constructed, but there was a 16-foot gap between two sections of boardwalk. On Friday, 42 Augusta Preparatory Day School sophomores filled the gap.
It was a familiar place for Preston Hull.
"We're actually extending my boardwalk," said Preston, who worked on his Eagle Scout project in the early spring.
He spent about two weeks preparing for his Eagle project and two days assembling it. The Augusta Prep group spent about three hours at the site. The many hands made the workload lighter.
John Palmer, a chemistry teacher, oversaw the Phinizy Swamp project.
Ryan Trapp (left) and Preston Hull cut a piece of wood to be used in a boardwalk at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park. About 42 Augusta Preparatory Day School sophomores participated in the service project.
Photo by Charmain Z. Brackett
The volunteer effort is part of a series of events in a three-day retreat the sophomore class goes on at the beginning of each school year.
Palmer said the retreat is a good way for teachers to get to know their students.
"Some might say it's a waste of time, but I get it back. It's important in classroom management," he said.
During the retreat, students also volunteered at Golden Harvest Food Bank and Augusta Urban Ministries, and some visited the elderly at assisted-living centers.
The retreat is not only a good way for teachers to get to know students; it's also a good way for classmates to bond, said sophomore Nicole Abbott.
"It's been great. We only got two new students, but we know each other really well," she said.