Over 500 Tyrone students take part in community service day

TYRONE, Pa. (WTAJ) — Students from the Tyrone Area High School are giving spring cleaning a whole new meaning.

They hit the streets of their borough to pick up litter, sweep sidewalks, plant seeds and even clean police cars. It was for the annual community service day. This is the seventh year that the high school has done the project.

“To the folks who say it’s a day off, wrong. These kids are working. I’m so proud of these kids,” Cummins McNitt, the organizer of the annual event said.

This is the first time that students have expanded their cleaning efforts to span over a mile.

“We got all of Washington Avenue from Pizza Hut all the way to Cedar Wood. We’ve never done that before. That’s a big stretch of territory,” McNitt said.

Students in grades 10-12 go into the community and are split up into different assignments. The 9th graders remain on campus to complete their community service project.

“This is our first year coming to Reservoir Park, so it’s pretty fun. I would say it’s a day to come together with your friends and help clean the town,” Makayla Hargrove, a 10th grader said.

The district said that the community service day is significant, especially for students who don’t live in Tyrone.

“I live kind of out of town. All these people deserve to have people clean stuff up for them. I felt like it would be a nice thing for me to do just to come out and help the community,” Logan Harpster, an 11th grader said.

Even though their community service day is over, they’re not likely to forget it.

“When they see that they’re actually making an impact, that’s a lesson that stays with them, and sometimes these lessons are more important than what they’re getting in the classroom,” McNitt said.

Students will participate in activities for the rest of the week to continue the community efforts.