I spent the afternoon at Clean Memphis and had an awesome experience! I volunteered with Kristine Pierce, Director of Education. I was unsure of what to expect from the experience but from the minute I walked through the doors of Clean Memphis, I felt welcomed and comfortable amongst the staff. Kristine and I prepped materials for a science lesson. Then we taught the lesson at a local camp. The educational program is one of three programs that Clean Memphis conducts, working to achieve the goal of Memphis Clean by 2019. I really enjoyed talking with Kristine about the importance of creating a cleaner, and in turn, more livable and beautiful city.

At the camp, we played games to broaden the campers’ understanding of ecological systems. For one game, campers were given animal cards, and without looking at their card, guessed which animal they had based on clues. I loved playing such a hands on activity with kids. Clean Memphis does an awesome job providing children with opportunities to engage in their learning. Allowing children to learn through experience and discussion, rather than just textbooks, is so important.

Volunteering with Clean Memphis brought back some very happy childhood memories. Every summer as a child I took a bus from Philly to Maine to attend a wilderness tripping camp called Kieve-Wavus. It was during those summers that my eyes were opened to the beauty in our world and the importance of keeping it clean. In groups of about 10 girls, we would go on trips hiking and paddling for weeks at a time. It was on these trips that I first understood my personal strength but also my ability to impact the world around me. Our counselors taught us the importance of “leaving no trace” and other ways to reduce our ecological footprint. I went on to work for Kieve-Wavus and loved the experience of challenging young girls to step outside of their comfort zone. It was so rewarding to push kids to both physically challenge themselves by paddling or hiking hundreds of miles as well as to mentally challenge themselves by rethinking how they can shape the future of our world.

Today at Clean Memphis, I had that same rewarding feeling as I did when I worked at Kieve-Wavus. Clean Memphis is making a huge impact on our community. This is definitely work that I could envision myself doing. Stay tuned for my next volunteering adventure!