MONT ALTO- This year’s annual spring Mont Alto Day of Service/Every Day is Arbor Day, held on Wednesday, April 12, was a huge success! Over 110 faculty, staff, and students gathered bags of leaves/debris, picked up downed branches, raked mulch, pulled weeds and ivy and planted a variety of trees and flowers. We got a little help from our friends from Bartlett Tree Experts, Cumberland Valley Tree Service, and FirstEnergy.
Day of Service was combined with Capital Day by getting people to sign up to advocate for Penn State and support fairer funding for Penn State students. Many items were also donated to support several area organizations including animal shelters, health centers, nursing homes and our nation’s veterans.
Teamwork could be seen across campus as dedication and love for Penn State Mont Alto was on full display.
“On behalf of the maintenance and operations staff, we would like to thank all the volunteers that showed up for Mont Alto Day of Service to provide their time and labor to beautify the campus. It was a beautiful day to be outside and we were appreciative of all the extra help on the work that was accomplished. The campus landscape is something I think we all take pride in, and it was great to see the enthusiasm the volunteers brought. We have a very dedicated staff, and we are currently very shorthanded. Thanks to the volunteers who helped underwrite several days of work in a short amount of time,” said staff from Maintenance and Operations.
Here is a summary of everything that was accomplished:
– 30+ bags of debris/leaves from beds around Sweetgum Trees and Amphitheatre (All will be composted)
– 8 yards of wood chips spread around 9/11 Garden by student volunteers
– 10 bags of non-flowering creeping ivy removed from the 9/11 Garden and replaced with pollinator plants including sunflowers, coneflowers, forget-me-nots, Heather, a flowering Almond tree and a wildflower seed mix distributed across the area
– Beds along the quad area to include GSB, ST and AHB were hand weeded
– 1 truckload of wood/sticks gathered from Police Services
– 400 seedlings planted along the West Branch of Antietam Creek along campus
– 3 large seed producing Bee-Bee trees, and over a hundred small invasive trees were removed and their stumps were treated with herbicides to prevent re-sprouting
– 3 hazardous dead trees were removed from areas with high pedestrian traffic
– An estimated $10,000 in tree care services provided across the Arboretum by Bartlett Tree Experts and Cumberland Valley Tree Service
– 120 Military Appreciation cards (to be distributed by Franklin County Veterans Affairs)
– 24 first aid kits (to be donated to Waynesboro Community Health Center)
– 26 period positivity kits/baskets made and distributed to all campus restrooms
– 137 items collected/organized to distribute to Quincy Village and Paramount Senior Living
– 75+ tug toys that will be donated to local animal shelters
– Student/staff/faculty signatures collected for Capital Day
Thanks to Bartlett Tree Experts, Cumberland Valley Tree Service, and First Energy for contributing their time, expertise, and equipment to accomplish several major projects on campus.
