Although the pandemic has been difficult for our school as well as most others around the world, our Greenwich Country Day high school has been able to remain functioning and strong in many ways. One of these ways is our school’s community service program. Mr. Lehn was able to provide some insights on his personal experiences with community service as well as the programs provided through the school.

In reflecting on his own experiences volunteering, Mr. Lehn said, “coming to this high school ended up being the ultimate way for me to dive in and work with the Center for Public Good.” As this school very much prioritizes giving back to the community and helping others, Mr. Lehn, along with many students, has been able to find purpose in contributing to these school programs.

Later in the interview, Lehn compared our service programs at Greenwich Country Day School to the programs at other private schools. He said that “… a lot of schools require service and the first question we had to address when starting the high school service program was, ‘are we going to require a certain number of hours in participation.’” In speaking to a specific student, I found that it fueled her interest in service by being something that she was deciding to do, and how service became a chore when it was required. “The lack of mandatory community service has definitely benefited students at GCDS.” Similar to the student Mr. Lehn was speaking of, students are more dedicated and passionate when they are able to voluntarily participate in community service programs.

Lastly, Mr. Lehn shared his opinion on how students benefit from participating in community service programs. He said, “As much as we all think of service as offering support for those who don’t have the same resources and opportunities as us, in my mind, I think I benefit more from volunteering. I think that the joy and value that it gives me in many ways is greater than the service I’m giving.” Like Mr. Lehn, many Greenwich Country Day students have found that same sense of value and meaning when participating in community service both in and out of school.

Our school has provided many opportunities for students to volunteer and help those less fortunate than ourselves. As the new GCDS High School has begun to really take shape, the culture of giving back to our community has already proven itself as a schoolwide tradition.

Photo courtesy of Greenwich Country Day School https://www.gcds.net/community/cpg