South Callaway High School students spread service across Callaway County on Thursday morning.
Approximately 245 students broke into 17 groups throughout the area to give back during South Callaway's first day of service, according to Olivia Brandt, library media specialist at the high school.
South Callaway math teacher Shelly Sconce said their student council wanted to put a larger emphasis on service that got the entire student body involved.
"We wanted to instill in the students the importance of community outreach, support, and let them know that we're all in this together," Sconce said.
Some communities that were served include Mokane, Fulton, Tebbetts and Portland, and one group volunteered in Columbia. Five groups volunteered in Fulton at Trends, SERVE, the Brick District Playhouse and Fulton Nursing & Rehab and picked up trash along the Stinson Creek trail and around town.
The number of students at each service site varied depending on the type of work or the size of the area that needed to be covered. At the Brick District Playhouse, the students swept, mopped, vacuumed, moved chairs and built tables to help prepare for the theater's next production.
"It's always a dust storm after renovations, so we need something like (these students) to help," said Steve Merriott, coordinator at the Brick District Playhouse
Kasey Dunnavant, a junior at South Callaway, worked as the chairman of the school's service committee, where she and other students came up with the 17 service locations throughout the area. She said her role consisted of calling the service locations to figure out what they needed help with and how many students would be needed.
"(South Callaway) is actually having our prom at the Brick District Playhouse this spring, so it was kind of nice to get a preview and be able to give back," Dunnavant said.
South Callaway social studies teacher Tyler Kirchner was the site coordinator at the Brick District Playhouse, where he managed a group of 11 students. Kirchner said having students think about others and community service was an important part of the day.
"We want (the students) to take pride in something that might not necessarily impact their lives," Kirchner said.
At SERVE, a group of 15 students cleaned up the organization's garden, pulled weeds, moved flower beds and shoveled dirt.
"Any volunteer help from out in the community is such a big help to us," said Diane Henry, client services lead at SERVE.
At Trends, the student group worked in the back rooms of the store sorting Christmas trees to help the organization prepare for its pre-Christmas sale. Student Alexus Fields said she "had fun" helping out at Trends and it reminded her what she can do to help those who help others.
"I really want to just be able to give back in as many ways as we can," Dunnavant said. "A lot of these places and a lot of these people have done so much for our community and our school. We wanted to set the precedent for next year's students."