Service
2nd Grade's God's Little Bear Hugs
The children of St. Mark’s are given many opportunities to experience Christian giving. It is important that they recognize that they have been very blessed and that God has blessed them to be a blessing to others.
Globally:
Service learning is incorporated into the fabric of our St. Mark’s Day School Community. 2010 was dedicated to Itabo, Cuba. Students learned the history of our 20 year relationship with Itabo, Cuba, the many ways we have positively impacted that community, and their current needs. The students went into action collecting items needed and writing letters, complete with pictures, to the children of Itabo. Reverend Sandy delivered all these treasures. To our delight many of the children wrote back and pen-pal relationships were formed!
January 2011 began with a focus on the “Holy Land” in preparation for the Pilgrimage taken by our church in the fall of 2011. The children learned of the diverse cultures in this part of the world. As we have established relationships with two diverse schools in Israel, The Arab Evangelical Episcopal School in Ramallah, and the Amirim School in Binyaminah, Israel, we are learning about ourselves and others. Our communication with these schools has included written letters, e-mails, and Skype. The opportunity to communicate with children across the globe has been exhilarating for us all no matter where we lay our head each night. Click here for more information.
Locally:
1st grade: First graders will be holding a shoe drive around the time of the Daily’s Ortega River Run. They will collect gently used (or new) shoes to be donated. They will learn about children like themselves who do not even have shoes to wear. The shoes will be donated to Soles4Souls.
2nd grade: Our students collected and sent ‘God’s Little Bear Hugs’ to the children of St. Mary’s Church, Jacksonville. Their heartfelt notes included messages like:
“If you feel sad just remember that God loves you. God will take you through hard times and will make you strong.”
“God loves you! This bear will give you hugs and kisses! Pray to God with your bear.”
3rd grade: Collected items to donate to the Jacksonville Humane Society. They collected and sorted t-shirts, towels, toys, and leashes, and made toys out of old socks. In addition, students write letters to the Wounded Warriors who participate in the Track program. Prior to writing the letters, they visit the museum downtown to learn about the soldiers and some of the areas where they served.
4th grade: Students are paired with St. Mark’s Church homebound and elderly parishioners and write letters, draw pictures, and invite them to special services. This ministry is a tremendous gift to the homebound who receive the letters, and a wonderful lesson in giving without the expectation of receiving anything in return. Click here for more pictures.
5th grade: 5th grade’s service is focused on literacy. We are walking down the street to Ortega Elementary 5 times during the year to help younger elementary students with Math and reading. This relationship with Ortega Elementary is a gift to all involved. It gives our students the opportunity to mentor younger children, and build relationships out side our school community. Click here for pictures.
6th grade: Each 6th grader earns at least 10 hours of community service prior to graduation. This year, the 6th graders will be having PE and building relationships with the students at the North Florida School of Special Education. Click here for pictures from our visits. The mission of North Florida School of Special Education is to improve the lives of students with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities through the achievement of academic, vocational, and social skills. They will also have several chances to serve others after school – a day of River Clean up with ‘River Keepers’ and some time given to Angels for Allison.
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