Last week, the sophomores went on a field trip to Cradles to Crayons, a non-profit organization that provides resources such as clothing and school supplies to homeless and low-income children. This trip was a great way to keep in mind the theme of the sophomore class this year, which is service. 

Before the field trip, we made posters to make the school aware of the cause and encouraged donations. These donations included clothes sizes from youth to adult medium, new underwear, socks, pajamas, school supplies, and more. These donations also had to be in good condition, so the kids could have the feeling of getting new clothes. On the day of the field trip, we retrieved all of the donations from a large box in the front foyer and got on the bus. Arriving at the warehouse, we put all of the donations into a large metal container and went inside. 

We got volunteer stickers, were introduced to the organization, and were divided into two different groups. The first group sorted donations into categories, such as books, different kinds of clothing, supplies, and more. Overall, they were able to fill twelve large bins. The second group (the one I was in), sorted those clothing bins into different sizes, made sure all of the clothes were good quality, and didn’t have anything on them with family words or holidays. Clothes that got rejected got put into separate bins which other charities accept, so no donation was a waste. For the clothes that we were able to sort, we filled seventy-two bins. Overall, this was such an empowering experience and it was really fun to bond with the grade. I had a lot of fun!

Here’s what the rest of the grade said about the trip:

“Volunteering for Cradles to Crayons was a really great experience. It helped me bond with my classmates and give back to the community.” -Kate Regan ‘25

“It was really inspiring and really fun seeing all of the baby clothes.” -Josie Marcucci -25

“I was SO impressed with the girls: the leader at Cradles to Crayons insisted that they were the best high school group they had ever had there as volunteers.” – Mrs. Nicholson

“I thought it was fun because we had the opportunity to do things for other people. Sorting the clothes, I thought about all of the kids that the clothes were going to go to.” – Ava Birmingham ‘25

“It was a good experience for learning the value of dignity in people’s lives.” -Elena Sereiva ‘25

“It was a pleasant experience to work at a well-functioned organization, knowing that I was helping those in need.” -Kate Ladino ‘25

By Katie Ryan ‘25, Contributing Writer

25kryan@montroseschool.org