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On Tuesday, students, faculty members, administrators and county officials were at Wilson’s Wood Park, where the Mount Vernon High School will become the first to adopt a park through the Westchester Parks Foundation.
The “Adopt a Park” program is offered through the Foundation, providing volunteers the opportunity to maintain, preserve, develop and improve the parks and trails in the Westchester County Parks System.
Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino issued an official proclamation to the students, who have taken ecology lessons in advance of the “adoption.”
“These Mount Vernon students are trailblazers,” he said. “We hear a lot about conserving the environment, but this next generation is getting their hands dirty. It’s very cool to see environmentalism and education in action.”
“Students have cleaned up the park, raised and released trout into local waters, done water and soil purity testing, built a blue bird box to bring back the native species and even planted edible blueberry bushes,” officials noted. “Their hard work (was) recognized and their role made official at the ceremony.”
“I got involved because I’m a photographer, and I really like nature,” junior Alex Lewack said. “This experience has made me more environmentally friendly. I hope since we’ve cleaned up the park, people will have a better feeling about it and come here all the time.”
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