The Smithtown Youth Bureau enlisted the help of more than 95 teen volunteers who came ready to work at Hoyt Farm Nature Preserve in honor of Global Youth Service Day. Each young volunteer helped to get Hoyt Farm ready for the season, cleaning the Pollinator Gardens, pasture woods and the animal stalls. The Smithtown Parks Department provided the volunteers with rakes, gloves, pails and necessary farm tools to help clean up the farm. Hoyt Farm Director Jeff Gurmin and his team of devoted professionals educated each of the volunteers regarding the rescued animals and the various benefits they are providing the preserve by assisting in the clean up.
“I want to personally thank Stacey Sanders and Karen Aldrich of the Smithtown Youth Bureau for always going above and beyond for our future generations. They represent the town with such prestige and the service they provide to our young is immeasurable. The real heroes today are the 95 young Smithtown residents, who have provided a service to our community which they can come back to see all year round at Hoyt Farm. On behalf of the Town Board, Jeff Gurmin, his team, the Parks Department, Public Safety, the Animal Shelter and Loki, I send my sincere thanks to all who came out today to participate in this incredible event.” – Supervisor Ed Wehrheim
By raking, weeding, and thatching the pollinator gardens at Hoyt Farm, the Youth Service Day volunteers not only helped to maintain the habitat for local bee and butterfly species, but they aided in local food production, purifying the local ecosystem and protecting the various species. The young volunteers were thrilled when it came time to clean the animal stalls. They were met by very affectionate billy goats, hens, rabbits and one very social cow. Each volunteer was uniformed with a Global Youth Service Day T-Shirt, an honorary certificate, water bottle, small bag of pretzels and a milkweed seed packet, so they could create their own pollinator garden at home.
In addition to the collaboration between the Parks Department and the Smithtown Youth Bureau, Smithtown Public Safety and the Animal Shelter were on site with special guest Loki, who received hundreds of belly rubs from the kids throughout the day.
About GYSD:
Established in 1988, Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) celebrates and mobilizes the millions of young people who improve their communities through service. Global Youth Service Day is the largest service event in the world and the only one dedicated to the contributions that younger generations make year round. Global Youth Service Day is celebrated in more than 135 countries, highlighting young people working together in schools, youth organizations, nonprofits, community and faith-based organizations, national service programs, government agencies and mentorships, addressing the world’s most critical issues to help change their communities.