Every year at BSM, sophomores are required to partake in some kind of service that betters their community, them as a person, and has a positive impact on people around them. Through all the thick and thin in these times of uncertainty and online school, BSM sophomores were still tasked to complete some type of service.

This year, students had to get more creative, as the normal service events and jobs teenagers do were not available due to obvious reasons surrounding COVID-19. Many different students capitalized on this opportunity.

Tenth grader Tyler Zachman’s approach to this year’s service was to attack the problem head-on. He wanted to do something that would help his community with the biggest issue our world is dealing with right now. For his service, he made coronavirus masks to help combat the virus. “Since this year was going to be a lot different for service and because a lot of people are super stressed out, I wanted to make sure I did something that would be impactful and that I could do while following the rules and remaining socially distant from others,” Zachman said.

Sophomore Sydney Drees had another innovative and imaginative way of getting her service in. Some of the people who are having the most trouble right now are the elderly, and Drees wanted to find a way to help them. Drees took an opportunity to talk on her computer virtually to a lot of people in an elderly nursing home and warm their lives up with joy. “It felt good to say hi to people who cannot spend this time with their family members and do not have a lot of options right now,” Drees said.

Drees got to have conversations with the people and put a smile on their faces. Drees told them about her times during the quarantine and asked them how they were holding up. She told them to keep their head up and that we will all get through this together. “I am glad I got the chance to do this because I know it meant a lot to them to have the chance to talk to someone who is also living through the pandemic from a different perspective, and they told me to make the most out of this time and be grateful for every second I have with my friends and family,” Sydney said.

Sophomore Mitchell Dokman had an opportunity to actually get out of his house to serve. “When I was in third grade at Our Lady of Grace, one of my good friends Quinn Kirsch passed away. It was a tragic time in the community, but it helped unite us as a whole. This year, for my service, I went back to the OLG grounds and planted flowers for him and his family in the garden dedicated to him at OLG,” Mitchell said.

Dokman’s service gave him a chance to honor his good friend who he misses dearly. His original idea helped him complete his service in a way that incorporated his past. “I enjoyed planting flowers and making the plants look nice because it reminded me of my friend and the memories we had. Plus I was able to escape my house and get some fresh air to do a good deed,” Mitchell said.

When the students completed their service, they sent their teachers a picture of their service for verification.