NEW MILFORD, Pa. -- Normally, these dozens of National Honor Society students from Blue Ridge High School would be in the classroom on a school day, working toward helping to make the world a better place in the future. But on this day, they were outside trying to make a difference now.
"We have to take care of our land because it's our future. If we don't have a good, sustainable land, there's no future for us on earth,” Blue Ridge High School senior Kaelin Hughes said.
For the second year in a row, these students conducted a cleanup at an illegal dumpsite along Route 11 in New Milford. In these wetlands, tires and tires were carelessly dumped off the side of the road.
“We cleaned out so many last year, that it's amazing to come back and clean out so many more and it just makes you really aware of what can be hiding over the bank as you drive by and how much we can do to reach out and help our local community,” National Honor Society advisor Sarah Yeust said.
"I travel around here often, and it's a real dump around here sometimes, so it’s nice to see us picking stuff up around here and seeing our community look nice and everything," Blue Ridge junior Ryan Mills said.
"Especially in our times now, the environment needs a lot of help, so even these little things, it makes such a big impact on our environment,” Blue Ridge senior Giavonna Fiore said.
And students add, dealing with the wet weather and mud was worth it for that reason.