Loyola students hard at work!

Today, Green Light New Orleans welcomed a big group of incoming freshmen from Loyola University’s Spark program who will spend the next three days volunteering with us! The students arrived at Loyola a week before orientation starts to learn about social justice and the Jesuit way through lectures and volunteer work around the city. Our volunteers will each get the chance to install light bulbs and a backyard vegetable garden for New Orleans residents. After watching the bulk of the students grab light bulbs and drive away, I met the group who would build a garden for a family a few blocks away. Each volunteer took a shovel (and one took the wheelbarrow) and started walking to the site. Today was surprisingly sunny (and, unsurprisingly, pretty hot). Instead of complaining, the students talked about how much they enjoyed the sun after all of the rainfall recently. Not only were they upbeat about the upcoming manual labor, their attitudes were all the more impressive since more than half of the students are from the frozen north. After finishing the garden in record time, the students returned to Green Light headquarters and talked about how much they enjoyed volunteering. The group said they liked getting to know the city and getting to know the resident’s dog the most. Thanks to the Loyola Spark students for all of their hard work!