The sun’s rays beat down, mixing in with the chirping of the birds, greeting the Environmental Club members as they hike through the canyon, studying the plants, taking a deep breath of fresh air and clearing trash from Chantry Flats.
“Our goal is to raise awareness about the environment,” Environmental Club president Senior Whitney Ngo said. “We want to make life better in ways that can help our surroundings.”
As a result, Environmental Club is participating in a cleanup hike at Chantry Flats in Santa Anita Canyon on Feb. 23. During the cleanup hike, members will explore and clean the path, donning blue vests while towing bags to pick up the trash.
“This hike that students can do with teachers changes the dynamic of education. From my own experience, I know the best learning takes place outside of the classroom,” Environmental Club advisor Mr. Scott Randles said. “When students engage in the community, they are opened to an experience beyond themselves, which hopefully gives them a greater sense of purpose. It also helps to notice how carelessly people treat their environment.”
Environmental Club participates in an annual cleanup hike, a tradition that has lasted for over four years.This year members voted to change the location from Eaton Canyon to Chantry Flats, a suggestion from Mr. Randles.
This new location contains more terrain compared to the former and provides an opportunity for more exploration and adventure for those who participated in previous years.
In the past years, students enjoyed the beautiful scenery, fresh air and company of their peers. The rural, isolated location provides an especially effective bonding experience because of the lack of cell phone reception, encouraging students to develop their friendships.
“For me, my favorite part last year occurred when we were walking along the trail and an elderly couple thanked us, and it made us feel really good,” Vice President Senior Michelle Luong said. “I want to spread that feeling to all of our members.”
Each participant paid enough to cover the price of park admission, sanitary gloves and storage bags.
In the future, the club also hopes to transform the school by converting from the use of Styrofoam lunch trays to paper.