For teacher Heather Davis, “being a leader is giving back to the community.”
Last Friday, Davis led by example when she brought her class of 17 business leadership high school students to Red Roof Retreat for a day of volunteerism.
“Red Roof Retreat has been a part of my family’s life since Steffanie (Bjorgan, founder of Red Roof Retreat) taught my kids in Kindergarten, and I thought this charity would be a great choice for my students to see what a visionary leader can do to make a seemingly impossible dream come true,” said Davis.
“Steffanie inspires others to want to be the best person they can and give back to the world in any way possible.”
Many students attending Westlane Secondary School in Niagara Falls are new to Canada, said Davis. “They are coming from, for example, China, Colombia, and Afghanistan.”
“This experience was a great way to introduce them to life in rural Niagara,” said Davis. “They also had the opportunity to meet and work with some special needs clients. Working with special needs students at school has given this class the ability to develop empathy and work on communication, while developing an understanding of what special needs individuals have to offer.”
Bjorgan is “happy to give youth from the city, or new to the country, a chance to experience farm life and exposure to peers with special needs,” she said.
Besides being impressed by how large and peaceful the area is, student Hannah Tan said she learned that “this organization allows parents to take a break from their responsibilities by leaving their children at this retreat. The staff members ensure that people with special needs will be given a great time in the organization, as they take care of them and provide them with fun programs they can enjoy during their stay.”
The animals at Red Roof captivated the students’ attention. Maia Pavone’s favourite part of the trip was being able to meet all of the farm animals, including Murray the Donkey, Wilbur the Pig, the miniature horses and, especially, the newly-born kittens. “I really enjoyed playing with them, getting to know their adorable personalities, and cuddling them at the end of the work day,” said Pavone.
Devon Pham came to realize that “farm work requires lots of maintenance. The barn needs to be taken care of, the hay needs to be removed, and the lawn needs to be taken care of.”
Tan and her friend were assigned to clean the cat barn. “We both loved our task as we played with the kittens and the bunnies while cleaning the place,” she said. “We did not even consider our task as a ‘job’ as we considered it a relaxing and healing time with the animals.”
Davis strongly believes that volunteering should be a lifelong habit and not just 40 hours that students complete to graduate. “I have volunteered at Red Roof in a variety of ways over the last 20 years,” she said. “It is filling such an important gap in the system for special needs families. It was so rewarding to see my students get stuck into doing whatever we asked them to do, while demonstrating teamwork, motivation and communication skills.”
Toward the end of the day, one student felt that they had barely made a dent in the work required around the farm. Bjorgan, who coordinated the day’s tasks, told the group of 17 teenagers that they had contributed, collectively, over 80 hours of people power. “When you hear negative stuff about today’s youth,” Bjorgan said, “here’s proof there’s lots of good ones out there who are learning to give of their time and energy.”
Kaylee Layden’s favourite part about the day was “everything!” she said. “I think this was the best field trip I’ve had during high school. I learned that giving back to the community is very important. Even though Jackson (Hernandez Garcia, a fellow student) and I were organizing a lot of the time, It was still fun to be there.”
Pham enjoyed spending time with Wilbur. “He was a fun and extroverted pig, and I hope to meet him again.”
Sam Phillips also thought that “it was truly the best school trip I have ever been on. It was such a beautiful place, with amazing people and animals. I love the purpose of this place, they have made it such a peaceful and relaxing place for people to come. I loved learning what they do and all the different things they offer. My favourite part, by far, was hanging out with the animals, they are all so calm and gentle.”
Tan says if asked “if I want to visit Red Roof for one more time, I will not hesitate to give a big thumbs up as my answer, and help Steffanie and her staff once again!”