Students do volunteer work to eradicate pesky plants and help the environment around Pierce

Quynh Thuy Truong
Staff Writer

Pierce College students had a day off, luckily, and were extremely glad. However, despite internal conflicts, many students left their warm beds to carry bulky gardening tools and kill invasive weeds on a cold, rainy day for a volunteer opportunity at the college.

Friday, Oct. 26 was an event designed to pull up scotch brooms and blackberry bushes behind the Rainier Building from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. The job activity is important as it helps to protect ecosystem because these plants are difficult to eradicate and do harm to soils and animals. Students showed up, signed in, and immediately started with the task. Gloves and tools were offered to those who did not bring any. Pruners, rakes, hand forks, weed-pullers, shovels, loppers, and cultivators were set into motion to get the job done.

In two hours, students attacked weeds in three main grounds. The first one was an area closest to the building and the other two ran further toward the hill. Roughly 30 students arrived. With hard work, they successfully cleared out most of the obstinately rooted plants in the areas. Scotch brooms and blackberry bushes were piled up high and messy along the trail.

There were many things that made the event quite a unique and challenging experience. First, the bleak weather of chilly winds and a soggy drizzle presented a challenge that could have eroded anyone’s determination. However, the volunteers were unfaltering as they persistently worked through the day.

Another challenge presented were the coarseness of the plants. Blackberry bushes aggressively stabbed people’s legs with tiny, sharp thorns. Scotch brooms’ roots were incredibly stubborn.

“I hate it”, grumbled Kelly, a volunteer.

“We need one more person to do this,” said Vi, another volunteer, grinding her teeth while the two pressed their weights down on the weed-puller to pull up a scotch broom’s huge root. Clothes were stained with dirt and hair was soaked even if they had hoods or hats on.

Lastly, it was a Friday going into the weekend before Halloween, the school was closed and everyone wanted to embrace the chance to stay at home, sleep late, eat, and watch movies. There were scary movies, custom shops, decorating houses, and a Halloween dance party that evening at Pierce. The girls who planned to attend wanted to stay at home, to prepare and dress for the party.

“But I will do it [get dressed] after 12:00 P.M. It’s okay”, said Vi.

The reward for the hard work was extra credit for class. This extra credit is a common way natural science instructors encourage students to be involved in the community’s activities.

“It’s good for the resume too. You know, colleges and jobs applications can benefit from it,” explained Miss Hess to her chemistry class.

The event also gave students an opportunity to meet people, socialize and become more confident. Students usually volunteer inside buildings like hospitals and schools, but rarely in the wilderness. After 2 hours of toiling, the volunteers were satisfied with their effort.

Vi happily exclaimed after the event, “This is so happy! This morning, I felt like an [ancient] Native American, working on a farm.”