Bubbles floated gracefully through the air outside of Goen Hall Thursday, April 19 as S.E.A.L and MSMS students celebrated Earth Day.  Thanks to the MSMS Student Environment Awareness League, this event for the school promoted awareness for recycling.  

For the event, S.E.A.L asked MSMS students to bring old water bottles, paper, or soda cans so that they could be recycled.  After turning their recyclables in, students were given cupcakes and then the option to guess how many tin cans that the club had collected to recycle.  From 5 p.m. until 6:30, students turned in recyclables and enjoyed the great weather outside.

In addition, S.E.A.L provided students with bubble wands, chalk and music for entertainment throughout the event. Junior Ashley Nguyen said, “The Earth day celebration was out of this world. I had a blast. Everyone was invited to come out and party. There was chalk, bubbles and even an air show. I think SEAL did an amazing job with planning this event. I can genuinely say that the celebration was a success!”

S.E.A.L aims to support sustainability of the campus and within the local community.  They also aim to increase student awareness of the environment and takes the initiative to preserve, research and enjoy the natural environment.  By creating awareness for the environment, the club is able to make the environment of MSMS and Columbus an even better place to live in.

Club sponsor Bill Odom said, “It was nice to see folks pass by at some point during the event, some came early, some after soccer, some after Boys & Girls club, some after research, some before or after dinner… of course I wish more students would have come by. I was quite pleased with those that organized and put it together trying to raise earth awareness with challenges and prizes. We even had a skywriter! Everyone should try to eliminate one piece of single-use plastic from their daily routine.”

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Kerrigan Clark

Students also took pictures with Earth Day chalk art and with a large handmade globe made out of recyclable trash. After taking the pictures, students could post the pictures on Instagram or Snapchat promoting awareness for Earth Day and S.E.A.L and they could be put into the running to win a small succulent.  

S.E.A.L president, Mariat Thankachan said, “The Earth Day celebration was truly a memorable time for everyone… We had bubbles, cupcakes, contests where winners could receive reusable water bottles and plants, sidewalk chalk drawings about earth, and Earthie the Earth Ball. The earth ball was my favorite part because we worked so hard to make it. We crumbled newspapers and shredded paper from a decade ago, stuffed them into old plastic bags, taped them all together until the ball was bigger than me. After it was spray painted to look like the earth, people enjoyed trying to lift the heavy thing up and jumping on top of the earth.  The SEAL team has been determined this year to put their efforts into helping others in the community realize the importance of taking care of the environment and learn to appreciate its true beauty. We’ve conducted a huge park clean-up at a local site and collected electronic waste from surrounding communities to dispose of e-waste properly. We also intend to purchase a plastic chipper that will allow students to shred plastic, which can be later used for 3D printing.”

Students can continue to participate by following S.E.A.L. at @msmssealclub and by using the hashtag #EarthDayEveryDay.