This year’s group of high school interns from Ridgefield High School have finished their work at The Meetinghouse. It has been a pleasure, as always, to have them.
Over the course of the five weeks they were with us, they did a lot. They removed invasive plant species from the wetlands from the top of the path all the way down to the pond. Removing garlic mustard was a particular favorite for them. I’m guessing it is because it is easy to pull out, but I would never say that to them. They also cleared the path somewhat by moving a tree that had fallen down over the winter.
The students also each created a profile of leadership for themselves. On various days, they took the Gallup Strengths Finder, the MBTI, the VIA character test, and the Ashoka Changemaker test. Once all the tests were completed, we compiled the data for the group. When the students looked at the compiled data, they were surprised by some traits about themselves and felt confirmation about other traits. We discussed how each person’s strengths could be used as they move forward in life.
These various strengths were used as the students worked as a group to design and lead a community summit using the Appreciative Inquiry Process. In preparation for the summit the students interviewed various members of the community, including First Selectman Rudy Marconi, State Senator Julie Kushner, and State Representative Aimee Berger-Girvalo. They invited all of the community members to their summit. The theme they selected for the summit was Better Together, and they had the participants go through different learning modalities, talk in small groups, and make commitments on what each person would do to make the community Better Together. Attendees enjoyed themselves, commenting that it was so nice to talk this way with different generations. In the after-action review we did with the students, they were able to see the successes as well as ways it could have been improved upon.
We took the students to Norwalk one day to attend the Fairfield County Foundation Celebration, offering them the opportunity to see the various non-profits of Fairfield County. On another day they were able to attend the foreign policy discussion with Congressman Jim Himes held at The Meetinghouse.
To round out their experience, the students also worked in The Market, hung fliers for Ridgefield’s 250 celebration, and organized closets.
As they head off to Quinnipiac University, Boston University, UCONN, University of Colorado-Boulder, Trinity College-Dublin, and gap years, Debbie and I, on behalf of The Meetinghouse, wish Adam, Annie, Ari, Erin, Ian, Sam, and Simon peace, community, play, wisdom, and strength as they move into this next chapter of their lives.
Heather Cochrane
Board President, The Meetinghouse
