Rustic Spirit Spotlights: High School Clubs in the USA

In Rustic Spirit Spotlights we highlight changemakers doing important impact work around the world. This week we are featuring high school clubs that are doing amazing work in their communities.

Joining a club at school is a fantastic way to discover and develop a love for volunteering. School clubs are often already involved in local community projects so all you need to do is join and participate.

The following clubs are filled with amazing members who are working to help others, protect animals and our environment, and make the world a better place. At Rustic Pathways we are honored to recognize them!

Animal Welfare Club
Adlai E Stevenson High School
Illinois, United States

Stevenson High School’s Animal Welfare Club is committed to making the world a better place for furry, feathery and scaly friends. The club educates themselves and others about issues related to the welfare of animals and engage in hands-on activities that improve the condition of animals in their community.

Despite being just days into the pandemic and remote learning, the club was able to raise $2,000 for Australia Wildlife Warriors, an animal welfare organization helping animals impacted by the Australian brush fires. Animal Welfare Club members also work closely with a local shelter, often collecting donations and making needed items to support the organization.

Impact advice: Making a positive impact gives one a sense of connectedness, happiness, fulfillment and a meaningful sense of purpose that ultimately has no downside. On a daily basis we all endure circumstances, some better than others, but ultimately ones that shape us. What we say and do matters. Taking action steps, whether big or small to make a positive impact allows for growth not just for the sender but receiver as well.

Community Cleanup Club
Lane Tech School
Chicago, United States

William Archer started the Community Cleanup Club when he noticed there was a large amount of trash on the Lane Tech school campus and around the community. Now with 40 members, the Community Cleanup Club strives to bring about a better and cleaner community by  doing clean ups and advocating for less plastic waste and more recycling.

Currently the club is focusing on the trash at school and members fill 7-10 industrial sized trash bags each time they meet. Over one hundred pounds of trash has been collected thus far and students can clearly see the difference that the Community Cleanup Club made on the clean campus.

Impact advice: Do your best to get as many people with you as possible, nothing large is possible without a large group of people helping.

United Voice International Club
Ben Davis High School
Indiana, United States

United Voice International Club members volunteer their time to make a positive difference in the lives of others. The club regularly volunteers at Sheltering Wings, helping kids and adults to create crafts. The club will also be taking on a new project with Keep America Beautiful – cleaning up the surrounding township areas for community members to enjoy litter-free.

Currently the club is collecting paper goods for Sheltering Wings and also collecting gently used children’s books to donate to surrounding preschools. The members have successfully collected over 200 books and over 100 personal paper items to donate to sheltering wings.

Impact advice: Giving back to the community will always put a smile on your face.

Nominate a Student

Do you know a student doing valuable work that deserves to be recognized? Nominate them here! Are you making an impact? Tell us about your work here.

Make Change

Interested in creating change in your community? Check out our guide and learn how to make an impact as a student.

At Rustic Pathways, our goal is to make positive contributions to the communities we visit through responsible travel operations and community service projects that contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.