KMMS lends a helping hand

At the beginning of the school year, Kasson-Mantorville Middle School wanted to place an emphasis on lending a helping hand in the community. They also wanted to get more people seeing what was going on at the school and all of the good things that are happening within that building.
That process started on Oct. 10 with the building celebrating its 10th anniversary by welcoming the public for a hot dog lunch complete with student tours. While a hot dog and a profile of the building is nice, there was still a need to give back to the community outside the walls of KMMS.
Last week, they took part in what has become an annual tradition at the school, participating in their community service day.
“For us, it’s the day where we get to give back,” KMMS principal Erin Kyllo said. “The communities of Kasson and Mantorville are so supportive of our schools and teachers all year long, and we are just so grateful. We could not do the things that we do and offer our kids without their support. It just gives us a chance to give back.”
To pull off releasing the students of the middle school into the wild, busloads of students were dispersed throughout Kasson to help lend a helping hand. Each advisory chose a cause for the day which had kids helping clean up areas such as Oxbow Park and the Highway 57 stretch between the K-M school buildings and Mantorville.
The most popular cause was raking up the leaves that have decorated the K-M area over the past few weeks. Students could be seen all over with rakes and lawn bags cleaning up the area in front of the Carriage House Animal Hospital, local churches and even houses of the elderly who may have trouble taking care of the chore.
The event is so popular that even the administrative staff gets into the act helping make the community a better place. The result is a day that not only helps everyone out, but creates memories as well.
“At the end of the year when I talk to kids and staff about their favorite part of the year, they often mention Community Service Day,” Kyllo said. “When you’re doing good, you just feel good. It’s a memory erybody
involved.”