For the seventh year in a row, students in Islip High School’s Keep Islip Clean club have participated in Pond Day, an annual event where the high schoolers participate in a cleanup within the Islip community in recognition of Earth Day. This year, the students celebrated a little early, beautifying the high school campus on Friday, April 19.  

Throughout the day, the students cleaned Pardees Pond and its shoreline, created a garden near the school’s marquee sign, enhanced the existing gardens near the 9/11 memorial, built a swale drainage area on the runoff gutter near the parking lot, and painted birdhouses and plant watering spikes.

“It’s nice to educate people on the environment and what it means to keep it clean,” said KIC President Amanda Findley. “I love this club, and it changed how I view the environment.”

Added adviser Wayne Mennecke on why they brought this project to the high school, “KIC began as a Town of Islip initiative; we are Islip and we represent Islip, so it made sense to bring what the Town practices to our students.”