The senior class at Morristown Beard recently spent an afternoon giving back to the community by volunteering at the neighboring Frelinghuysen Arboretum. Known for its lush greenery, peaceful walking paths, and convenient walking distance from the MBS campus, the arboretum has long been a welcoming space for both MBS and the broader community. It provides a place for teachers to park and for students to visit. This service project was a way for the students to both express their gratitude, and help maintain their beautiful grounds.

Ms. Erinn Salge, Director of Upper School Student Activities, along with Ms. Russo, Dean for the Class of 2025, worked together to organize this event with the intention of creating a way to give back to the arboretum and providing a commuting building opportunity for the senior class. 

Ms. Salge said, “I’m a really big believer in shared service as a place to build community and bond, and the Arbo made perfect sense since they’re our neighbor and they help us out with parking. In order to be a good neighbor, it’s good to enrich your community and they’re our neighbors and part of our community.”

Students spent their time raking fallen leaves, shoveling mulch, scraping paint off fences, spreading compost, in addition to completing other maintenance tasks. Ms. Russo said, “the students were split off into groups, and I was sort of wandering around between all the groups. It was just great to see the groups coming together, doing something meaningful for our neighbors, the arboretum, and having an enjoyable time together doing something like this.” 

Members of the Class of 2025 appreciated the chance to give back. Alyssa Wooden ‘25 said, “I definitely enjoyed helping the people who take care of the Arbo and the environment. It was fun being with friends and bonding with classmates as well. We were genuinely benefiting [from] the journey in making the world a better place.” 

Many faculty and staff members rely on the arboretum not only for parking, but also for its peaceful trails for midday walks. Some coaches use the trails for sports practices as well. 

No matter how the arboretum remains a source of reliance for Morristown Beard, this experience helped students appreciate how much the school’s neighbor offers, not only in terms of its natural beauty, but also in terms of its connection to MBS. 

By working together students not only contributed to the arboretum’s upkeep and care, but also created a sense of unity outside the classroom. By the end of the day, the senior class returned to school knowing they had played a small but meaningful role in caring for the neighboring arboretum for future guests or current students to enjoy.