We’ve recently added a lot of new projects to Staten Island. One of our Team Leaders recently worked an environmental project on the island, and she shares her story with us below. If you’d like to submit a story, simply email us at blog@newyorkcares.org.

I got on the Staten Island Ferry on a cool Saturday morning, enjoying the crisp sea air during the 25 minute boat ride, sailing by Governor’s Island, barges, and small boats. During my ride, I spoke with a Staten Islander about ferry history since we were riding a smaller ferry. After I arrived at St. George Ferry Terminal, I coordinated with my volunteers and we headed to the train to Tottenville together.

Once we reached our stop, we were greeted by parks staff. After warm introductions, we were escorted into park trucks and headed to the Visitors’ Center of Conference House Park.

At the Visitors Center, we were debriefed. The parks representative gave us a history of Conference House Park and explained the needs of the park as well as our project for the day, which involved cleaning the debris off the shoreline. While we waited for the trucks, volunteers remarked at how peaceful and relaxing the park was with the birds chirping. We loaded up the vehicles and headed off to the beach where the volunteers and I worked hard cleaning debris. During the journey, some of the volunteers stopped to enjoy the fresh air, watch barges and boats pass by, and snap pictures of the amazing views. Even though the cleanup was grueling and sometimes tedious, none of the volunteers complained. They worked as a team and accomplished a lot in a short amount of time and seemed to relish and enjoy the experience. After the project, we cleaned up and took a tour of the Conference House, which everyone thought was cool.

As we headed back to St. George Terminal, most volunteers took well deserved naps after a long day. I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself as one of the volunteers slept until we reached the St. George stop.

Some of you may wonder why I come all the way from the Bronx to do a project on Staten Island. It’s because I want to make a difference everywhere in this amazing city, and I am blessed to have the opportunity to do so with terrific volunteers that give their time in every borough. This project was also special because, for the first time, New York Cares volunteers were able to reach all five boroughs on a parks project, and I was so happy to be part of it. If you’d like to be a part of the change happening on Staten Island, sign up for a project today.

By Stacy M. Weaver