DURHAM CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD
St. Bernard Catholic School Makes the Environment Greener

On Saturday, October 19, 2024, St. Bernard Catholic School students, families, and staff came together to make their school yard and the environment greener. Due to the efforts of the St. Bernard Earth Club, the school was awarded with a Platinum EcoSchool certification. As a result of the group's drive for supporting the environment, St. Bernard Catholic School was awarded a $10,000 grant from Tree Canada which was sponsored by Healthy Planet. From this funding, 70 volunteers planted native trees, flowers, and bushes on the grounds of their school in Whitby to support the environment and EcoSchool initiatives.

"The students in our school's Earth Club have been really enjoying planting," said Laura Holmes, a teacher at St. Bernard Catholic School who secured the grant. "The hands-on activities are the biggest appeal to the members of the club and what they are the most enthusiastic about." The excitement from students is what launched the idea of bringing the community together for a big planting day.

St. Bernard Catholic School students, families and staff were invited to participate in the planting day. Volunteers were divided up into groups and given specific tasks, such as planting trees and bushes, including maple trees, oak trees, lilacs and highbush cranberries. Others were tasked with creating furniture using natural elements and logs, and built planter boxes, seats and benches. Helpers were also responsible for laying out mulch that was kindly donated by the Town of Whitby in support of this project. At the end of the day, the planting was complete, different seating areas were created, and a butterfly garden had been established.

Juan Lucas and Sebastian, Grade 6 students and the founders of the St. Bernard Earth Club, were proud of the successful Saturday morning initiative. "As leaders of the club, we really care about the environment and we are proud of how one idea turned into such a large group activity for our school community," Juan Lucas said. "It was great day to plant trees, contribute to the environment, and a fun way to spend a Saturday morning with my family," Sebastian added.

Kaiya, a Grade 6 student and member of the Earth Club, enjoyed the team building and communication between her fellow volunteers. "It was really fun being with a big group of people and how we all worked together on different tasks," Kaiya said. "Ms. Holmes has really done a great job with this group, and she is an amazing leader and organizer. She helped keep everyone motivated during the event and we couldn't have done it without her."

Laura Holmes hopes that the students can take away how their small actions can have big impacts. "My biggest wish is that the students realize their actions can actually make a difference in this world. I hope the students that volunteered with this project will get to see how the garden will evolve in the future, and they can proudly say I did that' when they walk by or visit the school when they are older."

St. Bernard Catholic School would like to thank Tree Canada and Healthy Planet for their funding, and the Town of Whitby for their donation of the mulch for this project. The school community would also like to give a big thank you to the families, students and staff who invested their time and dedication throughout the project. The garden will continue to evolve as it grows, and it will be maintained by the students of the Earth Club throughout the 2024-2025 school year.