By: Shay Reynolds
It is that time of year again for Bozeman High School’s occupational development classes to be doing their service learning projects to wrap up the school year.
The class, along with teacher Mrs. Bethany Ringer is producing dolls made from recycled material from Fashion and Design classes for kids that reside in the HAVEN.
The HAVEN shelter is a place that has now been, “committed to reducing the incidence and minimizing the impact of domestic abuse on families and communities. We provide emergency shelter, crisis intervention, on-going support, referrals, and education.”
The term “Scare Me Not” monster toy has been coined by the class. Ringer explained that the point of the monsters was to help the kids fight against their fears and real life monsters they may be battling at the shelter for domestic violence and abuse. The “Scare Me Not” toys each also come with a profile story, featuring the individual toys’ own fears, background, characteristics, and even the superpowers they use to overcome their fears.
“It’s going to give the kids a sense of security, and these ‘Scare Me Not’s’ are going to essentially scare away the bad stuff that has come into their lives, so it’s really going to help them in that aspect.” says Jenssen West, a senior.
But kids at Haven that the Occupational Development hope to assist are not the only ones who have benefitted from the service learning project.
Lexi Phelps, a senior, said the project had given her a good feeling to be “doing something for somebody else, rather than just sitting in a classroom.”
While it is questionable whether this same project will continue on in future years, another senior in the class, Bailee Schott, says she hopes “not only this project, but this class expands and continues to affect the community in a positive way.”
Schott went on to encourage other students to join the class which is already small, as well as being primarily made up of seniors, by saying “Join Occupational Child Care!”
Phelps added that the significance of the project was equally for “our own learning” while “benefitting other people in the end.” making it an overall meaningful project on many levels for both students and the community.