James River High School students will participate in another School Wide Day of Service Friday, Sept. 21.

During this day, students and staff will travel to approximately 10 different sites in the school’s attendance zone to participate in acts of service, teacher and the school’s FFA advisor Zach Wakeman explained.

Last spring, the school hosted its first Day of Service and had nearly 200 students and staff give back to six different sites.

“This time, we hope to have 250 students and staff giving back to 10 different sites around the county,” Wakeman said in an email.
The day will start with check-in at the school, then the participating students will go by bus to five sites in the morning, break for lunch by traveling to the Buchanan Carnival Grounds, then return to five other sites in the afternoon before returning to the high school.

The students are expected to be doing work with the Town of Buchanan, Breckinridge and Eagle Rock Elementary Schools, Fincastle Baptist Church, New Freedom Farm, the Town of Buchanan, Limestone Park, Botetourt Resource Center and Solomon’s Mission in Buchanan.

The students will be divided into teams for a variety of projects at the different sites.

The Day of Service evolved in the spring after the James River High School FFA Chapter began looking for ways to make a difference in the community, Wakeman explained at the time.

“We began thinking of some big way to give back and at the same time our school’s Leadership Team wanted to set aside time to complete more community service,” he said. “The two ideas came together and we created our Day of Service.”