Tabor students to pitch in at Dartmouth nonprofit programs

Tabor Academy is organizing a Fall Service Day the morning of Friday, Sept. 29, dispatching students and faculty throughout SouthCoast, including Dartmouth, to help nonprofits.

Half the Tabor community will host Special Olympics MA on the Tabor campus for School Day Games, a program organized by the student-run Tabor Special Olympics Club, which started last spring in concert with Special Olympics MA. This fall's event will feature Special Olympians from Dartmouth, New Bedford and elsewhere in southeastern Massachusetts. Tabor students and visiting athletes will participate in various games together such as bocce ball, relay races, basketball and football.

Before the games begin, all the students and athletes will come together for the traditional Special Olympics Opening Ceremonies, including the Athlete's Oath, while sharing thanks for being together.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Tabor community will hit the road. More than 300 students and faculty will help cut and maintain walking and biking trails or assist with seasonal clean-up at area nonprofits in Marion, Wareham and Dartmouth. Some will help students at Dartmouth's Schwartz Center, which houses programs for children with special needs, and Sharing the Harvest Community Farm at Dartmouth YMCA. Others will help deliver furniture to area families through My Brother's Keeper, or share in creating the excitement and surprise the Message of Hope Foundation provides through their thoughtful gift bags for children affected by the recent hurricanes.

"While these days certainly help strengthen our own community bond, our main goal is for our students to learn that Tabor's mission to foster care for others and committed citizenship extends beyond our campus and beyond their years at Tabor," faculty organizer Amelia Wright said. "As we step outside the confines of our campus, our students can test their skills while learning from our neighbors and area community organizations that serve myriad needs."