MEDFORD, Ore.– Hundreds of teens from cities across Jackson and Josephine County volunteered a portion of their day on Saturday to give back to the community.
The event is part of a youth conference sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Roughly 450 teens attending the regional youth conference took part in a different effort such as cleaning a portion of the greenway, assembling bunk beds for children or helping to prepare the outside of Kid Time’s new Children’s Museum in downtown Medford.
“These service projects support the Choose Life With Christ conference theme,” said Mark Pedersen, Medford Stake Public Affairs Director for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “It is a tremendous opportunity for these teens to reach out to others as they follow Christ’s teachings and light the lives of those in need.
For some of the young volunteers that helped clean up a portion of the greenway behind the Hilton Garden Hotel, it’s a great support to the community and a way to leave behind something better than it was found.
“I really enjoy being able to clean it up so someone else and their family can enjoy it,” said Sarah Beckstead, 15.
According to Jackson County Parks, the kids managed to clear out debris like bike tires and wooden pallets. Overall, the teens picked up 82 bags of trash.
“I’m a boy scout and I like cleaning up after myself but doing it on this large of a scale is really cool,” said Jacob Morin, 14.
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