To the editor:

Thoughts on the article by Alex Perry, “Day of Service for Suffolk Troop,” published on Oct. 25.
Seeing our youth (“The young women of American Heritage Girls Troop 1412”) become hands-on and proactive throughout our community has brought a tremendous joy to my heart! As an early childhood teacher here in the city, I can relate to how important it is to teach children, especially young girls, the value of hard work, responsibility and the reward of providing a helping hand. When children are active in the community it not only helps the city, but it keeps them out of trouble as well.

It was mentioned in the article that the troop had previously adopted that particular stretch of land in the past year. Living in Suffolk, you often see the green signs signifying that a fellow patron has adopted a certain road, street or park, but you can’t help but also notice how these places often fall into the shadows and do not obtain routine care and maintenance.

I would like to commend the leaders of the American Heritage Girls Troop for taking the time to teach these young girls about the importance of doing their part and keeping our community clean. I would also like to suggest that we learn from their example and continue to spread the word to not just some but all of our community’s youth about the importance of helping the community workers keep our hometown in order.

I wholeheartedly hope that these girls, along with the other young adults in our town, continue to make such effort to keep our city clean. It is a heart-filled task and definitely does not go unnoticed or unappreciated.

Tyesha Hawkins

Suffolk