School was out for Spring Break, but that didn’t keep students from the Nueces Delta Preserve.
A group of 12 Colorado College students camped out and helped out in March 2010, the first of such volunteer efforts for the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program’s 5,700-acre property near Odem.
The volunteer work was part of an “alternative spring break,” a concept encouraged by college officials that bypasses traditional spring break partying in favor of service work.
“You get more worth out of your break this way,” said one student.
The students picked up trash at the preserve and at Mollie Beattie Coastal Habitat Community, weeded the Delta garden and installed two water features. The crew also hit the beach, participating in a cleanup with Padre Island National Seashore in exchange for camping fees. The group also kayaked one afternoon from Kate’s Hole.
For several students, the trip is a time to see shorebirds (which they don’t get in Colorado) and blooming flowers, (which don’t appear there for several months).
Colorado College had two other alternative spring break crews; in Dalhart at an animal shelter and working with Habitat for Humanity in New Orleans.
For additional information about the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program, contact Beth Wilson, communications manager, at (361) 885-6246 or bwilson@cbbep.org.
Download the .pdf project flyer here.