HEBRON — About a dozen students and their advisers from nearby Hebron Academy spent their school-wide community service day in Leeds on Nov. 15, doing projects for the Leeds Historical Society and the Rural Community Action Ministry.

After a brief orientation at RCAM, the group split, with half staying at RCAM and half going to the Leeds History Center, housed in the old Leeds Town House. The Historical Society is in the early stages of renovating the building, taking it back to how it looked in the early to mid-20th century. The students started removing the wood paneling put up in the 1970s when the Town Office was “modernized.” It was especially exciting when they uncovered some of the building’s original wainscoting. Richard Fochtman, volunteer for the Historical Society, praised the students for the care they took in performing their task.

Back at RCAM, the students performed a variety of jobs, ranging from helping to prepare the buildings for winter, to moving furniture, sorting winter coats to go to the Leeds Community Church clothing center and stacking firewood to be distributed to area residents in need of fuel this winter.

Laura Zimmerman, volunteer coordinator, said “The kids were awesome and terrific workers. Most of our volunteer groups come in the summer, and it was wonderful to have some help on projects at this time of year. Their enthusiasm to help with things that needed to be done was refreshing, and gave us a big lift.” RCAM, which is now in its 42nd year, is a service agency serving 13 rural towns in Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties, focusing on homelessness and hunger prevention.

The two groups rejoined at the end of the morning and went to a nearby farm for lunch. The students, who come not only from Maine and New England but as far away as Texas, Canada and China, seemed to enjoy the opportunity to walk through the fields and hear a bit about the farm and its animals before returning to Hebron.

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