Student raising funds to create serene place on Pearl River Central High School campus
Published 7:00 am Saturday, November 14, 2020
- Beautification: Pearl River Central High School junior Sarah Olson runs through the slideshow she presented to the high school principal on her campus beautification project. Olsen had to get approval from the principal to move forward with the project. Cathy Cook | Picayune Item
One Pearl River Central High School student is fundraising to use native plants to create a serene place on her campus.
Sarah Olson is a 17-year-old junior at the school who is trying to raise $600 to create a peaceful outdoor space for students and faculty to enjoy at the high school campus. The space will include benches, native Mississippi plants, a bird feeder, an herb garden and a school flag.
She hopes to meet her fundraising goal by Friday, Nov. 27, and seems on track to do so. Four days into the project she’s already raised $230.
The work to build the green space will take place Tuesday, Dec. 1.
Olson used to have a garden with her mom where they grew fruits and vegetables. She found a program, the Apprentice Ecologist Program through the Nicodemus Wilderness Project, which incentivizes high school students to plant native trees or plants on school campuses or in local parks with a potential college scholarship.
She hopes to brighten the PRC campus grounds with native plants like Red Buckeye, lilac ferns or honeysuckle azalea. The space will also include a box for an herb garden. She’s hoping to partner with some art students willing to paint rocks to add to the space. The completed space will include two small benches and a bird feeder. Red mulch will be used to match the rest of the grounds.
Donations can be made to the Peace at PRC campaign on gofundme.com. Donations will be used to purchase supplies for the projects and any additional funds will go to the high school for further beautification efforts.
