Mission, Texas- Twelve students from Mission High School (MHS) Environmental Science classes and one student from Mims Elementary School spent some time volunteering to help make the community day at the 20th Annual National Butterfly Festival a success.
The students helped out at three different booths. One booth involved educating visitors about the importance of planting Milkweed to help sustain the Monarch butterfly population. These students also got their hands good and dirty playing in the mud. They applied Milkweed seeds to soil and rolled them into balls to be handed out to guests for planting at home. The National Butterfly Center recently received a grant to plant Milkweed throughout South Texas in order to help increase the Monarch butterfly population. Milkweed provides an important place for Monarchs to lay their eggs, and nutrition for the developing caterpillars.
Other students helped out with a game for younger children in which they would toss “insects” into the mouths of “baby birds”. A third booth was a ring toss activity.
Pictured are MHS seniors, Luis Hernandez, Jesus Martinez, Maximo Sanchez as they literally got their hands dirty helping make the Milkweed planting balls handed out to visitors.
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