Viewpoint students serve others

Two hundred of Viewpoint School's upper school students kicked off the holiday season by lending a hand to various charitable organizations in their communities.

As part of a community service day, students from the Calabasas school volunteered with one of nine organizations.

They had the option of doing light construction, painting and gardening at Webster Elementary School in Malibu; rebuilding a tortoise habitat for the American Tortoise Rescue in Malibu; helping replant native wildlife in Malibu parks; or preparing meals for house-bound people with Project Angel Food.

Other projects included distributing food to those in need through the West Valley Food Pantry; working on crafts and games with preschoolaged children from low-income families at Head Start in Thousand Oaks; cleaning horse stalls and cat enclosures at the Agoura Hills Animal Shelter; or packing care packages for children in need at My Stuff Bags Foundation, and Love & Care & Help the Babies.

Viewpoint's upper school's students are required to contribute 45 hours to community service in order to graduate. The Class of 2007 contributed almost 14,000 hours to community service.