SEYMOUR – With Old Man Winter knocking at the door, a group of Seymour students are back in action, helping clear residents’ sidewalks and driveways, one shovel at a time.
The Seymour Snow Brigade, a student-led community service project geared to help elderly and disabled residents with snow removal, free of charge, has returned for its second season.
And with the first shovel-able snow of the season on Dec. 14, the brigade was out in force. Fourteen members, who hail from both Seymour Middle School and Seymour High School, cleared snow for about 25 town residents.
One of the brigade members, Connor Komondy, 12, a seventh grader at Seymour Middle School, said he was happy to volunteer and help his friend Tom Halligan. Tom, 15, along with his friend Brayden Ferreira, 14, both freshmen at SHS, spearheaded the brigade last winter.
“I wanted to help the elderly shovel their driveways, and to help my friend Tommy Halligan,” Connor said via an email. “One house had a long driveway, and the lady said ‘thank you, now I can drive.’ I feel happy because I did a good thing.”
Connor encouraged others to join the brigade.
“The more people that join, the more houses we can do,” Connor said. “Just seeing the smile on their faces makes me happy.”
Tom and Brayden said they’re glad to be back for another winter.
“Doing the Snow Brigade for the second year has shown us that there is a big need in our community,” Tom said. “It’s really good to have people give back to others when they can.”
Brayden added, “It feels good when the residents thank us for helping them. It makes all the hard work worthwhile.”
Tom’s mom, Kate Halligan, who helps connect the student volunteers with residents who need help, said last year’s inaugural project was a big success, so they decided to continue the good deeds for another season.
“We saw what a big impact it made on the community, and how grateful all our neighbors were for the help they received,” Halligan said.
Halligan said nine students shoveled snow for 28 Seymour residents last winter, which totaled some 290 volunteer hours over the course of five snowstorms.
Ruth Stasik, 93, who lives on Summit Drive, said the brigade showed up after the Dec. 14 storm and shoveled her entire driveway.
“They are a blessing in a disguise, they’re like angels,” Stasik said. “I live alone now and I certainly appreciate them more now than ever.”
Stasik said she can’t say enough about the kids who volunteer their time to help those who need a hand.
“You often hear people talking about the youth, saying that they’re lazy and all they do is smoke pot, but not these kids, they are wonderful and I can’t commend them enough,” Stasik added.
Halligan said both students and adults can sign up to join the brigade.
“We really need volunteers and we’d like to spread the word that this opportunity isn’t just for kids,” Halligan said. “It’s also a great way for adults to build connections within our community and to help create a sense of family.”
If you are a Seymour senior citizen (65+) or have a disability that makes snow removal difficult, you can request assistance by sending an email to seymoursnowbrigade@gmail.com. Volunteers looking to join the Snow Brigade can use this link to sign up. You can also scan the QR code in the flyer at the end of this story.
For safety’s sake, any volunteers under age 16 must be accompanied by an adult while participating in snow removal activities.
