The Park Days Festival was Global Girl’s favorite time of the year. For two days every summer everyone packed their cars full of food, games, and friends and made their way to the big park in the middle of town, ready for a weekend of community fun. People barbecued, played sports, rushed belly-first across water slides, and, every night, they played movies on a big cloth projection screen—Global Girl’s favorite part. She and the other Global Game Changers would sit out on the grass, watching their favorite movies and wishing that Park Days would never end.
This year it is no different and, after the first day of activities, Global Girl and her friends are taking their time walking back to headquarters, red and exhausted from being out in the sun all day.
“I think I’m done eating for at least another year,” Acer says with a groan. “Why did you all let me eat so much barbecue?”
“Like anyone was going to get in between you and barbecue,” Pia laughs.
As they near the city street, the Global Game Changers notice a park worker struggling to empty an overflowing garbage can, the excess trash spilling over the edge and tumbling out onto the grass. The woman lets out a frustrated grunt as she pulls as hard as she can to hoist out the enormous, bulging bag, but it’s just too full. Acer and Global Girl run over to her, each taking a side of the bag, and help her pull it out and lower it onto a tractor cart where a mountain of other bags are already piling up.
“Well aren’t you kids a helpful bunch,” the park worker says. “My name is Sharon. Who are you all?”
“We’re the Global Game Changers,” Acer tells her. “Helping people is what we do.”
“Isn’t there anyone else that can help you?” Global Girl asks.
“Well,” she says, “usually we have a whole army of volunteers, but no one wants to work during Park Days and miss out on all of the fun. So, as of right now, I’m the only one.”
“I can’t believe how much trash the festival produces,” Acer says, picking up an aluminum can that had rolled away from the pile. “I mean, it seems like a lot of work for one person.”
“It is, but it’s more important that we keep a nice, clean park for everyone to have fun in.”
Sharon nods to the Global Game Changers and thanks them again, hurrying off in her cart to the next set of overflowing trash cans.
“Something is missing here,” Global Girl says, studying the empty container, “and I think I know what it is.”
“Does it involve laying down?” Moxie asks, yawning. “Because laying down sounds pretty nice.”
“Not yet,” she says. “Everyone back to headquarters, it’s time for an emergency service project.”
The next morning, as Sharon rolled up to the park to get an early start before the festivities, she finds the Global Game Changers waiting for her next to a long line of tall, cardboard boxes.
“What’s all of this?” she asks.
“Well, we were thinking that one of the reasons there is so much trash everyday,” Global Girl says, holding an aluminum can, “is because of trash like this. So, we thought we could help Ignite Good! for the Park Days Festival and the environment at the same time.”
Global Girl hands the can to Moxie, who walks over to the line of boxes and tosses it into one of the ones with a “CANS” label on the front.
“These ones are for cans,” Moxie says, moving on to another group of boxes. “These ones are for plastic. And, over there, those ones are for paper. See?”
The park ranger smiles wide. “This is amazing, kids,” she says. “I’ve been telling them for years that they need to set up some recycling for the festival. Did you make all of these yourselves?”
“We went around to some local businesses and asked if they had any spare boxes,” Acer says. “And then we taped them together to make them nice and tall.”
“And Little Big Heart and I decorated them!” Pia says. “It’s one of our many talents.”
“It sure is!” Sharon responds.
“We also called the recycling drop-off center, and they agreed to come pick these up at the end of the day, that way it’s less work for you and more time for Park Days fun!”
Sharon stands amazed at all of the work a group of kids she had just met were willing to do not just for her, but for the park and the environment. She wipes away a tear and invites them all in for a hug. In the distance, the sounds of talking and laughter are starting to grow, and soon the Park Days will be back in full swing.
