August 15th was a huge day for City Year Boston. It was the first day that the new 177 corps members came together to begin their year of service. It was especially big for the Boston Civic Engagement team because we had to plan and lead a service day for the new corps.  It also huge because it took place 4 days after another service day and was twice as big as our first three service days.

While the new corps was arriving at the City Year Headquarters, the BCE team was arriving at the Mckay K-8 school in East Boston, some of us seeing it for the first time. We had to unload the van that was stuffed with blank panel murals, wood, gallons of paint, and all the rest of our supplies. We set up in an excited rush, knowing that in just a couple hours, the corps would be arriving at the school and were about to experience their first physical service day.  Around noon, the corps began to trickle in and so did a massive rain storm, by the time everyone was at the school, most people were soaked.  They might have been wet, but their spirit and enthusiasm was not dampened.

Just a couple hours later, the 177 corps members built 8 mural benches and 4 picnic table, painted close to 50 murals, and even picked up trash and landscaped in the pouring rain.  It was a great way to start the 2011-2012 year and really instilled a love of physical service that has been shown at all of our service days since that rainy first day

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