Volunteer Fun at The West Ridge Academy Scarecrow Festival

By Mallory Uffens

“Giving is, of course, much more than tax brackets and charitable deductions. Philanthropy provides the meaningful difference in what we can do. At West Ridge Academy, we are committed in offering hope and healing to families and their children.”

Last weekend the West Ridge Academy held their 22nd annual Scarecrow Festival. I chose to go to volunteer at The Scarecrow Festival because I agree with what they stand for and why West Ridge Academy held this event.

West Ridge is a residential facility that helps teens overcome drug use, sexting, alcohol and self-harm, among other issues. It was free admission with events such as rocket launching, climbing the Tower of Terror, riding the train, purchasing pumpkins, bungee jumping, climbing the wall and jumping on inflatables.

There were volunteer opportunities along with the games and such. I helped the kids with the rockets! The kids would go and make rockets out of paper, and then we used an air compressor on pvc pipes to launch them. It wasn't a little thing though; the rockets would shoot 30 or so feet in the air. It was really fun to see the kids get all excited when their rocket would go high!

About Mallory:

Mallory is always up for an adventure, and can be found out and about all over Utah. She is on the journalism team at her high school, and writes about fun things to do for teens. Mallory will also be volunteering at the Viridian Event Center’s Pumpkinpalooza on Saturday October 26. More information about this event can be found on the Viridian Event Center’s website. She is also participating in the Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis with Sheri Uffens, (her mom and fellow Enjoy Utah contributor). Sign up to run with them and receive $5 off your registration! Details and coupon code can be found on our Jingle Bell Run post.