Damp weather this week did little to douse the efforts of a handful of Kansas State University students to help with projects around Allen County.
On Tuesday, the students spent about half the day working at the Lehigh Portland Trails south of Iola.
They assisted trails manager Randy Rasa and volunteer extraordinaire Dave Fontaine in clearing out scores of young trees south of Elks Lake.
The trees have grown unabated for decades, to the point they have choked off what otherwise could be fertile native grassland, Rasa explained.
That led to Tuesday?s project. Both Rasa and Fontaine manned chainsaws to cut down the trees at ground level, while the KSU students helped lop off limbs and carry the debris to a pair of burn piles.
?It?s been a good experience,? said McKenna Doyle, a K-State freshman originally from Omaha.
Doyle, who plans to study health and nutrition at KSU, signed up as part of the volunteer effort through K-State?s ?alternative breaks? program.
With classes not slated to resume in Manhattan until next week, students are afforded the opportunity to take part in community service projects across the state.
Kansas State University?s Clara Bing tosses a pile of limbs onto a burn pile Tuesday as part of an effort to clear trees from land near the Lehigh Portland Trail complex south of Iola.
The Allen County visit is coordinated by Thrive Allen County, which has worked with K-State?s alternative breaks program the past several years.
The trail work is one of several projects being led by the students.
They?ve also been in LaHarpe this week to help repaint old classrooms at LaHarpe City Hall, and to help prepare for tonight?s LaHarpe Winter Fest and Saturday?s LaHarpe Home Fair.
They?ll also be in Savonburg as well this week.
