The Erik B. Hanson field house transformed into a fun zone on Jan. 25 as over 500 guests played games, made crafts, and jumped around during Peddie´s annual Community Day.

Community Day was created by the Peddie Parent Association (PPA) in the late 1990s as a way for Peddie to give back to its local community and help out families with fewer resources. Peddie parents, faculty, and students work to organize a day of family fun for residents of the greater Hightstown area. This year, over 300 students volunteered in a variety of roles, including serving pizza, painting faces, and supervising craft tables.

However, Community Day was not limited to activities in the field house. Peddie student volunteers also sent prepared meals to seniors through Meals on Wheels, collected and delivered food and toiletries for a local food bank, and went to senior centers to spend time with the residents.

Although volunteering time on a Sunday can be difficult, many students felt Community Day was a fun and gratifying way to spend their weekend.

“I enjoyed face-painting a lot,” Sara Vargas ’18 said. “I feel like [Community Day] captured the spirit of Peddie. And it is especially nice to get Peddie students out of their own little circle during winter term to do something so creative and helpful. ”

Having enjoyed their time at Community Day this year, many students are excited for next year’s event.

“I can’t wait for Community Day next year!” Stephanie Wu ’18, who volunteered to read stories, said.

“It was such an eye-opening experience and I am very much looking forward to it next year.”

Overall, the Community Day program is one step in satisfying Walter Annenberg’s ’27 urges for the Peddie community to “strive for the highest quality of citizenship”.