Engaging in community service provides students with the opportunity to become active members of their community and has a lasting, positive impact on society at large. Community service or volunteerism enables students to acquire life skills and knowledge, as well as provide a service to those who need it most. 

Lautoka School for Special Education has always been an agent of change in the society through treasuring diversity. The school’s scout group consists of 24 children with diverse disabilities namely learning, intellectual, physical and vision/ hearing impairments.

Along with the scouting curriculum the 1st Lautoka Special Stars aims to do community service, tree planting and other voluntary service around the community every month. It plays a very vital role in the lives of these children with special needs such as volunteering increases their overall life satisfaction and helps them feel good about themselves because they are helping others. It also helps decrease stress and ease depression. In addition, it engages students with the community, creates special bonds with the population being served, and increases social awareness and responsibility. Finally, volunteering helps students enhance their personal knowledge, grow from new experiences, and develop better interpersonal communication skills which is very much needed in children with special needs.

The 1st Lautoka Special Stars team visited the GOLDEN AGE HOME situated in Natabua on Friday 16th April, 2021 for their monthly community service. A total number of 18 scouts and 4 leaders were engaged in the service with some of the GOLDEN AGE HOME staff. The students cleaned the frontage of the HOME garden and planted new flowers. The team also planted 3 trees in support of PROJECT GREEN.

It was a very educational and exciting trip to our scouts with special needs. The team really enjoyed and did a great job. Participating in community service not only makes a difference to the organization and people being served, but also makes a difference to every student’s career prospects. It also helps students develop civic and social responsibility skills and become more aware of what their community needs.