Before the clocks changed on Mar. 13, groups of Staples seniors volunteered to help elderly Westport citizens adapt to daylight savings time.

Adam Yormark ‘11 created a unique community service project called “Staples Cares.” The project will sent Staples students to visit elderly members of the Westport community to help them change their clocks to appropriate time, as well as to fix and replace smoke detectors.

“The idea is to provide help to these people in much the same way every grandkid helps [their] grandparents when [they] go to visit,” Yormark said.

Yormark thought of the idea for Staples Cares while on vacation in Florida. He was helping his grandmother do the very same things Staples Cares did. Staples Cares was eventually instituted as the senior class project.

Yormark wanted to start a project that was unlike anything anybody has done and wanted to reach out to the elderly who do not commonly interact with the Staples student body.

The program has about 20 students who have volunteered their time to participate during Daylight Savings. Although it was considered a senior class project, any junior or sophomore was able to participate.

Though the current group is relatively small, Yormark believes that it makes for a better connection between students and senior citizens. Each group traveled to roughly three houses during the day.

“The goal of Staples cares is to combine a desire to want to help the Westport community as well as to diminish the ‘gap’ or ‘lack of connection’ felt between the teenagers and senior citizens of Westport,” participant Rosie Levenson ’11 said in agreement with Yormark.

According to Yormark, having this type of connection is an incredibly important aspect of volunteering. It is essentially the bigger reason for students to join Staples Cares.“I joined because I feel like it’s a really great opportunity to give back and help out, but at the same time it’s a fun benefit to do with a group of friends, ” another participant Briyana Theodore ‘12 said.

“Through public service, students can truly apply all of the core lessons they have learned about being a member of a community,” said English teacher Daniel Geraghty, who helped to advise the program. “Staples students care about the world beyond the walls of the school.”

The more people that get involved each year, the greater the number of senior citizens that will be helped.

“I want to come back and visit Staples in years to come and know that Staples cares has made a difference and has brought the town closer together,” Yormark said.

Principal John Dodig and Geraghty hope to continue senior class projects, that involve the community, as well.

“I truly hope this project becomes a part of the culture at Staples, and as a way for seniors to truly display leadership,” Geraghty said.