On Monday, Jan. 31st, Irvington’s Synapsis club held a succulent propagation (planting succulents) event where participants were able to decorate their own pots and plant succulents, which were later donated to The Plant Exchange, a non-profit organization. This event was a service event that also included a presentation on succulent biology. The event took place in Room 54 after school, and was very popular with the participants:  sign ups were closed in just one day. 

The event began with a brief presentation on succulent biology, after which participants painted pots and planted succulents within them. Participants received 2 service hours for their involvement. 

“I think, compared to other service events[…]it was a bit more freestyle because the participants were able to paint the pots however, and we let them take care of it themselves.” said Andy Cheung (10), a Service Intern for Synapsis, who had brainstormed and planned the event. 

Participants agreed with the sentiment.

“It [was] a really fun activity that [brought] out my creativity,” said attendee Jorge Palacios (11). The overall feedback from participants was positive, and the club did not run into any big issues while hosting the event. 

While time management was not too much of an issue, Palacios did express that with the amount of materials that had to be prepared for the event, more time could have been given to participants. 

“I felt that they should’ve added more time for painting,” stated Palacios. 

When asked about the materials that had to be ordered to host the event, Cheung also explained that many things, like the pots, succulents, and soil had to be brought into the classroom directly after school. Transporting the plants was the hardest part of the process, as transporting around 30 succulents proved to be a challenge

Overall, the event was very popular with participants and successful in management. While there were certain challenges for both the participants and officers, participants seemed pleased with how the event was handled. 

“I think for future service events, we’re definitely considering another donation event,” said Synapsis’ vice president of curriculum, Sissi Zhang (11). The Synapsis club alternates between curriculum and service events every month.