---
title: "Hundreds of Volunteers Plant Trees, Pick Up Litter and Pack Up Donations on Good Neighbor Day"
date: 2026-10-26T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/hundreds-of-volunteers-plant-trees-pick-up-litter-and-pack-up-donations-on-good-neighbor-day"
section: Articles
---
# Hundreds of Volunteers Plant Trees, Pick Up Litter and Pack Up Donations on Good Neighbor Day

*October 26, 2026* — by [Antonya da Silva](/author/antonya-da-silva)


> The 15th annual day of service brought together Terps and community members.

*Student volunteers assemble hot meals at Virtual X Kitchen during Good Neighbor Day on October 24, 2026. The meals will be distributed to local aging residents, with the intention of helping to improve food access in the College Park community.

Photo by Dylan Singleton/University of Maryland — From left, Brayden Wamboldt ’30, Luisa Martinez ’30, Kristin Janvier ’28 and Tamra Fluellen ’30 cook chicken at Virtual X Kitchen in College Park, part of the effort to prepare and distribute 600 hot meals for local aging residents on Good Neighbor Day. (Photo by Dylan Singleton)*

<span>Volunteers mobilized across College Park and surrounding communities on Saturday to clean up community parks, sort donations for local food pantries, teach local residents about tech and more for the 15th annual Good Neighbor Day.</span>

<span>The event, a partnership between University of Maryland, the city of College Park and the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, Department of Parks and Recreation, Prince George’s County, brought together hundreds of Terps and local residents across 27 sites to Do Good.</span>

<span>At Acredale Community Park, 50 volunteers gathered, picking up trash grabbers and garbage bags, on their way to tidy up the grounds. The cleanup, led by student service organization Hearts in Action, filled dozens of trash bags.</span>

<span>Over in the university’s Nyumburu Cultural Center, the student organization Terps Against Hunger set up six stations where volunteers packed 21,000 nutritious meals for the Capital Area Food Bank, far exceeding its goal of 15,000.</span>

<span>In the parking lot of Herbert W. Wells Ice Rink, a team of 60 unloaded, sorted and packed more than 3,000 nonperishable food donations. The College Park City-University Partnership spearheaded the effort, collaborating with Maryland Athletics and local community organizations throughout October to collect donations. </span>

<span>“I was excited to see so many people around our community giving their time and labor to make a difference,” said Tania D. Mitchell, associate provost for community engagement at the University of Maryland, “Showing up and working together to make our community cleaner, safer and more connected is what it means to be good neighbors and ultimately what Good Neighbor Day is all about.”</span>  
  
Read on to see how Terps and local community members worked together.


*Student volunteers pick up litter from Langley Creek Parkand then receive a Water Analysis demonstration by gathering, observing and identifying invertebrates led by partner Nature Forward during Good Neighbor Day on October 24, 2026.


Photo by Dylan Singleton/University of Maryland — From left, Justin Kujawa ’30, William Walsh ’30 and John DeKramer ’30 join members of the Langley Park Civic Association to pick up trash at Langley Park Creek**. (**Photo by Dylan Singleton)*


*Student volunteers sort and pack food drive donations at Herbert W. Wells Ice Rink Parking Lot, making sure nutritious food reaches local families in need during Good Neighbor Day on October 24, 2026.


Photo by Dylan Singleton/University of Maryland — From left, Alphia Kayastha ’27, Aleena Roberson ’30 and Ryan Tabet ’30 s[ort and pack food drive donations in the parking lot of the Herbert W. Wells Ice Rink.](https://umd.givepulse.com/shift/7113397) (Photo by Dylan Singleton)*


*Student volunteers pack rice meals for food banks, shelters and pantries in the DC-Metro area at Nyumburu Cultural Center during Good Neighbor Day on October 24, 2026.

Photo by Lauren Epstein/University of Maryland — Volunteers pack healthy meals for community members at a Terps Against Hunger event at the Nyumburu Cultural Center. (Photo by Lauren Epstein)*


*Student volunteers remove litter, clean walking paths, and beautify Acredale Community Park as part of Good Neighbor Day on October 24, 2026.

Photo by Lauren Epstein/University of Maryland — Volunteers used trash grabber to beautify Acredale Community Park near the UMD campus.*




**Topics:** [Campus &amp; Community](https://today.umd.edu/tags/campus-community)


**Tags:** [Student Experience](https://today.umd.edu/topic/student-experience)


**Units:** [Office of Community Engagement](https://today.umd.edu/topic/office-community-engagement)