LEAP has jumped back into Wahlert! LEAP, or Leaders of Environmental Action and Protection, is a club for anyone who loves the outdoors and wants to take part in making the world a better place through service.

Joey Rauch, ‘19, says, “I was interesting in LEAP Club because I thought they had a good message to spread, and I wanted to participate in something that does good for the community.”

Luckily for him, this club was available. Over the past few years, the club, formally known as the SAVE Club, had struggled to get students involved. Although some students in 2013 expressed interest in starting it to Mrs. Korrin Schriver, they were not very active.

Once the seniors in the SAVE Club graduated, others members were just too busy, and the club slowly dissolved. After a year, the current president of the LEAP Club, Natalie Rapp, was motivated to get a club up and running again.

“I planned on starting a club similar to this one not knowing it already existed. When I contacted Mrs. Schriver, she told me about LEAP and how no one had taken over it for the past couple of years, so she asked if I would start it up again,” says Rapp, ‘16.

Now the club is very active in the community. They do things like volunteer at the Dubuque Rescue Mission Garden and the Convivium Urban Farmstead. LEAP is also an opportunity for community service.

Mrs. Schirver, says, “We are currently working on adopting a watershed to monitor and clean up for this coming spring.”

In addition to service, members also get to do fun activities like go on hikes in the Mines of Spain and Swiss Valley and snowshoe in the winter.

If you’ve got a green thumb and want to be more active in the community, the LEAP Club is open to anyone who wants to join!