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Roswell Park high school interns helping clean up the community

Posted at 8:44 AM, Aug 04, 2020
and last updated 2020-08-04 08:44:45-04

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Cleaning up the community, almost 100 high school students are working part-time with Roswell Park to help beautify spots around town. The students were selected from Mayor Byron Brown's Summer internship program. Dwayne Jones is 16-years old and will be a sophomore at St. Joe’s Collegiate Institute in Buffalo.

“Friday we were cleaning up around the office in the Fruit Belt and someone came up to us and said thank you for all the work you have done, thank you for cleaning up, thank you for this and that and God bless you," Jones said. "That really touched my heart.”

It’s his second year as a Roswell Park intern and he says he has built a strong work ethic and loves making a positive change in the community.

The clean-up project is in partnership with Fruit Belt Coalition. Students are helping clean up and are also distributing hand sanitizers and assisting with drive-up COVID-19 testing.

“The health and wellness extends beyond the cancer care that we provide, and this is an example of that,” David Scott, Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Roswell Park said.

Nazia Sultena is a 16-year old junior at Hutch Tech who is also making a difference by being a Roswell Park intern. She has been sanitizing Kavinksi Park for doctors and patients to safely enjoy the seating area.

“It brings me joy that I did make a difference and how they are able to enjoy their time in a clean environment,” Sultena said.

Nazia says she wants to be a surgeon when she grows up and her favorite part about working here is hearing patient’s stories.

“They share their story and I get to have a different perspective, how people make different choices and how it brings people together sometimes,” Sultena said.

The students have two more weeks until their summer internship wraps up.