On April 11, 25 students from Fairfield Farm Ecosystems and Adventure Team (FFEAT) and several faculty members spent the afternoon helping to clear brush, eradicate invasive species, and spruce up Salisbury's Washinee Park, which celebrates its 99th anniversary this year. The spring cleanup marks the fourth year that FFEAT has pitched to help with the community's effort to maintain the three-acre park.

In 2011, after years of neglect, the town began clearing the park, removing fallen trees and mowing the fields. A volunteer group,The Friends of Washinee, was formed to raise funds to continue the work, and to eradicate the invasives threatening the park's native plant and tree species.
Hotchkiss students like Maggie Ryan '19 found that participating in a locally-driven project was an opportunity to "be of help and service outside the Hotchkiss bubble."
Senior Sage Molasky, who hails from Las Vegas, concurred, adding,"So often it's hard to place ourselves outside the school environment, but doing this helps us better understand where we live and the ecosystem."