8th Grade Service + Leadership Trip: Puerto Rico

Each spring, Glen Urquhart School’s eighth graders embark on a service and leadership trip that challenges them to step beyond the classroom and into the world. This year’s journey to Puerto Rico was filled with meaningful work, cultural exploration, and moments of deep connection. Told in their own words, the reflections below capture not only what students did, but how the experience shaped their understanding of community, responsibility, and themselves.

April 6, 2026

Today was an early morning for the Glen Urquhart School eighth graders. We had to arrive at Logan Airport at six o’clock in the morning for our departure to San Juan, Puerto Rico. We landed at noon, and as soon as we stepped out, all of us were hit with the bright Puerto Rican sun. We then made our way to a restaurant with a stunning view of the beautiful teal colored ocean where we had a delicious lunch. After it, we met up with a local tour guide who showed us the way around the historical Old San Juan. On our tour, we saw numerous monuments, churches and other historical landmarks, each with an explanation of its historical significance from our guide. After our tour we walked around in the art district of Santurce looking at various murals and graffiti, including the largest murals in Puerto Rico.

Finally we said “adiós” to our tour guide and made our way to The Big Yellow House where we had dinner and, after a tiresome day, got ready for a good night of sleep. We feel very grateful for the opportunity to explore the city, spend time with friends and even meet new people. We’re also really excited to start our services tomorrow and to practice our Spanish with the families that we will soon meet!

By Soren, Coco, Lucas, and Daniel S.

April 7, 2026

After our first night of sleep, we had some delicious breakfast to fuel us for the day. Soon after, we started to draft our Community Contract that would stick with us for the whole trip. We took a quick bus ride to Villa Del Rio where we met our instructor, Angel, who would be guiding us on the day’s service project. Amplifying our teamwork skills, we began a concrete floor for a family. With different jobs such as shoveling, mixing concrete, passing buckets, and finally pouring the concrete, we all learned a lot about construction work. Although the work was very tedious and we were practically melting in the steamy sun, we were given many water breaks to stay hydrated. Afterwards, we went to Maria’s house where she served us a scrumptious lunch which many praised. Soon after the bus returned us to the Big Yellow House, we were rewarded with a well deserved beach day. Everyone sprinted straight into the clear, salty, blue water upon arrival. When the sun had set, we arrived back at the Big Yellow House where we played numerous outdoor games like frisbee, volleyball, football, and more. We then enjoyed some mouth-watering Puerto Rican cuisine with many of us going back for seconds, just for the plantains. After dinner, we wrapped up our Community Contract where we signed our names and we agreed to expectations for the upcoming week. Tomorrow will be much like today, rigorous but rewarding.

By: Chase, Hazel, Annie, Dylan, & Sammy

April 8, 2026

Our third day in Puerto Rico consisted of more concrete, more food, and more lasting memories. We started with a hearty breakfast to kick off our day, soon after we hopped on the bus and we made our way to the construction site. During the construction we got to know the community of Villa Del Rio more and more as time went by. Even though it was very hot we pushed through and got done more than expected. Our pace remained the same the entire time. After several hours of work we finally completed the floors to two rooms. We then went to Maria’s house to enjoy a very delicious lunch. While we were walking down to the bus, Chimuelo, the dog, practically fell off of the cliff but survived. We were worried about the dog but once we got to the end of the hill we found that Chimuelo was completely okay. Back at the Big Yellow House we hurried to get our swimsuits on and jump into the crystal clear Puerto Rican waters. Then we got back and got ready for the fiesta we were hosting for the local Global Works team. After that our guests arrived and we ate dinner and played with the kids and Eggy. Later that evening we all sat down to have a conversation about the impact of our work over these past two days. Tomorrow we are packing up and heading to Casa Coral for the second half of our trip. We are sad to leave the Big Yellow House but excited for the new journey.

By Poppy, Asha, Lorenzo, Carson, Mason

April 9, 2026

On our fourth day in Puerto Rico we came down the stairs with all of our luggage that we packed the night before. After a breakfast of waffles, eggs, sausage and fruit, we said our goodbyes to the Big Yellow House before driving 45 minutes to Semila, a local cacao farm. When we arrived at the cacao farm, we split into three work groups that planted seeds, excavated and replanted the plant lengua de vaca, or “cow’s tongue,” and worked in the nursery. We also learned about the process of making chocolate from cacao pods. We ventured out of our comfort zones to try new varieties of chocolate, including 40 percent and 60 percent cacao. Our instructor, Abel, went into great depth about the work on the cacao farm, and we learned more about the purpose of cacao. We said our goodbyes to our instructors and spent two hours on the bus driving to our new abode for the rest of the week, Casa Coral. After a delicious dinner at our beachside cabana in Luquillo, we headed to salsa class on the town plaza. Sadly, our chaperone, Senora Sterrett, our salsa mentor, had to leave Puerto Rico early because of a fractured ankle. Even without her, we used what we learned with her in Spanish class tonight and danced until our feet hurt. Michael even volunteered to step into the middle the circle to dance. We walked back to Casa Coral and ended our night listening to the sound of the coqui, the indigenous frog of the island.

By Michael, Stella, Willem, Daniel VS, Charlotte, Clara