As part of an Eagle Scout community service project, Mars Area High School senior Michael Riggio has installed a “Buddy Bench” on the playground at Mars Area Elementary School.

“It’s a kind of bench that you put out in a public place, especially at a school, so that if a kid is feeling left out or at all bullied in any way, he can then go and sit there to be helped or to find a friend,” said Riggio, a member of Scout Troop 400.

The rainbow-colored bench, made from 540 recycled milk jugs, is engraved with the phrase, “The only way to have a friend is to be a friend.”

“Whenever I first moved to Mars, back in fourth grade… it was very hard for me, as an already very shy person, to get into a friend group,” said Riggio. “I felt like I could have used this when I was a kid; so, why not take my experience and put it in to help someone going through the same exact experience.”

The project is a continuation of Mars Area School District’s participation in the “Rachel’s Challenge” positive school culture program, which focuses on replacing acts of violence, bullying, and negativity with acts of respect, kindness and compassion, said Riggio. The program is based on the life and writings of Rachel Joy Scott, the first victim of the Columbine High School tragedy.

In addition, Riggio has donated the book, “The Buddy Bench,” by Patty Brozo to the Mars Area Elementary School library so that the school’s students can learn more about the purpose of the bench and how it can help others.

For more information, call (724) 625-3161.