Elementary school students in Sullivan County are learning about the life cycle of plants and how to harvest produce and create their own food thanks to the generosity of the Loyalsock Foundation.

As reported in Thursday’s edition of the Sun-Gazette, the foundation donated two Tower Garden aeroponic systems to Sullivan County Elementary School. Students have grown kale, rainbow chard, arugula, basil, Bibb lettuce and baby greens with the compact gardening system. When their lesson culminated in making smoothies with fruit and greens, they shared the smoothies with administrators, delivering drinks to the principals of the elementary and high schools.

But the generosity doesn’t end there: the Lycoming College community raised $482,000 from more than 1,600 donors to benefit a multitude of programs and initiatives at the college in Williamsport.

Both the college and the Loyalsock Foundation are leading — and teaching — by example. We should all be thankful for the choice to model charitable endeavors to the students and young people.

It is important that beyond the proverbial reading, writing and arithmetic, our students learn how to be good neighbors and good community members — that they learn to contribute back to stronger, better communities. The work of the foundation and of the college’s leaders in displaying such behavior and in ensuring that the students — from elementary school to college — see how enriching for everyone such behavior can be is important and much appreciated.