By Vincent Barone Staten Island Advance
Patti Newman, Taliima Smith 16, and Mala England 16, both Curtis HS students as they pull the weeds out from the bushes in from the 120 Pct. (Staten Island Advance/Hilton Flores)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – The spirit of late Curtis High School football player Miles Kirkland will live on through a new garden on Richmond Terrace.
Volunteers with the Health for Youth organization took to St. George on Saturday to plant two new memorial gardens–one for Kirkland and a second [for] 9/11 victims–near the 120th Precinct.
Curtis High School students helped the beautification effort by cleaning up trash and plucking out weeds from tree beds. Both of Kirkland’s parents were in attendance as well.
Kirkland died after collapsing at the team’s preseason practice on September 1. He has been remembered by his peers as a loving friend and hardworking teammate.
The community effort was part of an “It’s My Park Day,” orchestrated through the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
