Greater Lansing offers community service programs for everyone from teenagers to retirees. Individuals who are taking an active part in their community should be commended.

If change starts with the young, members of the Youth Action Team are paving the way to the future. The team is comprised of East Lansing high school and middle school students who take active roles in the city through community service and event planning.

Members of the team are working hard to make East Lansing a better place, often devoting their spare time to other extracurricular activities, and their academic lives.

One of the students’ jobs is to serve as advisers to the Hot Spot Teen Center in the Hannah Community Center, 819 Abbott Road. The center offers pool tables, video games and activities directed toward teens.

These students have shown maturity and initiative in creating a place for students their age to go and have proven that teenagers can make a difference and have a valid voice.

Eventually, this youthful love of community service may extend into opportunities with other service-oriented clubs dedicated to making a powerful influence in the community.

That’s important because the ability to make change, instead of complaining about community issues, keeps society strong and stable.

Thanks are in order for humanitarians who take time to represent their communities and keep the voice of the people heard, no matter what age they are.

Young or old, these volunteers are enriching and giving back to the community where we live, work and play.