North Cross students volunteering at Roanoke Rescue Mission

ROANOKE, Va. – It's a school day and Malek Thabet is working hard, outside of the classroom. 

"We've been folding Christmas cards and putting them in envelopes for the annual fundraiser that the Rescue Mission holds every year," said Malek. 

Along with some of his classmates from North Cross School, Malek is volunteering at the Rescue Mission Ministries of Roanoke.

"We kind of get to put ourselves in these people's shoes and understand what situation they're in and how we can help," said Malek. 

North Cross partnered with the Rescue Mission for a yearlong service project. Students from North Cross' upper school will volunteer at the mission for a full day twice a month.

"It is really great to see how our students have responded to helping here at the mission and it gives them a firsthand account of what goes on in our community," said Alex Hash, community outreach coordinator for North Cross School.

From stuffing hundreds of thousands of envelopes to sorting clothes at the mission donation center, North Cross students are lending a helping hand and learning a little about life outside the classroom.