UNE medical students give back to Biddeford with park cleanup “legacy event”

On a brilliant Saturday in October, rather than go apple picking or hiking like many people across Maine, 15 University of New England medical students spent two hours with rakes, bags, and brooms cleaning up an urban park in the center of Biddeford. 

The Mechanics Park cleanup is a longstanding service event run by the UNE College of Osteopathic Medicine’s chapter of Sigma Sigma Phi, the national honorary service fraternity open to student doctors pursuing medical degrees in osteopathic medicine, explained Rafaella Tringale (D.O., ’29) one of the event’s organizers.

“Mechanics Park is a legacy event for our chapter, and it has become a long-term connection between our class and Biddeford. It’s a small way to give back to the community that hosts so many students,” Tringale said. 

Even after UNE’s medical school moved from the University's Biddeford Campus to the Portland Camps for the Health Sciences in 2025, following the opening of the Harold and Bibby Alfond Center for Health Sciences, UNE medical students continued to return to the Biddeford park to help keep it clean.

Student clubs in the UNE College of Osteopathic Medicine are run independent of the University, and many conduct community service work with the goal of amassing the volunteer service hours suggested by the American Association of College of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM). Through the Translating Osteopathic Understanding into Community Health (TOUCH) initiative, AACOM encourages osteopathic medical students to engage in community service in order to help educate the public about the osteopathic ideals and professional values.

Tringale, who organizes the cleanup parties with fellow second-year student Krish Patel, said the fact that the fall is among the busiest academically for second-year students doesn’t deter them. 

“Depending on what the park needs that day, we bring our rakes, bags, and gloves to pick up trash, rake leaves, trim bushes, etc. Some weekends may call for more, like weeding or potting plants,” Tringale said. “Spending a few hours outside together is a nice reset. It brings us together during a time when it’s easy to stay buried in our studies.”