Catholic school students in East Harlem spent several hours getting their hands dirty in honor of the Pope's visit this month. NY1's Lindsey Christ filed this report.

A sidewalk along a stretch of East 110th street got a make-over Tuesday, thanks to a troop of eager eight and nine-year-olds.

"I think it makes the neighborhood look like they have a good school around here," says Noah Rodriguez, a student at St. Ann School. 

It was Noah Rodriguez's idea to fill the cement boxes in front of St. Ann School with flowers and school staff members, his classmates and several parents came back early from summer vacation to make it happen. 

"I was surprised at how many people came!" Noah says.

Noah is one of the Catholic school students selected to meet Pope Francis when he visits East Harlem in three weeks and he plans to tell the Pope all about this community service work. 

"We have to take care of the environment just like the environment takes care of us," he says.

"The school has always shown a very strong commitment towards the community. And part of it is doing stuff like this," says Noah's father, Steven Rodriguez.

The principal says all six students from St. Ann who will meet the Pope are thrilled. 

"They came in and said 'Miss Muller, did you know that pope Francis donated 400 sleeping bags on his own birthday?' 'Did you know that he had a motorcycle and he gave it up?' 'Did you know that his favorite soccer team...' They knew all these facts about him and they cannot wait to meet him. We're really excited," says principal Hope Mueller.

St. Anne's does a variety of community service projects over the course of the school year. They hold a pajama drive for kids with serious illnesses, ring bells for the Salvation Army at Christmastime, and volunteer at a senior center. 

The principal says the flower project is particularly special because the idea came from a student. 

"We had to like put our fingers in the dirt and then like scoop it out to make a hole. Then we placed the plant into the hole and then scooped the dirt that we scooped out back in," Noah explains. 

It's hard but rewarding work that he can't wait to tell the Pope about.