Monday, August 25, 2008
130 KU students arrived at the Kansas Union at 10 a.m. Saturday. Some bustling with energy, some still bedraggled from a late night, the students came ready to participate in Volunteer Day, organized by the Center for Community Outreach.
Alison Zeigler, Los Baños, Philippines, junior, CCO co-director, said the annual event was part of Hawk Week and provided students a chance to establish a sense of community before the semester became too hectic.
“We want students to be asking themselves about what their community is,” Zeigler said. “What do you want to give back to it? How do you want to create that sense of change in your own life? Hopefully, that’s what they can take with them as they leave college.”
Students signed up to volunteer with one of three different organizations: the Lawrence Adopt-a-Park program, Habitat for Humanity of Lawrence and the Boys and Girls Club of America. They were then bussed to the various locations around Lawrence.
Blake Mankin, Dallas freshman, adds a coat of paint to the window trim on a Habitat for Humanity house in North Lawrence on Saturday. Mankin, along with about 130 other KU students, participated in Volunteer Day, an annual event organized by the Center for Community Outreach.
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On Aug. 23, about 130 KU students came together for Volunteer Day, a traditional part of Hawk Week organized by the Center for Community Outreach.
Volunteers with the Adopt-a-Park program collected trash and chalked sidewalks in “Dad” Perry Park. Volunteers with Habitat for Humanity sanded and painted exterior and interior surfaces on a home nearing completion in North Lawrence’s Comfort Lane area, where Habitat for Humanity has already completed a number of homes. Volunteers for the Boys and Girls Club went to four Dillons Grocery stores around the city to encourage shoppers to participate in the “Round Up” program, in which shoppers round up their bill to the nearest dollar and donate the difference to the Boys and Girls Club.
While some of Saturday’s participants were new to volunteering, others had lengthy histories of community service.
David Wilcox, Manhattan junior, said he had participated in alternative breaks, where students dedicated their time during academic breaks to volunteer service. He said he planted trees in Salt Lake City and worked with developmentally disabled people at Misericordia Heart of Mercy hospital in Chicago.
“The people you meet volunteering are usually the people you’d like to hang out with anyway,” said Wilcox, who participated in the Adopt-a-Park program. “What else are we going to be doing from 10 to 2 on a Saturday?”
Mark Brooks, construction manager for Habitat for Humanity in Lawrence, said he was always happy to have the extra hands available.
“KU kids are just wonderful for us,” Brooks said. “I mean a real gold mine of enthusiasm and willingness to come serve. I think that if we’re willing to use their energy and grace in the way we do to get these houses built, then the least we can do in return is try to offer students an opportunity to do something where they actually see progress with their own hands.”
— - Edited by Ramsey Cox
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