Students pay it forward

LARISSA BARNES
THE SIGNAL

Service. To most this word means doing work for someone else or helping others. UHCL’s Annual Day of Service embodies this concept.

The Annual Day of Service began in Spring 2003, then known as the “Community Outreach Day,” and was held once each semester.

In 2011, the event became annual and the name was changed to the Annual Day of Service. Every year UHCL faculty, staff, students, student organizations, family and friends join together to provide meaningful service to the Houston-Galveston community.

The Day of Service is a two-part event sponsored by the Student Leadership Involvement and Community Engagement (SLICE) program. Friday, Feb. 28, SLICE will kick off with a volunteer reception and speaker program, which will feature Twila Lindblade, executive director of the Galveston County Food Bank.

The kick-off event will provide volunteers with information on the various service projects scheduled for the next day as well as an inspirational message from Linblade about the benefits of being involved with the community as a servant leader.

Saturday, March 1, UHCL volunteers will engage in community service throughout the Houston-Galveston community.

SLICE has arranged service projects with the Houston Food Bank, Galveston County Food Bank, League City Animal Shelter, Armand Bayou Nature Center, Krause Children’s Center in Katy, Moody Gardens, the Environmental Institute of Houston and an On-Campus Clean Up. Volunteers also have the option of providing games and activities for seniors living at the Mountbatten House assisted living home in Highlands, Texas.

“Day of Service aims to inspire our students to make a lifelong commitment to being engaged in social change, to giving back to their community to help create a better society for all,” said Jennifer Clark, assistant director of Student Life. “The overarching goal of Day of Service is to engage – to engage our students with our faculty and staff and alumni, and to partner with our community.”

SLICE will be distributing a Service Learning Journal. This journal can be used as a resource for volunteers to reflect on their service, tips for planning service projects and contacts for nonprofit organizations. In addition, SLICE will give out free T-shirts for pre-registered volunteers to represent SLICE and UHCL while they work on their projects Saturday.

This year SLICE has partnered with the UHCL Student Council for Exceptional Children’s “Take a Buddy to the Fair” event that will be going on Friday during the day on campus.

The Annual Day of Service is designed to provide faculty and students alike an experience of what it feels like to give back and help the community while working together as a school. SLICE strives to enrich its volunteers with appreciation and commitment to lifelong servant leadership.

Jeremy Mejia, president of National Society of Leadership and Success, said there are several reasons why the Annual Day of Service is important.

“Ask yourself, when was the last time you volunteered in your community?” Mejia said. “Living in the United States, some may notice how our mainstream society has become more of a ‘me, me’ attitude versus a ‘how can I give back’ mindset.

“There are several reasons why this event is very important to the university. First, the event teaches volunteers the mutual benefit of giving back to the community. A healthy community equates to healthy citizens. Second, Day of Service provides members of the UHCL community with the unique opportunity to work alongside one another outside the usual classroom setting. Finally, this event makes a perfect platform for promoting the thriving spirit of our UHCL Hawks. What better way to represent our beautiful campus than enriching the very communities we call home?”

The Annual Day of Service will be held Feb. 28 and March 1. The deadline for registration is noon Feb. 26. Volunteers can register online at www.uhcl.edu/slice. The kick off is Feb. 28 at 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. in SSCB Lecture Hall, room 1100. Dress code is casual.

On the Day of Service, March 1, it is encouraged that volunteers wear T-shirts or sweatshirts that represent UHCL or their student organization. Volunteers can also wear their SLICE T-shirt if they attend the Friday night event. For outdoor projects, pants, long-sleeved shirts and tennis shoes are recommended. The food banks also require tennis shoes.