A week ago I was in sunny Spokane strolling around the campus at Gonzaga University. As if to remind me that Independent Colleges of Washington Service Month is under way, GU has hung banners like the one at right from many of the light standards around the campus. Most of ICW’s member colleges have some reference to service to community in their mission statements, and those are more than mere words. They live it, contributing upwards of half a million hours of volunteer time in their communities every year.
News came from Gonzaga this week that they’re about to celebrate 10 years of involvement with the Mary Stuart Rogers foundation, which funds Mary Stuart Rogers scholarships for students who are committed to serving others. Many GU students will be participating in a neighborhood cleanup project this weekend.
Some of the other projects coming up: Students at Saint Martin’s University will help out with a planting day with Lacey’s Woodland Trail Greenway Association. University of Puget Sound students will spend part of their “Alternative Fall Break” with “Aware Tacoma!” doing volunteer service for a number of nonprofits in the city. Monday kicks off a “mini” volunteer fair at PLU, where they’re trying doing a similar event each month, instead of one big fair at the start of the academic year, to keep the service opportunities in front of students all year round. Walla Walla University had its Day of Service Wednesday.
Thanks, students, for all you do in your communities!
