For many, Monday was a brief respite from the early tedium of winter term. For others it was an opportunity to edify Martin Luther King Jr.’s ideal of civil service.
For University freshman Anna Karvina Pidong,@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Pidong@@ this opportunity came through the Emerald Family Down Syndrome Network and the Service Learning Program,@@http://slp.uoregon.edu/Students/ServicePrograms/MakeADifferenceDay/MakeaDifferenceDayBrowseProjects.aspx@@ which together allowed students to spend a day as a buddy for a child with Down syndrome. Throughout the afternoon, over 70 children were projected to come through the doors of the Willamalane Sports and Recreation Center@@http://www.willamalane.org/@@ in Springfield to be paired up with a student.
“I’ve never had sisters or brothers, so it’s cool. It’s just like playing with a sibling,” Pidong said, while passing a ball with her buddy Xander.
Pidong and Xander met for the purpose of building community and a sense of worth.
“We want to promote social inclusion, to give our kids a chance to buddy with someone who’s important so that they feel important,” said Sydney Shook, an event organizer.@@http://www.efdsn.org/index.php/contact-us/@@
Students like Pidong heard about the opportunity through the Service Learning Program, which enlisted student volunteers for events community-wide. Projects ranged from tree planting, painting murals and park cleanups. More than 500 volunteers from the University and surrounding community participated Monday.
“The purpose of these events is to honor the legacy of Dr. King and to inspire students to feel engaged and connected to their community,” said Leisha McParland, community relations coordinator for the Service Learning Program.@@http://slp.uoregon.edu/About/AboutSLP/MeetStaff/tabid/135/ModuleID/805/ItemID/9/mctl/EventDetails/Default.aspx@@ “Students forget that the University is housed in a larger community. When we help the community, we help ourselves.”
Students gathered in the lower level of the Living-Learning Center on a snow-encrusted morning to begin their day of service, splitting up into large vans and other means of transportation.
Waiting for her group to depart, University junior Dulce Castro@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Dulce+Castro+@@ seemed eager to begin. “I’ve done it since freshman year. It’s a tradition for me to volunteer. I feel like I need to do it, and I’m doing my part to help,” Castro said.
Students who chose to volunteer became a member of the Duck Corps,@@http://slp.uoregon.edu/Students/DuckCorps.aspx@@ a group made by the Service Learning Program.
“We want to inspire future volunteerism,” McParland said. “We really strive towards saturation.”