Each semester, the Marquette University Center for Community Service hosts a one-day service event that is aimed at helping out members of the Milwaukee community.
This fall, the Center for Community Service is once again partnering with Marquette University Sorority and Fraternity Life to organize Make A Difference Day Nov. 12.
Marquette University will also be working alongside volunteers from several off-campus partners such as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a non-profit organization called the Eras Senior Network, which works to support senior citizens and adults with disabilities.
On Make A Difference Day, groups of volunteers will visit elderly citizens across the city of Milwaukee and help prepare the exterior of their homes for the winter season.
Faith Velez, a graduate assistant in the Center for Community Service, said volunteers should expect to complete yard work tasks that Milwaukee’s elders often have difficulty with.
“Our volunteers will be doing things like raking leaves, gardening and other basic lawn care jobs to help out any folks who might be unable or maybe just need a little extra assistance this time of year,” Velez said.
Mara Ideler, a senior in the College of Nursing and program assistant in the Center for Community Service, said this experience could lead an individual to discovering their passion for service.
“Because this is just a one-day thing and is not something you are required to do every week or all the time, I think this event is a really great introduction to community service,” Ideler said.
Along with students being asked to register as individual volunteers for this event, Marquette University also called upon the sororities and fraternities on campus to encourage members of their chapters to get involved.
Sarah Hayden, a senior in the College of Engineering and member of Alpha Omega Epsilon, said that she hopes Make A Difference Day will provide sorority and fraternity members a chance to realize what being a Golden Eagle is all about.
“I feel that we so easily get caught up in the semantics of our chapters and classes, that we aren’t taking the time to remember why most choose to attend Marquette,” Hayden said. “Participating in this service event not only shows one’s willingness to help others but also reminds everyone of Marquette’s mission to Be the Difference.”
Hayden also said Marquette students can use this event as an opportunity to discover new sites around the city.
“I’m really looking forward to exploring a new side of Milwaukee. I don’t get too much time to leave campus. Every time I have participated in Make A Difference Day, I see a new part of the city,” Hayden said.
Once this service event comes to an end, the Center of Community Service will ask all volunteers to reflect on their experience.
This year, Marquette Ideler said students are encouraged to reexamine their preconceptions about the people of Milwaukee and develop a more open mind towards others.
“What we are focusing on in reflection this year is the danger of having a narrow-minded view about the Milwaukee community,” Ideler said. “We want students to reflect on the people in the community that they interacted with and how that maybe changed their original perspective.”
When asked about what she hopes will be accomplished by this event, Velez said she wants the people of the community to feel taken care of.
“Our goal is to first and foremost ensure that the expectations of the homeowners are met,” Velez said. “We just hope to make every person we help feel like their needs were fulfilled by the amazing service of our students.”
This story was written by Erin Howard. She can be reached at [email protected].
