OU’s Day of Service commenced in the Oakland Center Banquet Rooms on Nov 15. It was a day of service, highlighted by arts and crafts and other projects for the good sake of the immediate community. Still, Oakland University students could also give back through charitable means.
Hosted by the Office of Student Involvement (OSI) in tandem with the Leadership and Volunteer Center (LVC), the Day of Service has blossomed into an annual event. It’s a unique opportunity for students to volunteer, as it requires no sign-up and is entirely drop-in.
The event kicked off at 9:30 a.m., with an array of tables set up for students and others affiliated with Oakland alike to volunteer in many ways. One table, sponsored by Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, was home to the creation of cheerful holiday ornaments.
The most popular table was where volunteers could create bookmarks, benefiting young students in Oakland and Macomb County.
Freshman Lauren was at that table. When asked why she decided to come out that day and why it was significant to her, she said, “I really like volunteering, and I am a part of ECLIPSE, and we do a lot of volunteering, and I just feel like it’s really important.”
Lauren, through mentioning ECLIPSE, a leadership program unique to the School of Health Sciences, highlights how the Day of Service was an amalgamation of the good of several programs and organizations within the university.
Some of those organizations included the club football team celebrating its 10th team this year. Oakland requires club sports to meet a number of hours of volunteer work, and the OU Day of Service proved satisfactory for this requirement for the members who dropped into the event.
Outside organizations also made an appearance and allowed students to volunteer. Arts and Scraps, a Detroit-based non-profit organization, sponsored many tables and was directly involved with distributing its sponsored projects.
Rainbow Connection, a social services organization, showed up to allow students to create projects that would land in the hands of kids with life-threatening illnesses, whom the organization ‘grant wishes’ for.
Running until 9 p.m., the Day of Service saw a great turnout. However, it’s just a part of Oakland’s series of “Seasons of Service.” The university has six more dates established for students to volunteer.
From Dec 1-17, students can contribute to the Acts of Kindness Tree from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and the Bottomless Toy Chest will be taking donations to its Toy Drive until the end of the Fall 2023 semester.
OU’s Golden Grizzlies Food Pantry was also at the Day of Service, taking food donations for students subject to food insecurity. However, the pantry is an omnipresent fixture that can be found next to the OSI in the Oakland Center.
