More than 360 USC students spent their day off from classes volunteering at the largest campus-wide service event of the year, the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.
“Days of service are a way to transform Dr. King’s life and teachings into community action,” said Mitchell Hammonds, secretary of traditions for Student Government. “In addition to helping solve serious problems, service brings together people from different backgrounds and benefits those served. On MLK Day, this is especially fitting. When we all come together in service, it not only honors Dr. King, but builds a lasting change in our community.”
The event has grown so popular that the project was expanded to two days three years ago. An additional 246 students will volunteer on Saturday for the second day of service.
Buses took students to 23 volunteer sites, including the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, City Roots, the Good Samaritan Clinic, God’s Storehouse and Project Hope. Many of the sites used for MLK Day were organizations that are used regularly by USC for Service Saturdays and Impact Weekly Service Projects.
Between the two days, 46 site leaders led each of the projects. Many of these student leaders are returning site leaders from Service Saturdays. Each leader went through an application process prior to being selected as a site leader.
“Because it’s such a tradition, there’s just a lot of interest in being a site leader for MLK Day, which is exciting for us,” said Beth Brink, a leadership coach in the Community Service Programs.
Adam Mayer, the site leader for the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, has participated in Service Saturdays and MLK Day of Service since his freshman year. Although he has volunteered at many different sites, he has worked with Habitat for Humanity eight or nine times over the past three years.
He said he enjoys seeing the progress of the organization over time and finds it exciting to watch the impact people can make even in small groups.
“It’s amazing to see how many people come together for just this one day of service and Service Saturdays throughout the semester,” Mayer said. “Just the impact we can have on just this one day, MLK Day, is amazing to see. It’s just seeing the impact we can have on the greater community and seeing how much they appreciate having students from the university go out.”
Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit organization that specializes in a home ownership program. The people they help go through a series of home ownership courses, volunteer a certain number of sweat equity hours per family member per month, and pay back a 20 to 30 year ghost mortgage. The ReStore is the main funding source for Habitat for Humanity, and 96 cents from every dollar goes directly back to funding the organization’s mission.
Jordan Heidt, who was organizing the ReStore that USC students volunteered with, has been with Habitat for Humanity for almost two years. She has a degree in art education and always imagined herself teaching children to paint. After volunteering at the organization one day, she changed her career goals. She said she had so much enthusiasm for the work that she was hired by Habitat for Humanity the next day.
“Whatever I’m dealing with, working with homeowners, helping volunteers on-site or getting donations in, I feel like I’m doing something good at the end of the day,” Heidt said.
The USC students who volunteered for MLK Day got the same warm feelings as Heidt from giving back to their community.
“Just giving back is something good to do,” said Rachel Scola, a second-year broadcast journalism student. “It’s something I’ve been doing my entire life, so why stop in college?”