Have you used your community service hours yet?
As you may already know, Western will pay us a day鈥檚 wage every year to do volunteer work somewhere else! This is a wonderful opportunity to find the helpers in our community that are providing services and support around an issue you care about and to take a day to help those helpers!
An issue I care very much about is homelessness and I've found that an annual event called (PHC) is a great way for me to show up and share some of my time, energy, heart and hope with people experiencing homelessness.
It happens Friday, July 20 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Bellingham High School. Volunteers are needed to do things like pre-event set-up, intake/exit interviewing, guest guiding, item giveaway station hosting, food/beverage serving, post-event tear-down. If you鈥檇 like to volunteer, you can sign-up online here:.
Volunteers are also needed in the weeks leading up to the event to help with a variety of event preparation tasks like item sorting and organizing. Contact Bruce Johnson via phone at 360-296-1191 or email him at bruce98225@comcast.net, if you鈥檙e interested in this.
In my experience, PHC is truly an amazing day of community service, cooperation and compassionate connection that I feel very grateful for. I spent all day last year hosting the coat giveaway section and had so much fun just chatting with people and helping them find the kinds of coats they might be looking for. After the day was done, I had tired feet but a full heart. And because of my participation in PHC, I carry a much more inclusive sense of community and open perspective about people as I move through my daily life the rest of the year. I even find myself volunteering with other organizations like Homes Now, participating in their monthly Homeless Summits where food and resources are shared and a shower truck is made available. More info about Homes Now here:
I hope you'll consider participating in PHC and hope to see you there! But whatever you do, don't let those Community Service Hours go to waste! Serving others is also a gift to yourself.
-Dana Carr
Program Assistant for Special Events, University Advancement
