Being an active member of your community is an important part of life, especially in college. There are numerous opportunities to get involved, volunteer and serve others.
Bradley’s community service organization, SERVE, offers chances for students to volunteer throughout the year at different locations for a variety of important causes.
Today, SERVE is helping to sponsor an event called Gimme Shelter, a simulation of homelessness in which students will have a firsthand experience of the difficulties individuals face without adequate resources and housing.
Participants will spend the night in their choice of a box or a car with the event running from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. The goal of the event is to both bring awareness to homelessness and fundraise for the less fortunate.
This is just one example of how to get involved.
Community service events like Gimme Shelter are a great way to gain life experiences. By gaining these experiences, one can see the struggles that others go through in life and how to overcome or help those in need.
Many times, we are sheltered in our community and do not acknowledge the basic privileges in our lives. If we put ourselves in other people’s shoes we can grow our ability to be empathetic towards others, a necessary skill in everyday life.
Working in your community can also give you access to potential career interests and opportunities. You may develop a passion for helping others and want to incorporate it into your career. For those already invested in serving those in need, hospitals and churches frequently host programs for nursing students and those looking into organizational communication, respectively.
Whether on or off campus, volunteer work is a chance to experience a different perspective and gain some of your own.