(March 26, 2018) — This Saturday, more than 1,400 students, faculty, staff and Roadrunner supporters worked for nonprofits across the city to give back during UTSA’s Day of Service. The annual UTSA tradition kicked off a Year of Service by the university community, honoring the inauguration of President Taylor Eighmy and the vision for UTSA as San Antonio’s model urban serving university.
>> View a photo gallery from UTSA’s Day of Service.
“It was absolutely amazing to see volunteers working alongside one another to give back,” said Lydia Bueno, assistant dean of students and director of the UTSA Student Leadership Center and Student Center for Community Engagement and Inclusion. “There were students working with vice presidents, provosts, coaches, family members of the Eighmy family and even children of UTSA students, faculty and staff all making a positive impact.”
The day began with the volunteers rallying together at the UTSA Downtown Campus for breakfast. Next, they split up to go to one of the 25 San Antonio area service agencies to participate in projects like packing food at Meals on Wheels, cleaning up greenways and creeks, and making dog chew toys for the San Antonio Humane Society.
The UTSA Women’s Basketball Team took a break from the court to volunteer at Paws Ranch Rescue and Animal Sanctuary.
“It was fun to spend time with the team and show some love to the animals that typically don’t receive that much attention,” said Kourtney Kekec, a junior public health major from Missouri. “The staff at Paws Ranch were grateful for the help and pleasant to work with. Their passion and love for the animals made it very easy to help them with everything they needed.”
Staff from the UTSA Office of Institutional Research spent the day cleaning up Phil Hardberger Park.
“Our team worked together to remove trash and debris from a trail, including shopping carts, a mattress and various other items,” said Brian Cordeau, UTSA director of Institutional Research. “It was great to see students and staff working side by side to make a difference in the park. We even had a few people walking the trail come up to our group and thank us for what we were doing.”
The UTSA community has many more chances to volunteer. Roadrunners are invited to the VOICES meeting this Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in the Student Union Retama Auditorium (SU 2.02.02) on the UTSA Main Campus to learn about upcoming service opportunities through UTSA Volunteer Services.
