Senior Julia Wold donates to the Stuff a Car service competition during Homecoming Week. (Photo by Ashley Helgerson)
by Ashley Helgerson ‘ 08
Throughout the year students and student organizations coordinate and participate in service projects and during October some unique traditions occur. During the weeklong annual Gustavus Homecoming celebration a tradition of gathering donations takes place and at Halloween students trick-or-treat for canned goods.
This year Alpha Phi Omega (APO), a long-standing national service fraternity at Gustavus, and the Gustavus Campus Activities Board teamed up for the Homecoming 2007 “Stuff a Car” challenge. On Halloween several groups participate in the APO-sponsored food shelf food drive for the local St. Peter food pantry.
The Homecoming collection program strayed from the conventional food shelf drive to incorporate the goal of stuffing a car full of non-perishable items, such as winter clothing, diapers, and personal care items. The drive was set up as a competition among student organizations and the winning team was the Delta Phi Omega sorority, a Greek social sorority that strives to promote leadership and social cohesion within the campus community. The items were given to the Sharing and Caring Hands Center in Minneapolis to assist the poor and the homeless.
The Deltas were enthusiastic about the competitive service event from the beginning, which helped lead the group to victory. “We knew the goods were going to a good cause, so that’s why we put in the extra effort to support it,” said Delta member Laura Rahm (’08).
Junior Ashley Gibbs, president of APO, had high hopes and good intentions in mixing community service with Homecoming and Halloween fun. “Service is simple. You can pick up some items and make someone’s day. It doesn’t need to take up hours of your time,” said Gibbs.
Gibbs was amazed by the substantial amount of items that were collected during Homecoming week. “It was way more successful than I anticipated. I was impressed by how groups came together to donate. The students were giving of themselves. It’s impressive when people are willing to do this,” she said, adding that it says a lot about the Gustavus student body.