Over 1,000 Liberty University students participated in Serve Lynchburg, an annual university-wide service initiative organized through the LU Serve office that sends students to sites across the city to complete volunteer projects and meet community needs, Saturday, April 25.
The effort placed students at locations throughout Lynchburg, including churches, camps, schools and community centers. Projects varied by site, ranging from outdoor cleanup and facility maintenance to painting and general organization.
At Fairview Center, part of Lynchburg Parks & Recreation, students participated in a neighborhood cleanup effort focused on improving streets and public spaces in the surrounding area.
Junior Luke Willer worked with a group assigned to several blocks in the surrounding area.
“We were assigned a couple of blocks to go and pick up trash, so just stuff that got in the road or ended up in people’s parkways,” Willer said.
Willer said he has participated in Serve Lynchburg in previous years and noted the structure of the event that allows students to engage directly in local service efforts.
“I think giving people a concentrated opportunity to go out and do something that’s a little bit strenuous and honestly that we’re very capable of doing, making Liberty less of a tourist destination but also something that benefits the community is a huge deal,” Willer said.
Across town at the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lynchburg, another group of Liberty students spent the day assisting with a variety of facility improvement projects.
The organization provides after-school and youth development programs for children and teens across the Lynchburg area, with a focus on academic support, enrichment activities and character development.
Student volunteers at the site worked on cleaning different areas of the building, removing broken or unused items, organization projects and painting. Many of the students at the site were freshmen participating in Serve Lynchburg for the first time.
Melanie Hudson, assistant professor and online chair for the School of Education, served as site leader at the Boys & Girls Club.
“I think it’s great for them (student volunteers) to expand their knowledge outside the Liberty bubble and also to just turn their attention toward others for a day,” Hudson said.
Stephanie Reed, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lynchburg, said the organization has partnered with Serve Lynchburg for several years and continues to benefit from student involvement.
“It’s a huge gift for us, obviously, to have any extra hands that can help us with projects around the building,” Reed said.
Reed also said the partnership helps introduce students to the organization’s mission and work.
“It is wonderful to get to expose our mission to other people, especially to the students,” Reed said.
Reed added that Liberty students have consistently supported the organization over time.
“It’s a great exposure for us, because this is such a worthwhile mission to support, and we have had so many Liberty students come and support us,” Reed said.
One student who came to the site, Katie Duncan, also volunteers with the Boys & Girls Club and said the experience gave students a broader understanding of the community beyond campus.
“It’s really special to get to have more people get to come and see what the mission of Boys & Girls Club is,” Duncan said. “Getting to come here with other students and welcome people into that and open our eyes to what our community looks like outside of school is really impactful.”
Serve Lynchburg is one of several service initiatives coordinated throughout the year by LU Serve, which connects students with opportunities to serve in the Lynchburg community and internationally.
For more information about LU Serve and upcoming opportunities, visit www.liberty.edu/osd/lu-serve.
Clardy is the off-campus news editor for the Liberty Champion.