Volunteers Serve the Community
Center works promote volunteerism and community service among students, staff and faculty
March 1, 2007
By Debra Cano Ramos
Sophomore Rachael Lorenzetti remembers watching the horror of Hurricane Katrina on the news in 2005 and becoming compelled to help the people who lost their homes and loved ones. So, she turned to Cal State Fullerton’s Volunteer & Service Center, which collected donations for them.
“I felt I had to do something,” said Lorenzetti, who helped with the center’s effort to raise money for victims.
Since then, she’s volunteered for various center projects that give students the chance to serve the community. The theater arts major has traveled to an orphanage in Mexico to cheer impoverished children and counseled the homeless at a Santa Ana shelter.
“Our generation gets so caught up in ourselves that, often, we don’t see the problems outside our world,” she said. “Volunteering…is rewarding because you know that you’ve done something positive and that you can make an impact on someone else’s life.”
Established in 1995, the center’s purpose is to promote volunteerism and community service among students, staff and faculty, and provide social justice education, said Amy Mattern, center coordinator.
Last year, 1,350 students volunteered for center projects, providing 6,200 hours of service. The center’s 17 student project directors manage the volunteer efforts, and in return, they receive leadership training and personal growth opportunities. Center projects range from serving food at soup kitchens, collecting clothing for homeless families, tutoring children, restoring the environment and coordinating blood drives. During last fall’s National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, students volunteered 590 hours, raised $1,160.48 and donated 934 food items.
Aside from the personal satisfaction of helping others, students gain marketable skills and experience to enhance their résumés, said Esiquio Uballe, associate dean of student life.
“We create valuable volunteer activities for students, so when they leave Cal State Fullerton, they leave with a well-rounded educational experience,” he said.
Produced by the Office of Public Affairs at California State University, Fullerton.