Elizabethtown College kicked off its 33rd annual Into the Streets fall service event on Oct. 17. Students, faculty and community members were sent all over the area to help local organizations.
Some students were up as early as 6:30 a.m. to get their service started. Such as Etown’s swim team who gathered at the KAV to check in, eat breakfast and head out to their placement.
Over 300 students participated in the service event on Saturday, clocking well over 1,000 hours of service. Those students and hours were spread across 30 different community partners/organizations in Elizabethtown, Lancaster, Harrisburg and more.
For those that could not drive or carpool to those locations, there were service hours available on campus. Dog toys, cat toys, note cards for seniors and more were happening in the KAV throughout the day.
Students rotated through the tables making tangible pieces of community service for local organizations.
Other students joined GEARS at the Elizabethtown Fairgrounds for its 16th annual Fall Festival. Six different clubs created about eight crafts for kids to make in Memorial Hall while others helped run rides such as the barrel train, many bounce houses and the hay ride.
Hannah Sharp, Center for Community and Civic Engagement (CCCE) student office assistant, coordinates Etown’s involvement with Fall Fest.
“I think my favorite part of Fall Fest is just seeing the Elizabethtown community,” Sharp said. “Because at the college we’re kind of secluded from the rest of Elizabethtown, so it’s really cool to see how the whole town comes together for these events.
Kalen Tendo, a senior legal studies major, spent his fourth Into the Streets volunteering at Fall Fest.
“I really feel my age because this is my fourth and my last Into the Streets,” Tendo said. “I’m trying to just take it all in before it’s gone.”
“I think it’s important because we are right over there [the college], and we need to make sure we’re connecting with the outer Elizabethtown Community,” Tendo said. “Our presence is already known out here, and there’s a lot of organizations that already come to our school.”
Looking for more ways to get involved with service? The CCCE is currently running a Pop Tab Drive around campus. Students can take a small container with them to their dorms and collect tabs.
“This is benefitting the Ronald McDonald House in Central PA and their mission to provide comfort, care and a place to stay for families of children in the hospital,” said CCCE student office assistant Julia Sevick.
“We would greatly appreciate it if students and faculty put their pop tabs in there for us to collect and donate monthly,” she added. If you have any additional questions, please reach out to Sevick (sevick@etown.edu) for more information.
