The Colby Echo

Issue date: 4/23/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Thomas Bollier On April 19, students participated in service projects for Colby Cares Day in the greater Waterville area.

Members of the College community proved their commitment to community service in the greater Waterville area last Sat., April 19 during the twelfth annual Colby Cares Day. Groups of students participated in 20 different projects throughout central Maine, ranging from assisting at the Hart to Hart organic farm in Albion, trail maintenance at Goodwill Hinckley, clean-up at downtown favorite Ken-a-Set and organization at the South End bike swap.

The event was planned by the Colby Volunteer Center (CVC), a student-run organization that is part of the Goldfarb Center for Public Affairs and Civic Engagement. Celia Boren '08 is currently the director of the CVC. She planned the event with Assistant Directors Byron Meinerth '09, Sameera Anwar '10 and Steve Erario '10. Colby Cares Day is only one of the programs organized by the CVC. Each fall, the Center runs the "Halloween Extravaganza," in which local children are invited to campus to trick-or-treat and participate in other related activities. In addition to these one-time events, the CVC serves as an umbrella organization for ten weekly programs, including Paw Pals at the local Humane Society, Adults Reading to Children and Head Start, a program for pre-schoolers.

Despite sharing a similar name, Colby Cares Day is not affiliated with Colby Cares About Kids (CCAK). "I've heard people say the only effective way to volunteer on campus is through CCAK," Boren said. "But you can also volunteer with us."

According to Boren and Meinerth, Colby Cares Day has a dual purpose-getting students involved on-campus and focusing on outreach off-campus. "[Colby Cares Day] gets people involved who might never volunteer or know about CVC," Boren said. However, the event is about reaching beyond campus into the surrounding community. "Sometimes we focus just on what's going on here [on campus]," Meinerth said. "We are Watervillians as well, and it's important to accept both the benefits and responsibilities that go along with that role."

Dan Nolan '10 participated in the event by raking leaves at Waterville's Maine Children's Home. He agreed with Meinerth's sentiments. "It's really important to get out there," Nolan said. "The presence-not necessarily what you do-can really go a long way."

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