The University of North Carolina chapter was active on campus and in the community this semester with several service projects. These projects were a way for the members to get involved and make a difference in the community.

Stop Hunger Now - Food Packing Event

Stop Hunger Now is an organization fighting to end hunger around the world. They provide meals to school children in impoverished areas and pack easy-to-prepare meals for disaster relief. SAL was involved in the initial fundraising efforts to raise money to purchase the vitamins, minerals, flavoring, soy, and rice to put together the meal packages. These fundraising events included change drives, wing-eating contests, balloon fights, and pie-in-professor’s face events.

SAL members joined over 100 volunteers to pack the meals. This included filling, weighing and sealing the bags. Together, they were able to pack enough bags for a total of 12,046 meals. This was a UNCC packing event record!

To learn how you can get involved with Stop Hunger Now, visit their website.

AIDS Walk

Several members participated in the AIDS Walk, an event organized by RAIN (Regional AIDS Interfaith Network). The money raised went to help this organization continue their mission of helping people living with AIDS. The members were able to finish off the semester in a great way by getting involved for a great cause.

To find out more about RAIN, visit their website.

For more information on the UNCC chapter, click here.

It is the main focus of SAL’s spring semester.  As a National Youth Affiliate, SAL has agreed to raise $100,000 in five years.  Two years into our partnership, we are already half-way to our goal! 

To learn more about Relay for Life, please visit this website: www.relayforlife.org.

The Big Event is a huge deal at Texas A&M University, where over 13,000 students participate each year. The SAL chapter brought out enough volunteers to have two groups. One was assigned to a house to wash windows and the other group did yard work at another house.

The James Madison University Chapter was assigned to the Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center called Crossroads, where they gardened, cleaned the house and installed insulation.

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln chapter was able to go to two different houses where they pulled weeds, raked leaves, cut down unwanted shrubbery and tidied up the lawns.

The Oklahoma State University Chapter also went to two different houses and raked leaves and washed windows for elderly couples.

The University of Central Oklahoma Chapter was assigned to help a nonprofit organization, Citizens Caring for Children. They formed an assembly line and put together bags which would be given to the participants of the Redbud Race, which is to benefit Citizens Caring for Children.

The Big Event provided SAL chapters with a way to make a difference in their community and help families and organizations that need a hand.

Adopting a street is a wonderful way for a SAL chapter to give back to their community while working together. The Southeastern Louisiana University Chapter regularly brings a group to their adopted street to pick up litter. This time they held a social after they were done as a way to celebrate the end of the semester.

Lindory Dyson, Chapter President, said that the project was a great way for members to bond as well as become more aware of littering. The chapter was able to make sure their adopted street was clean and looking great before they headed home for the summer.

To learn more about the SELU Chapter, click here.

Socials are a great way for SAL members to get to know each other while doing something fun together. Before a baseball game at Texas A&M University, the SAL chapter met for a tailgating social. They met in Bluebell Park and grilled hotdogs and had chips, snacks and sodas. The weather was great and the members had a great time enjoying the meal. After they finished eating, the group walked over to watch the baseball game.

To learn more about the Texas A&M Chapter, click here.

The James Madison University Chapter loves to have fun together! In addition to the service projects they do, they plan lots fun social activities to bring the group together.

Reddish Knob

On almost every JMU student’s list of things to do before they graduate is visit Reddish Knob, a mountaintop near campus. Students and organizations are allowed to paint on the pavement as a reminder of their trip to the top. Members added SAL’s touch to the mix of other organization names written on the pavement. The group had a great time hiking to the top and watching the sunset.

Egg Dyeing

Close to Easter, the group got together to dye eggs. They came up with colorful and creative ways to dye the eggs, even including SAL in the designs! They baked chocolate chip cookies while they got to know each other at this fun event.

Senior Cook-Out

As a way to say good-bye to graduating seniors and take a break from studying for finals, the group got together for a cook-out. They enjoyed hot dogs, hamburgers and desserts and participated in games and dancing. Before the fun was over, the graduating seniors signed the chapter book they had signed when they were initiated into the organization.

To learn more about the James Madison University Chapter, click here.

The chapter at James Madison University is known for unique and creative service projects that bring the chapter together to help out a good cause. The members had several opportunities this semester to get involved in projects on campus and in the community.

Puppy Visit

In true JMU fashion, the chapter found a fun community service project to do together. The members visited a nearby kennel where a JMU alumnus raises golden retrievers. The kennel welcomes students to come socialize with the dogs and puppies. This helps the dogs become comfortable around different types of people and develop good personalizing skills with humans and other dogs.

Members loved this event because not only were they able to do community service work, but they were able to cuddle and play with puppies. They felt like they had done something to help the dogs and had a lot of fun doing it!

The Big Event

The Big Event is a campus-wide event where students join together to participate in a day of service. Each year, the JMU Chapter forms a team and is assigned a project for the day. This year, the chapter was assigned to the Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center called Crossroads, where they gardened, cleaned the house and installed insulation.

This is a great event where students at JMU are able to give back to their community.

For more information on the James Madison University Chapter, click here.

The SAL chapter at Ohio University joined other students to “Keep Athens Beautiful” by participating in Athens Beautification Day. The day began with a pep rally featuring OU President Dr. Roderick McDavis and Mrs. McDavis, Athens Mayor Paul Wiehl, and Dean of Students Ryan Lombardi. Then groups of students headed off to their projects to work for a few hours. 

The members were assigned to work at a local park. They collected trash and pulled weeds from the flower beds. Altogether, the students who volunteered that day cleaned an area of about 5 square miles! Once they were done, the groups returned to campus to enjoy a light lunch provided by local businesses.

For more information on the SAL chapter at Ohio University, click here.

Many SAL chapters will hold social events each semester as a way for members to bond beyond the  time they have at meetings or service projects. The University of California Riverside Chapter went to a drive-in movie as a way to get to know each other and have fun as a group.

They met on campus and carpooled to the Drive-In. The cost of entry included two movies. They enjoyed snacks from the concession stand while watching the movies. This event was a lot of fun for all of the officers and members who attended. According to Laura Soto, Chapter Secretary, “This was a great way to get to know some of the members that we do not usually interact with on a one on one basis because of time restraints during meetings.”

To learn more about the University of California Riverside Chapter, click here.