Back in my first article at the beginning of the year, I invited all of you to ‘mend what was broken.’
Here it is May, and you are getting ready to end another year of college. It is hard to believe. Some will be graduating, others amazed that another year of college has gone by so fast.
But, as I look back on the year, you all have made a huge difference in others’ lives. It started off with reaching out to the flood victims right here in Northeast PA. One hundred sixty-three students went to help, day after day, family after family.
Fall Fest came and it was time to reach out to the students in our area who are less fortunate than we are. Again you stepped up to the plate. Then came the families in our area at Thanksgiving time. Individuals, clubs and offices fed more than 160 families. The next holiday arrived and Christmas brought gifts for the elderly, children, and the homeless on the Christmas Giving Tree. Hundreds of gifts arrived in Campus Ministry to be given out to the needy.
Second semester arrived only to bring more opportunities to reach out and touch another person. The men’s and women’s basketball game on Feb. 1 helped raise over $350 for Malaria nets for children in Africa to keep them from getting the dreaded disease. Lent began the Rice Bowl Project from Catholic Relief Services raising almost $1,100 for development projects here and abroad. Cinderella’s Closet helped young women here at home with prom dresses that they would not be able to buy on their own, to give them a night they would never forget. Food Drives throughout the year have helped fill the empty shelves in our area’s food pantries.
All of these things and more (your clubs service projects, your own service hours, service trips, ongoing service projects to name a few) have enriched the lives of so many.