Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and Community Outreach and Opportunity Project (COOP) joined forces this month to volunteer at local organizations for the D3 Week of Service, a conference-wide community service competition.
The goal was to gather as many hours of service as possible from April 2 to April 8. Hamilton had 128 athletes participate, and they amassed 300 hours of hands-on volunteer service during the seven-day event.
“This amount of work done in just seven days and huge participation is outstanding and far more than we could've expected,” said Julia Booth ’19, SAAC vice president. “I think athletes visibly recognized the direct impact they had on the local community -- something that can be very meaningful and eye-opening, and I am so pleased that we could provide that opportunity to people.”
Athletes volunteered at The Neighborhood Center, Thea Bowman House, Utica Dance, The House of the Good Shepherd, Special Olympics Rome, Rome Humane Society and Kirkland Arts Center, among others.
“In working with the COOP, we connected with community partners that HAVOC and our service clubs on campus do a lot of regular service with, so hopefully our athletes will feel that they can reach out again if they enjoyed those opportunities,” said Booth. “Overall, I think it was a really positive experience for everyone involved, and we are looking forward to continuing the tradition in the future.”
Community Outreach Board member Caroline Chivily ’19, Matt Kastilahn ’18 ( SAAC communications coordinator), Katie McKillop ’19, Eleni Neyland ’18 (COOP Senior Fellow), and Booth spearheaded the week.
