How faculty and staff can get involved during Northeastern’s Day of Service
On Oct. 4, Boston-based faculty and staff are invited to give back to the community by cleaning up gardens or cheering on walkers in the annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer fundraiser.
What does giving back to the community mean to you?
Would you prefer to cheer on walkers fundraising for a good cause or prepare a community garden for the winter?
The choice is yours during Northeastern’s annual day of service in Boston Oct. 4.
Like students, faculty and staff signing up to volunteer that day have a variety of options.
They include tending to green spaces and gardens where Bostonians grow vegetables and flowers or lining the streets to encourage participants in the “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” fundraising event.
“Being part of a community means showing up and giving back,” says Nancy Watkins, assistant director of community service and civic engagement at Northeastern.
“Depending on the service site, you might cheer on breast cancer survivors, support older adults tending their gardens, or partner with students and staff at local community colleges, all while building meaningful relationships beyond campus,” she says.
The kickoff for all events except Making Strides will take place at the West Village quad, where volunteers will be provided with a light breakfast, meet team leaders and participate in icebreakers.
For Making Strides, team leaders will coordinate directly with volunteers to confirm the meeting location.
Volunteers will also receive MBTA passes to get to and from their service project. Lunch will be served after the morning’s activities, which are part of Northeastern’s global service week, Watkins says.
Those who select to volunteer in gardens will have the opportunity to learn how to prepare planting beds for fall crops or winter as well as to discover the historic roots of Boston’s community gardens.
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Take, for instance, the Fenway Victory Gardens.
It is billed as one of only two remaining continuously operating World War II victory gardens in the U.S., and the only one to have operated without a break in the same location it occupied during the war.
Another option for volunteers who want to exercise—or grow—their green thumb is to weed and clean up beds at the Roxbury Community College Civic Engagement Garden, a welcoming green space that provides learning and gathering opportunities for the local community college community.
At the Symphony Road Community Garden, a neighborhood green space tucked in the heart of Boston, garden coordinators will oversee volunteers as they clean common areas and prepare for fall planting.
Volunteers will also work alongside local gardeners at the Newcastle Saranac Community Gardens, one of the oldest garden sites along the Southwest Corridor Parkway.
Faculty, staff and students who select the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event will line the walk route to cheer on participants and survivors as they complete their two or six-mile journey to raise funds and awareness for breast cancer research and patient support.
Watkins says the day of service “is a chance to step outside the classroom and office and connect with the vibrant Boston community.” Volunteers can sign up for a Day of Service on Instagram or this hyperlink.
“All participants across the network campuses can earn a Global Service Week badge, which can be shared on social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, or included in an email signature,” Watkins says.
She says once a service site reaches capacity, it is removed from the registration list.