Dear University Service Day Participant,
THANK YOU for your interest in participating in the 12th Annual
University Service day. If you are a team leader, we thank you
for taking on the role of Team Leader and organizing a group
of 5 – 10 volunteers to serve together as part of our
12th annual St. John’s University Service
Day on Saturday, September 28, 2013.
Without your help, this day would not be
possible! These web pages will provide important
information for the event. Team
leaders:Please complete and return the enclosed
Team Registration Forms as soon as possible so that your
service site can be assigned and
confirmed.
What is University Service Day?
On this day, the St. John’s University family joins together to
serve our communities locally, nationally & globally…by serving
the hungry in soup kitchens, visiting residents at nursing homes,
engaging in fun activities with disadvantaged children, cleaning
and landscaping area parks, painting rooms in nearby schools and
community centers, and providing assistance with so many other
important projects. Working together in generosity and love as a
Vincentian Family, we show exactly “what a difference a day
makes!” Why Saturday, September
28th?As a Vincentian University, we celebrate
University Service Day on or around the feast day of St.
Vincent de Paul (September 27), whose compassion and zeal for
service continues to inspire so many to work towards social justice
and the reduction of poverty. This year, this special day will kick
off the start of St. John’s University’s Founder’s
Week, a week of events and programs dedicated to
deepening our knowledge and understanding of our Vincentian
heritage.
How many people participate, and where is it
held?
The first official University Service Day took place on
September 28, 2002, with 123 volunteers at 12 different locations
near the Queens, Manhattan and Staten Island campuses. The planning
for that day began with the Service Opportunity Council, created in
1998 by the University Vincentian Mission Council. Today, we
continue our commitment to a University-wide annual day of service
through the Office of the Executive Vice President for Mission and
Student Services. Last year, over 1,500 St. John’s
volunteers, made up of current students, alumni,
faculty, staff and administrators from each of our campuses (in the
United States and around the world), served in over 100 locations –
and we hope to increase that number this year … our
12th year … with your help!
We look forward to working with you to show “What a Difference a
Day Makes” as together we serve in the spirit of St. Vincent de
Paul!
With many thanks,
The 2013 University Service Day Planning Committee