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Volunteer fair celebrates community service with activities
By Michael Canfield
On September 12, 2012
Community organizations from across the Buffalo area filled the Campbell Student Union Quad during
Bengal Pause Tuesday as part of the Volunteer and Service Learning Center's Volunteer Fair and Sept. 11
National Day of Service.
Thirty-four organizations took part in the fair, with 10 organizations bringing activities for students to
work on, said Laura Hill Rao, volunteer and service learning coordinator. The community organizations
present for the fair represented a wide array of services, from mental health organizations like Crisis
Services to organizations that provide food to the hungry, like Friends of the Night People.
While the fair is an annual event, this year is different for a few reasons, Rao said.
"We've always had a volunteer fair," she said. "This year, we wanted to expand to support the Sept. 11
National Day of Service."
Another difference from past years was the inclusion of activities for students to work on at the fair, Rao
said.
"We wanted the organizations to not only table, but to bring along projects students could work on and
give to the greater good," she said.
Activities included painting boats for Hoyt Lake in Delaware Park, building birdhouses, making rape kits
and making origami birds.
"There were a variety of different projects," Rao said. "We're thrilled with the response from the
organizations. We expected five activities, and we got 10."
Ben Bissell from the Westminster Economic Development Initiative, a group providing financial backing
for refugees looking to start businesses, didn't expect to speak with as many students as he did.
"It's great to be able to talk to students," he said. "I was surprised by the turnout. I didn't expect a lot.
I'm very pleased with student response."
Bissell, a former student at Buffalo State, first began working in the community during his time at the
college. He's happy to extend similar opportunities to current students.
"I was a student here, and one of the best experiences I had was getting involved in the community," he
said. "It's highly, highly beneficial to have this event."
Students, for their part, seemed to enjoy the chance to take part in hands-on projects. Deven Parikh, a
junior computer information systems major, found out about the fair online and decided to check it out.
He spent most of his time working on the boats for Hoyt Lake.
"I just want to give back to the community," he said. "Being a transfer student, I just want to get to
know the community here and the city."
Overall, the fair exceeded expectations by attracting over 300 students, Rao said. The new format for
the fair just might stick.
"It's really exciting," she said. "I'd like to try to keep this model of the organizations bringing along
projects in the future."
Michael Canfield can be reached by email at Canfield.record@live.com.
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