By CONOR SHEA
Executive Editor
Students were up early this past weekend to participate in the 18th year of Reach Out Saint Rose, and as always they came prepared to show the community the best of Saint Rose.
Volunteers gathered in the Nolan gymnasium at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, September 6, and listened to words of advice and thanks from a number of key individuals from the Saint Rose community.
Father Chris DeGiovine, the dean of spiritual life, and Joan Horgan, the director of campus ministry, addressed the students, both of whom played an integral role in planning the event.
President Carolyn Stefanco spoke as well, thanking the students for their work with the community.
After much cheering, everyone ventured out to their buses and were sent off to an estimated 57 agencies and locations in need of assistance.
Lisa Thompson, assistant vice president for public relations said that she recalls when Reach Out was nothing more than a handful of students gathering on the quad.
Reach Out has certainly changed since then, as the number of students who signed up was more than 1,000. Despite this jump in signatures from the previous year, the final count of actual student attendees was much lower (closer to the 800 count of previous years) according to final estimations from those involved with the planning.
Edwards Grimescarrion, an employee of Habitat Re-Store, one of the locations students were sent to, said he has worked with Saint Rose students in the past, and they were a great help, calling their work “phenomenal.”
“I think it shows the dedication to the community and the desire to help and make a difference,” he commented, on the large turnout to their location.
Grimescarrion further commented on the work ethic of the students, saying that he hadn’t encountered a single one asking for breaks, or being reluctant to take on certain tasks.
“Everyone has been safe, they understand the instructions so you don’t have to hold their hands; I think it says a lot about the way the students choose to conduct themselves.”
Allee Vonstackelberg, a junior at Saint Rose, has attended Reach Out twice, and this year decided to work as a team leader to help others have a positive experience from the event.
“It’s fantastic to see the youth involved with the community, and it’s not just helping people in their own communities, its people from all over.”
Matthew Vincent, a senior, was another repeat volunteer for Reach Out.
“Reach Out is an awesome experience, it allows the entire Saint Rose community to give back, and I thought it was great the first two times, so why not do a third.”
Erica Cawthon, a junior, chose to volunteer because it meant something personal to her.
“In my life I’ve had many people donate their time, supplies, and heart to assist me. It’s a blessing to have the opportunity to do the same for others,” she continued.
Elizabeth Zahdan, the executive office manager of the Anur Islamic School, a volunteer location, said it was great to have help this year.
“I was hoping for a lot of volunteers during the summer, but unfortunately very few showed up.”
She explained that because of the lack of independent volunteers over the summer they had to start the school with a lot of work done that it desperately needed.
Much like at other volunteer locations, those at the Anur school helped out with various tasks that required a large volume of helpers, like cleaning up the garden and entrances, painting the interior, and moving old equipment out of the building.
“You guys were a dream come true,” said Zahdan.
Joan Horgan said that the best part of Reach Out Saint Rose, and the reason she continues to be involved with it, is that the students’ hard work makes her proud.
“Their generosity, with wanting to be a part of this really makes me smile,” said Horgan, with a smile of her own.
