In this edition we interviewed Appalachian State University students while they were volunteering at The Watauga Humane Society, The Hospitality House and the Appalachian Theatre during the MLK Day of Service.
Transcript
Dave and Many Dogs Barking: On this Dave on the Mall we’re at the Watauga County Human Society as part of the MLK Day of Service. We’re talking to people about …haha it’s really loud! We’re talking to them about why service is important. What do you think sir? Why is service important?
Voice 1: Arf Arf
Dave: And what about you sir…why is service impor... (fade out)
Voice 2: I think service is important because it’s always necessary to give back to your community no matter what the extent. It’s always important to put back into the community so that every single part of the community can thrive as a whole.
Voice 3: Service is important to me just because you know we are a pretty selfish type of people so I think you know sometimes its good to get and out and just be able to go around an help out other people and realize what we do have. I think it makes us be appreciative of what we do have.
Voice 4: Service is important because we forget how blessed we really are and start to take things for granted. If you take the time to come out and do service to others it really helps you be thankful and appreciative and realize how blessed we are and because we’re blessed we need to give back to other people that aren’t as fortunate as we are.
Voice 5: I think service is important because you’re using the opportunity that was given to you or that you fought for or stuggled for or that your ancestors fought for to help someone else get that help up. It’s like about bringing people up.
Voice 6: Who is taller than me that can fix the curtain? Haha
Dave: After the Humane Society we headed on over to the Hospitality House where there were quite a few students helping out and cleaning up and we spoke with them and got their answers as well.
Voice 7: I think service is important because everyone needs help in the community. Instead of just wasting our time we can all get out and help each other.
Voice 8: Service is important to me because it just gives back to the community. Everyone always has someone in their life that does something for them and you always need to give back.
Voice 9: Service is important to me because I think that it’s all about giving back to the community. I think local things like this are really great too because people think they have to go away really far to make an impact but everywhere needs help. I think it’ s awesome that so many students are out here on this day off just wanting to serve. I think it’s great.
Voice 10: Okay I cannot lift this up over my head.
Voice 11: Yeah don’t take it down stairs yet just put them against the wall.
Dave: And then it was off to King Street downtown Boone The Appalachian Theatre some students were helping clean the inside of the theatre and also move some stuff from storage back into the theatre. We chatted with them as well.
Voice 12: Service is important because it allows us to put ourselves into other positions that we might not get to see everyday. It expands our horizons and makes us appreciate the smaller things.
Voice 13: Well I think that service is really important. It’s important to me because my personal philosophy is I feel that we were put on this earth to do good and to just spread that joy and so I’ve always taken this day off and slept in. Just lately I’ve been thinking a lot about what am I doing with my life and my impact and just knowing that I can do something to better the community. So the Appalachian Theatre hopefully later on this year will be shown for people to come and fundraise and contribute money toward the bigger project and hopefully this will be open in 2017 and so its good to know that just us clearing this basement will be helping them get there for that.
Dave: It was a truly awesome day of service. There were students from all walks of life all coming together giving their time for great causes all over Watauga County. Now, one thing we did notice was that the ratio of women to men was like eight to one. I don’t know where the fellas were but they didn’t seem like they were participating in the MLK Day of Service…at least not like the ladies were. Granted we did only go to three locations but even at the sign up it seemed like there were way more women than men. So I kind of have to call the guys out. Maybe you didn’t give of your time this year fellas. There’s always next year! But you don’t have to wait until next year there are plenty of non-profits and other worthy causes all over this area that could really use your help. A great resource for finding your organization that you volunteer with is the ACT office. Go online to act.appstate.edu. It was a great MLK Day of Service. Thanks to everyone who participated. I am Dave Blanks from Dave on the Mall and I will talk to you next time.
Thanks to: Reginald, Josh, Shannon, Mallory, Anna, Brandon, Liz, Carolyn, Casey, Stephanie, Katie and Danielle.
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About Appalachian State University
As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls nearly 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.
