Kent State volunteers got up bright and early to help at many locations in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Hillel at Kent State’s Day of Service.

More than 170 volunteers gathered and broke off into small groups. They spent the morning visiting the elderly, creating crafts and making meals for those in need at locations including Campus Kitchen.

“Here at Campus Kitchen, we make roughly 260 to 500 meals each week to bring to shelters,” said Missy Hendrix, senior public health major and frequent helper of Campus Kitchen. “It’s fun to see all the volunteers come out and help.”

Students and faculty were put to work, enjoying each other’s company, making delicious food and remembering what the day was all about.

“This day has been very important about getting caught up and writing papers, but my husband and I like this day to work with the community,” said Eboni Pringle, interim dean of Kent State Undergraduate Studies. “We love being able to use our energies to give to others and also to grow our community.”

Pringle said she used this opportunity to meet students that she normally wouldn’t have the chance to interact with.

“To me, that helps me to do a better job at what I do because I work with my students,” Pringle said. “My whole goal is around students.”

Aside from professors spending their day off volunteering, campus sorority members chose to participate and said they would like to spend more time volunteering.

Freshman chemistry major Courtney Buraczewski said she decided to volunteer, not only to spend time with her sorority sisters, but also to give back to the community.

“I volunteered at Campus Kitchen before, and through Circle K, I learned about this service opportunity and it seemed like a good use of my day,” sophomore fashion design major Tracy Vollbrecht said. “It’s definitely nice to both volunteer and cook and bake because it’s kind of combining both of my passions.”

Senior communication studies major Megan Carrasco said it’s nice to meet people and be out volunteering with others.

“I got elected into USG this year, and it’s been nice to see what this campus has to offer and knowing that we have other programs and opportunities to give back to the community,” Carrasco said.

Toward the end of the morning, each person had to pull a piece of paper with a question on it from a bag. Each question reflected on community service and how to use your time wisely.

Many of the participants said they wish they would sacrifice their time more to helping others. After having the experience on the MLK Day of Service, they said they all plan on doing just that.

The Campus Kitchen is located on the second floor of Beall Hall. It is constantly looking for volunteers and encourage everyone to get involved. Volunteers make food on Wednesdays and Thursdays and then deliver it to the shelters every Friday.

Contact Lydia Taylor at [email protected].