Dixie State University Students Make a Difference
"Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can change the world" - Howard Zinn
When it comes to running a non-profit organization, it becomes apparently rather quickly that it just isn't possible without the help of people that want to make a difference in their small corner of the world, and who choose to do so by volunteering their time. Nonprofits like ours exist on the collaborative effort of tens, hundreds, and sometimes thousands of these people. We exist because of the efforts of everybody from the head of the organization to the communities and individuals we serve. As the quote above states, 'small acts, when multiplied, can change the world.' On August 15, we witnessed what is possible when people come together inside a shared commitment.
One of our goals here at Cherish Families is to collaborate and support the health of our clients and their communities. As part of this effort, we are exciting to see the Creek Valley Health Clinic taking shape in Colorado City. To further these efforts, the freshman students at Dixie State University drove up by the busload, ready with smiles on their faces to volunteer with our organization and turn the clinic into something the community can be proud of. It's worth noting that these young men and women are high caliber individuals driven by a desire to serve and make a difference, and today they did just that.
At 10:00 on August 15th four busloads of students from Dixie State University pulled into the parking lot of the Cherish Families resource center. One hundred and sixty seven volunteers pulled up in those buses, and every one of them came eager to get the job done. We started the day with a brief presentation by Shirlee Draper. As soon as the presentation completed, the students got to work, but they didn't just stay at our resource center. Many of them went to the Creek Valley Health Clinic to lay sod; others went to Water Canyon school to work with kids, having conversations and reading with them. Still others went to work on a home that is in the process of being remodeled, and a group stayed with us to work in our resource center. Those volunteers got in, got to work, and got the job done!
When we combined the total hours of all of these incredible volunteers, we found that between them all they had given us more than eight hundred and thirty hours. Eight hundred and thirty! And they accomplished so much in just one day. We are proud of them for their hard work and willingness to just jump in and get things done, and we are grateful that they spent the day here in Colorado City and gave us so much of their time.
As stated above, we couldn't run without the help of volunteers, so to these volunteers we say 'thank you!' Thank you for all that you've provided us, and all that you've given the community. You are all amazing!
We put together a photo gallery of the day, so if you'd like to see more photos click on the pictures or follow this link.
Click the image above to access the photo gallery for August 15th DSU volunteer projects
