Students tie quilts, paint toys as part of service blitz
Students volunteered by using their talents to tie quilts and paint toys in the Taggart Student Center Sunburst Lounge on Tuesday as part of the service blitz for Homecoming Week.
The service project was organized by the United Campus Volunteers to donate quilts and toys to children in Mexico for Christmas.
Heather Bankhead, a senior majoring in family finance and director of UCV, said they were looking for a project for Homecoming Week and the quilts were left over from Quilting on the Quad. Deseret Industries donated materials for the quilt, and the Happy Toy Factory supplied toys that needed to be painted.
The service project was advertised using posters and sending e-mails to those on their “huge e-mailing list,” Bankhead said.
Laughs were heard and stories were told by the volunteers as they dipped their brushes into the paint and gave the wooden toys a new look. The volunteers sat around two tables with a plastic sheet beneath them protecting the carpet.
Camilla Evans, a senior majoring in elementary education, said she heard about the project through e-mail. Evans painted toys for the project.
“It’s fun detailing a mini-van for a child somewhere in Mexico” she said.
Mike Vilven, a freshman majoring in flight technology, said he has enjoyed doing service projects during Derby Days, so he volunteered for the blitz. He said it was great to do something for others without pay.
“It’s better than sitting around the house,” Vilven said. “I get to spend time with friends and meet new people while engaging in fun activities.”
Holly Lehnhausen, a freshman majoring in sociology, said being involved in service makes it easier to meet “outstanding people.” She said she wanted to be involved and knew service would be a great experience.
“Service attracts people who want to serve and help others, it creates a great atmosphere,” she said.
Two quilts were near the toy tables as five volunteers tied the quilts together.
Stefani Carroll, a junior majoring in elementary education, was a volunteer helping with the quilts.
Carroll said she knows people living in Mexico and that gives her more desire to quilt for “whoever in Mexico.” She said she never had a bad experience doing service.
“It always makes you feel like you’re doing something important in life,” Carroll said.
Abby Cram, a freshman majoring in nursing, said her friend was going to paint cars as a service project and she wanted to participate. She said she doesn’t believe she is artistic enough for her task, but it is well worth her efforts.
“I won’t be able to see their faces but I can imagine how happy they’ll be,” Cram said. “Anything is worth making a kid smile.”
-srkrebs@cc.usu.edu