Guest Column: ASUSU View
The Christmas lights, holiday sales, candy canes, Christmas trees, presents, and holiday cheer all accumulate to make up the holiday season. It seems as though Christmas time has turned into a frenzy of rushing around for college students.
We have to cram for finals, rush from store to store getting the best presents for our loved ones, stress out about Christmas parties, and have the most elaborate decorations. However, if we are not overcome with all the hustle and bustle, softly and sweetly, the true happiness of Christmas seems to still sparkle through when we are able to give service.
Many years ago, as a freshman here at USU, I was able to participate in Sub for Santa with many of my other colleagues. We collected gifts, toys, and food for a certain family living here in Logan, as well as decorated a tree to give to the family. One night, we caroled down the street to this families’ home. We knocked on the door, and there came out the father and mother of the family. With tears rolling down their faces, they whispered to us “”thank you,”” and then yelled to their kids, “come and see who’ was out there.” As the kids came outside to see who we were, they started screaming and yelling with holiday cheer.
The family welcomed us in, and as I started entering in the home with bags of toys, one of the little boys looked at up at me with big eyes and asked “are you Santa?” We enjoyed being able to give the family a Christmas and helped bring them unexpected joy. When the group of us left we were all filled with emotion and were glad we could help in such a small way.
Sub for Santa is once again being supported by USU. Students are uniting together as colleges to collect toys, food, and money for the first “Stuff-A-Bus” college competition this year. This is only one effort USU students can make to bring Christmas joy to hundreds of children throughout Cache Valley. Many clubs are also decorating trees for “Christmas Tree Lane” to give to families without trees of there own this Christmas season.
USU has been involved with many different service projects for many years. Helping spread Christmas joy is just one example of what students can do to help serve. This year, USU donated 880 pints of “Type A” blood during the blood battle against U of U. As a university united together, funds for Katrina relief were collected and donated for many weeks. Many students have helped with special Olympic games, participants assist in the best buddies program, students helped with “trick or treat for cans,” and several have donated time and money to the families of the students that were killed in the tragic accident earlier this year. These are just a few of the things USU students have done softly and sweetly, helping spread Christmas joy all year long.
There are many different students giving to service organizations and secretly serving those around them day after day. As ASUSU, to this we say “Go Aggies”. This is what makes USU students great. After finals are over and all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season is done, it is our service and the feeling of joy we can bring to so many that will be remembered. So students we urge you to keep up in Aggie tradition and take the opportunity to serve.
Belinda Schultz is the 2005-06 ASUSU Service Center Vice President.