By Kim Friel
Student Life Editor
The Elm would like to put the student spotlight on sophomore Jesse Schaefer this week. Schaefer is an inspiration to not just college students, but to society in general as she makes volunteering her passion.
Schaefer is the president of the service council and has been actively involved with the club since her first semester of college back in the fall of 2008.
“When I first joined the Service Council,” Schaefer said, “it was a very small club in an awkward transition stage. In my second semester here, my roommate, [junior] Leah Sbriscia, and I were appointed as co-chairs of the Council along with [junior] Catherine Rappole, who showed us the ropes.” With Sbriscia abroad this semester, Schaefer has taken on the position of president of the club.
Schaefer and other members of the service council have made improvements to the club this year by implementing a new structure. There are now local, national, and global committees.
“Each committee is headed by two committee heads. This way we can host more events on campus which cover the entire spectrum of community service,” said Schaefer.
Next year, the service council will be adding a fourth committee, the campus committee, which will concentrate on holding events on campus that will serve to benefit the Chestertown and Kent County community.
When asked if she had any favorite service activity, Schaefer said that she likes all the service projects the committee does, but that it is “especially rewarding when you can see the effects of your efforts first hand.”
Some examples of these activities for her are staying around the Chestertown area and volunteering at the Humane Society or tutoring at the middle school.
Other events that the service council is involved with are the bi-annual blood drives held on campus, the book drives throughout the school year, and the highly successful Senior Citizen Valentine’s Day Dance held this past February.
“We would love to have a mixture of annual events and new events each year,” said Schaefer. “So much of what we do is based on individuals’ ideas, so if someone has a plan, we give them the venue and the money to carry it out. We are always looking for innovative ideas and new service organizations to work with, but we also need leaders who are willing to devote time and energy to making these ideas into realities.”
If you are interested in getting involved and making a leader of yourself through the service council contact Jesse Schaefer at jschaefer2@washcoll.edu.