Whether it be fulfilling a community service duty or just having the willingness to help the campus and community, The Newman Catholic Center offers a variety of ways to give a little of yourself back to others.

In 1993, The Newman Catholic Center developed a student volunteer center to service the entire university community and to provide volunteer opportunities for students, said Holly Walters, campus minister and volunteer coordinator.

The student volunteer center has since then changed and evolved into a service that students can really utilize, Walters said.

Students who are interested in doing volunteer work can contact Walters and look at a three ring binder that she has put together with names of businesses and organizations in the Charleston community that need and use volunteers.

After interested students inquire about the information, they are then on their own in contacting the businesses or organizations to see about volunteering. However, The Newman Catholic Center does offer some in-house volunteer services.

One of those services is Alternative Spring Break. “It’s a really big thing,” Walters said. Alternative Spring Beak consists of trips to various sites across the country during the week of Spring Break. The trips cost a minimal fee and students are able to travel and volunteer at a destination of their choice.

Another way to volunteer would be through the center’s Haiti Connection. The Haiti connection is The Newman Catholic Center’s link to the third world, Walters said. “(The Haiti Connection) raises awareness about third world issues,” she said.

Volunteers involved in the Haiti Connection participate in activities year-round, such as fund raisers. Volunteers also take two emersion trips a year. The trips are in December and May and include traveling to do volunteer work in Haiti.

“(Volunteers) work in hospice situations, orphanages and visit our sister community, Barassa,” Walters said. “(Volunteers) check on projects there, like our water purification project. The water is really bad there. People use the same water to take baths, do laundry and for drinking water.”

The Haiti Connection’s water purification project is titled, “Buckets for Life.” Buckets are made by a company in Florida and are purchased for $15 a piece. These buckets are a kind of filtering system for residents of Haiti can use to purify their drinking water.

The Eastern Illinois University Campus Chapter of Habitat for Humanity also gives students opportunities to volunteer. Habitat for Humanity functions as a campus chapter and is one of over five hundred Campus Chapters across the country, Walters said.

Habitat for Humanity at Eastern has three main functions: to help with local affiliates in helping to build or rehabilitate homes, to raise campus and community awareness about inadequate housing issues and to raise funds for the work of Habitat for Humanity.

Throughout the year the Campus Chapter of Habitat for Humanity works on refurbishing existing housing and building new homes for those in need in Coles County, Walters said. Work projects are scheduled on Saturdays so that all members can attend.

The Campus Chapter of Habitat for Humanity carries out a variety of different fund raisers throughout the year. Some fund raisers include working with other non-profit organizations, hosting a Christmas Tree Sale, trick-or-treating for change in the Charleston community and selling Habitat merchandise, Walters said.

The Newman Catholic Center also offers after school tutoring to local at-risk youth twice a week for ten weeks each semester. Volunteers are needed to work with these children, Walters said. “College students are paired up with the youth and do homework and activities along with tutoring and mentoring the students,” Walters said.

Episodic Volunteer Opportunities is another area where volunteers are needed at The Newman Catholic Center, Walters said. Episodic volunteering consists of taking a weekend and doing such things as working in local homeless shelters and Christmas caroling in local nursing homes.

“We just do these regularly throughout the year,” Walters said. “If a student comes forward and wants to lead one of these programs – great!”

For more information on these volunteer organizations, contact The Newman Catholic Center at 348-0230