With about 261 volunteer groups, Athens County is a haven for philanthropy. And though not all college students are breaking through their campus bubbles, many at Ohio University are finding that the community surrounding them might need their help.
The Corporation for National and Community Service’s Volunteering in America report showed that volunteerism among college students is on the decline. The study found that the number of students doing service dropped from 31.2 percent in 2004 to 26.1 percent in 2010.
Ohio ranked 35th of all states in student involvement, with college students making up about 25 percent of Ohio’s 2.6 million volunteers in 2010.
But a few philanthropists are fighting the fall, devoting enough hours to volunteering to call it a part-time job.
“So many times, we hear the stories about what students are doing that aren’t really productive, but I see so many students who want more than that,” said Melissa Wales, executive director of United Campus Ministries. “They want a deeper connection to their community and to give back to it.”
Each year brings a new potential bunch of young and handy helpers to the Athens nonprofit scene, but when asked about those who are taking service a bit more seriously, community organizers were quick to spout off names.
Emily Stephenson
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Eight-year-old Madeline Sadeghi has a biological older sister, but the locket she wears bearing “little sister” matches the one worn by someone she met two years ago.
Through one OU student, Sadeghi has found a confidant and best friend.
Emily Stephenson joined Big Brothers Big Sisters of Athens County in September 2010 and immediately hit it off with her little sister.
“We both had to write out what we wanted in our sisters. Everything that she had written down was exactly who I am and everything I wrote was exactly who she is,” Stephenson said.
A single mother of three, Lisa France signed up her children for the program, seeking someone to keep her kids company during her long hours of work.
“There are a lot of single parents who could use a program like this because it’s good to have an older person as a role model,” France said. “When you find a good college student that will put the time and effort into it, that makes it (worthwhile).”
France’s other two children have each been through several Big Brothers and Big Sisters since enrolling in the program, but Sadeghi and Stephenson have clicked from the start, France said.
The two non-biological sisters spend at least two hours per week together, hitting up Madeline’s favorite restaurant, the Court Street Diner; baking cookies; or chatting on the sidewalk of Stephenson’s college home.
“This is something I enjoy, so I make time for it,” Stephenson said. “It makes me feel important, like I have been vital to her growing up. I feel that I came into her life at an important time and that she’ll remember me when she’s older.”
Stephenson, a full-time college student studying early childhood education, has allocated at least 150 hours of her time to hanging out with her new sis in Athens, far exceeding the minimum requirement of four hours per quarter. France said Stephenson never fails to make regular phone calls to Sadeghi.
Eric Long, community program coordinator of Big Brothers Big Sisters’ Athens chapter, said up to 75 percent of its fewer than 100 volunteers are OU students.
Some just meet the minimum of four hours of service a month, and most fade out or swap siblings before too long, he said. But Stephenson is an exception.
“Students are ideal for Big Brothers Big Sisters because they’re able to go out and be active in working with the kids,” Long said.
Long said there are always 60 to 75 children on the waiting list for a substitute sibling in Athens County alone.
Considering the high demand, a handful of students, including Stephenson, have implemented a collegiate chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters that will be open to students next fall.
With Stephenson graduating and Sadeghi moving to South Carolina, the two are now facing a tough goodbye only softened by a gift from Madeline’s mother: a set of matching lockets declaring their lasting sisterhood.
“I think having college students’ insights can help community organizations grow,” Stephenson said, “because we can really bring new light into them and allow them to see things differently.”
Lindsay Gasche
Habitat for Humanity
Before most students are awake to nurse their hangovers, Lindsay Gasche is already hammering away on houses for area families in need.
For almost two years, the OU junior has spent every Saturday and Sunday working morning to afternoon on Habitat for Humanity sites around Athens.
“You get to know a lot of the regulars that come out and develop a respect for the people around where you live,” Gasche said. “When you’re out in the community, you see how your behavior affects more than just you and makes you actually think about what you’re doing before doing something stupid.”
Almost financially independent — only relying on her parents for cellphone bills and car insurance — Gasche devotes weekdays to her part-time job at Baker University Center Catering.
She reserves most of her free time for schoolwork and fulfilling her duties as the social chair for the campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity. Altogether, she devotes up to 12 hours of her busy week to Habitat houses that are hours away from her home.
“A lot of people are partying and stuff, but during the day, I’d rather be doing something productive with my time,” Gasche said. “And building a house is much more productive than burning a couch.”
There are more than 1,600 affiliates of Habitat for Humanity throughout the country, 22 of which are college chapters in Ohio.
Shea Daniels
United Campus Ministries
On any given Thursday night, 60 to 100 people file into the basement of United Campus Ministries, 18 College St., for a weekly supper that some would otherwise go without.
Each week, no fewer than 20 people — almost all students — maintain this 20-year tradition. Shea Daniels is one of the few volunteers who are there from the potato-peeling to the scraps-trashing, sometimes eight hours in a single night, and can recite the bulk recipe for cornbread on command.
“This is my community now,” Daniels said. “I believe in volunteering wherever you are.”
Wales said Daniels is paid through federal work-study for 10 hours per week but works at least double the time she’s compensated for.
Through her frequent presence at UCM, Daniels has become one of eight interns at the nonprofit, even though her studies in creative writing do not require any such thing.
“She goes above and beyond in her passion and commitment to her area,” Wales said. “She lives and breathes service. It is who she is.”
Besides starting a blog for UCM’s Better Together campaign, Daniels cofounded OU’s Future Women of Appalachia group, was heavily involved in an after-school program for Trimble Local Schools and also played a part in UCM’s Interfaith campaign — even helping remodel the building’s basement.
After being essential to UCM services and spending many of her youth years interacting with the children in the hospital where her father worked, Daniels is pursuing a career in community organizing upon graduating next week.
“There are different ways to think about service,” Daniels said. “It’s not just a physical economy, but a spiritual economy, too.”
oy311909@ohiou.edu
