By Kelly O’Brien

Instead of reserving Saturday for snoozing, nearly 200 Bradley University students reserved spots as volunteers for the monthly Service on Saturday program to complete projects throughout the Peoria area on March 8.  Read more to learn about Service on Saturday and view a map of where students volunteered in March.

Bradley students devote Saturday to volunteering in Peoria area

PEORIA, Ill. — A Saturday morning stroll through campus at Bradley University typically features a soundtrack of silence as students snore into the afternoon.  But one Saturday in March, several students set their alarms for soon after sunrise.  These early risers were out serving the Peoria community as part of the monthly volunteer event Service on Saturday before campus cafeterias started serving breakfast

A student-coordinated program, Service on Saturday sends volunteers to local agencies once a month during the academic year.

“[Service on Saturday] offers a valuable resource for community agencies,” said Jessica Chandler, director of the Lewis J. Burger Center for Student Leadership and Public Service.  “In some cases, projects volunteers are working on are projects the agency doesn’t have the time or people power to get done.  We are providing the bodies to help get projects done.”

This month’s program provided more than 730 hours of service for 16 different projects with local agencies, including Catholic Charities, Habitat for Humanity, South Side Mission and others.  Photos from some of the projects are available here.

One project required renovating the East Bluff Community Center, which opened in Jan. 2013.  Maggie Thon, a sophomore at Bradley, led a group of volunteers who painted door frames inside the building.

Volunteers paint door frames at the East Bluff Community Center Saturday March 8.

“I got involved with Service on Saturday because I love to give back to the community,” Thon said.  “It provides me with the opportunity to make a difference in the surrounding area.”

The number of students wanting to make a difference has grown greatly in the program’s three-year history.  Since its first event in April 2011, the award-winning program has experienced a 140-percent increase in student participation, according to data collected from Bradley University.

Chandler believes participating in Service on Saturday allows students to learn about and impact the community they call home while attending Bradley.

“I always tell students that the Peoria community is now their community for the next four years.  They should be giving back and leaving our area a little better than how it was when they arrived.”

Chloe Vezinaw, a senior at Bradley, has helped the Peoria community throughout her academic career thanks to Service on Saturday.

“It has exposed me to so many agencies and people that need help,” she said.  “And I love that I am able to work with other people to achieve a common goal.”

Maggie Thon may only be in her second semester at Bradley, but she has already seen how she and other students can positively impact their community through Service on Saturday.

“Each Service on Saturday makes Peoria a better place,” she said.  “It is incredibly rewarding to be able to extend your service to others, and everyone should make a point of doing so.”

To register for the next Service on Saturday on April 12, fill out this form.

The reach of Service on Saturday 

To see the 16 locations throughout the Peoria area where volunteers completed projects for March’s Service on Saturday, view this map.