Spartans Start the Year with Service Aug. 22

On Friday, Aug. 22, University of Tampa students will start the academic year off by giving back to the Tampa Bay community during the University’s annual day of service, Into the Streets. The event is scheduled from 12:30–5:30 p.m., and volunteers will gather in the Vaughn Center Courtyard before loading into buses to volunteer at one of several sites in the community.

Dean of Students Stephanie Russell Krebs said because UT has a high number of students that aren’t from this area, Into the Streets offers a great opportunity to introduce them to the surrounding Tampa Bay community.

“We would like them to be knowledgeable about the need in their direct community so that they continue to be engaged in the communities that they will live in, in the future,” said Krebs.

Into the Streets has become a UT tradition and is open to all students, faculty and staff. Organizers are expecting around 300 participants

“I love that Into the Streets brings together so many likeminded individuals and unites them as members of the UT community as well as the greater Tampa Bay community,” said Bekah Vigil ’16, president of the PEACE Volunteer Center, which is organizing the event. “It is a great opportunity for students to explore some of their personal interests and find resources in the community that can support their professional development and future careers.”

Volunteers will work at more than 20 nonprofit organizations in the Tampa Bay community, including:

Advocates for World Health — Sorting medical supplies
American Cancer Society: Hope Lodge
Animal Coalition of Tampa — Cleaning up and restoring building from fire damage
Boys and Girls Club of Tampa Bay
Centre for Women
Champions for Children — Cleaning and landscaping
Cornerstone Family Ministries — Helping out in classrooms and organizing materials
Cracker Country — Cleaning building exterior
Easter Seals Florida Inc. — Landscaping and interacting with kids
Glazer Children's Museum
Habitat for Humanity — ReStore sorting
Human Development Center — Interior painting
Humane Society of Tampa Bay
It's All About Kids — Tutoring, reading to children
Metropolitan Ministries
The Spring of Tampa Bay — Sorting in thrift store
Seniors in Service
Sustainable Living Project — Gardening
Tampa Heights Community Garden — Replacing wood in raised beds
Trinity Café — Cleaning kitchen appliances
Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful — Beautification at Al Lopez Park

For more information, contact the PEACE Volunteer Center at (813) 253-6263.

Post about your experience using #utampa. This event is part of UT’s #TrekUT Challenge. To earn four points, take a picture with a PEACE site leader and tag the PEACE Volunteer Center. For more information on #TrekUT, go to www.ut.edu/trekut.