JEREMY WECHSLER Students flock to the Community Service exhibits in front of the Campus Center.

Services Chances Attract Students By Juliet Ide Contributing Writer Painting a house on a Saturday morning may not sound like an exciting part of the weekend, but it is just one of many community services activities in which Wesleyan students participate. The large turnout in the Community Services Fair on Wednesday proved that within the Wesleyan student body there is a lot of interest in helping others.

Why would a Wesleyan student want to get involved in service in the first place? Barb Miller, Director of the local "I Have a Friend Youth Center", said that service gives people an altruistic outlook.

"Service is a basic kind of thing, and giving a basic and necessary skill like reading and writing to someone else can give [you] a lot of personal satisfaction," she said.

Many representatives from service organizations were on hand in front of the Campus Center, including Kim O’Rourke, Coordinator for Middletown Recycling.

"Getting involved in recycling is an extremely popular choice among Wesleyan students", O’Rourke said.

She mentioned that many students like to get involved in Swap Shop, which sells all sorts of used items. And as a bonus, "students can even take a few things they might want home with them", she said.

Working with disabled citizens is another common volunteering choice.

Harbor Hill Care, located at 111 Church Street, is a residential long-term care and rehabilitative service for the elderly. They are recruiting for many types of volunteer work, including recreation, therapeutic work, artistic performances, and even some non-traditional programs, according to representative Dawn Kaplan.

"Simply helping to feed an elderly person, by painstakingly lifting their spoon to their mouth, could really give that individual a sense of dignity," Kaplan said.

Harbor Hill Care is attempting a new non-traditional program, which is in its beginning stages. The goal is to get local children and senior citizens to mix, increasing contact between the generations.

Another group trying to pick up support was the Girl Scouts. Girls, and even guys, are needed to run troops or to simply plan a day of activities with kids. Pat Sidoti, a local leader for the Middletown area, said that once a whole sorority at Wesleyan decided to adopt a troop.

"It’d be nice if that happened again," she said.

Wesleyan has many resources on campus to encourage student involvement.

The Office of Community Services is a think tank meant to provide structure to the experience of service, while giving the student room to explore and create. Frank Kuan, director of community services, said many students complement their academics with volunteer services that fit into their area of interest, major or career.

"It is a liaison between students and the Middletown community; it is a resource," he said. "Students can get to know Middletown better."

Kuan went on to explain that Wesleyan has had a long tradition of service with Middletown because of its roots in the Methodist Church.

"Service was a concept central to Methodist thinking—that commitment has lived on," Kuan said.

Those willing to commit a lot of time can live in Community Services House. Members are required to do individual service projects on a weekly basis. They also organize activities for Wesleyan, such as "Christmas in April."

"We want to strengthen service at Wesleyan and reach out to the Middletown Community," said house manager Nellie Zupanzic ’00.