Today@Dal

Volunteer spirit runs deep in the Dal community all 52 weeks of the year. But given that it’s presently National Volunteer Week, now’s as good an opportunity as any to celebrate that spirit.

Here are just a few Dal News stories from the past several months about the great volunteer and community work of Dal students:

• Dal SOS provides support at home and abroad
• Law students host Literary Moot for Halifax Humanities 101
• Blind dinner date: Pharmacy students host CNIB fundraiser with a twist
• Dal students volunteer their time at Out of the Cold shelter
• Dal Nursing and Dalplex collective drives to help families in need at the holidays
• Dentistry raising funds for dental kits for at-risk Haligonians
• Shirreff Hall students hosting murder mystery for breast cancer research
• Dal Tigers organize Special Olympians events on campus
• Residence community Day inspires volunteer spirit

Faculty and staff do their part too, involved in everything from United Way to Light the Night. In the most recent Workplace Survey, 61 per cent of Dal faculty and staff said they volunteer in the community outside of Dal, and 30 per cent volunteer their time on campus.

A desire to give back

Paulette Chiasson, administrative secretary in the Faculty of Arts, has a volunteer resumé that reads like a ‘what’s what’ of Halifax events: Tall Ships, Jazz Festival, beach volleyball competition, the Canada Winter Games, various sporting events and, her current passion, Bust a Move, which she does fundraising for. She also helped run the Terry Fox Run in Halifax for 17 years.

“I enjoy meeting different people,” she says. “It’s very social. You meet people who are doing great things for the community and who are building a great rapport for Halifax.”

Stephen Michels in the Faculty of Computer Science is president of the Board of Directors for Malagash Bible Camp, an organization he's been volunteering with for several decades.

"There is something very special about engaging in something not because it is you're paid to do it, but because you believe it matters to those who will benefit from it," he says. "I thoroughly enjoy the work I get to do."

That volunteer spirit extends to Dal alumni as well. Bill Chernin is Dal’s associate director, volunteerism with the Office of External Relations.

“We want to enhance the culture of volunteerism at Dal, to help our students and our alumni connect around their shared desire to build a better world,” he explains.

Through External Relations, alumni are connected with ways to give back on campus, helping with everything from Homecoming and student recruitment to mentorship opportunities — not to mention the DAA board and Dal’s alumni chapters. (And, of course, Dal’s Bold Ambitions campaign wouldn’t be possible without the leadership of its volunteer chairs across Canada.)

“Our alumni volunteers really love Dal, and want to contribute however they can,” he adds.

So make this time week to recognize some great volunteers in your life!