As a college students, it is easy to get caught up in all the requirements and responsibilities needed just to make it to graduation. However, some Grand Valley State University students took a break from that to help out those in need in their community.

An estimated 350 Lakers participated in national Make a Difference Day on Oct. 17. The students worked with 19 different organizations from the area, ranging from retirement communities to the John Ball Zoo.

Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell kicked off the event on the Allendale Campus with the help of GVSU President Thomas Haas and student senate President Maddie Cleghorn. Participants were then released to their various work locations until 3 p.m.

Brendan Gallagher, graduate assistant at GVSU’s Laker Leadership Programs, said the event was an opportunity for any student to make a difference through direct service.

GVSU has participated in Make a Difference day for over 15 years. Gallagher himself participated in the event as a student, but now he works in the background to craft the experience.

He said nonprofit organizations signed up to participate in the event. Based on which organizations signed up, the team picked a wide variety of them in order to have more choices for students.

“Instead of having 15 organizations that are all environmentally focused, we want to have one or two environmental ones, one or two health, one or two education ones,” Gallagher said.

Though the national Make a Difference Day takes place on Oct. 24, GVSU opted to host their version on Oct. 17 as not to conflict with the homecoming football game.

The event was open to all GVSU students. Christine Bell, an intern at Laker Leadership Programs, said students did not need any kind of volunteering experience to join in.

She said participating last year completely changed her mind set and made her aware of the wealth of opportunities that are available for students who want to aid the community.

“To see how something so small and taking a few hours out of my day can have such a big impact on everybody,” Bell said.

This year, Bell did not participate in the event. Instead, she worked behind the scenes to ensure Lakers had the best possible experience.

Working behind the scenes is another way Bell realized how much Make a Difference Day impacts the community. Everywhere you look, there is someone working to help someone else, Bell said.

There were many people involved with the event, whether it was members handing out T-shirts or organizations helping students make a different.

“It’s an amazing feeling,” Bell said. “It’s something that you don’t really realize how much goes into it until you actually step back and see how the operation is going.”

That hard-to-describe feeling is key for Bell. She said convincing students who have never thought about volunteering is hard, because explaining the feeling of fulfillment is not easy. However, she usually starts by telling students her story and trying to explain how Make a Difference Day changed her mindset.

“This little thing that you think you might be doing, even if it’s raking leaves, it makes such a big difference when there’s so many of us that come together,” Bell said.

Students who chose to participate were matched with an organization that fit their interest. If they wanted to, they could ask to work with their friends, Gallagher said.

Whether students elected to work with students they did not know, friends from class or members of their student organization, Bell said everyone would get the same special feeling of fulfillment she talks about. She said she encouraged anyone, especially college seniors, to try it.

“It’s that feeling that you get of ‘we’ve really done something,’” Bell said. “And then the impact that you make on people—people that tell you ‘thank you’ and they’re just genuinely happy. If we all get together and do it, it’s just a better community.”