Sometimes the volunteer effort that many Grand Valley State University community members put in can go unnoticed. But the GVSU Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity chapter is trying to change that with their annual Women’s Appreciation Dinner.

Four women were recognized for their community service at the second annual dinner Feb. 12, held at the Alumni House.

Michael Bruce, president of the fraternity, said the women chosen deserve to be publicly recognized for their prominence on campus.

“These women have all displayed some significant sort of service that impacts others while they have been at Grand Valley,” Bruce said. “We chose to recognize these women based on their activeness in the GVSU community.”

Bruce announced the honorees’ achievements and awarded them with plaques to show their service.

“It makes me feel good just to be able to personally show them my gratitude for all of their hard work and effort,” Bruce said.

Kayla Jones, president of the GVSU National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Asia Horne, president of Nu Theta Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., were two of the honorees.

Horne is also the public relations chair for the National Pan-Hellenic Council and was recognized for the work she does through her sorority.

“Pretty much it’s an award to honor the females on campus to recognize their contributions to the on-campus community,” Horne said. “Pretty much people who are heavily involved in their organization and have been making an impact as far as that goes. It means a lot to be recognized for the things you do, even though you don’t necessarily need recognition in order to do the work, but it’s always nice to be recognized, you know, every so often.”

Before the awards were presented, a slideshow honored “50 of the Most Influential Women in History,” which included Maya Angelou, Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Oprah Winfrey and Sojourner Truth.

Jones is involved in five student organizations and Bruce recognized that she has put in more than 360 hours of volunteer work in her own community and in other cities across the country.

“I think it’s just my involvement in the organization and how it’s impacted the Grand Valley community,” Jones said. “We do a lot of, like education based events or performances, so we had a rally for Trevon Martin last year. We do a lot of community service.”

“Every time we have an event, we collect donations for the American Heart Association in honor of a fellow GV student who passed away at the rec, so we do that,” Jones said.
Horne and Jones both work to raise money for the American Heart Association, and have a passion for helping communities.

“You really do it because you love it and you have a passion for it, but it’s also nice for someone to be like, “Oh, I see that you’re doing great things so here’s a little acknowledgment for it,’” Jones said.
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