By Christy Shepherd
Rubber duckie, you”re the one, you make serving so much fun.
BYUSA officers made service fun by using rubber ducks to kick off their new “Pass the Duck” service campaign Wednesday night.
The “Pass the Duck” campaign focuses on getting the entire BYU community involved in serving each other.
BYUSA officers started the campaign by doing random acts of service to students in Heritage Halls, giving each person a rubber duck and encouraging them to pass it along when they do service for others.
“We wanted to do something fun and memorable that everyone can participate in,” said BYUSA program director Stephanie Blackner.
BYUSA officers plan to continue this tradition every few weeks for at least the rest of the semester. Each time, they hope to go to a different student housing complex.
“We want to get the ducks circulating and everyone serving each other,” said BYUSA officer John Bennion.
The acts of service included everything from taking out garbage to doing dishes to just visiting.
The students who received the service really appreciated it. “I was kind of surprised that people just showed up at my door and wanted to serve. It”s not something that happens every day,” said Kevin Carpenter, 18, from Alpine, Utah.
Seeing that the student leaders actually go out and practice what they preach motivated students to do the same.
“It”s cool that they actually do stuff and it”s not just all talk,” said Natalie Petersen, a freshman majoring in English teaching.
“College is kind of a selfish place. It”s cool to have a reason and a reminder to serve those around us,” commented Alisha Lemieux, a freshman from Mesa, Ariz., majoring in nursing.
Many students want to get involved but just don”t know how. They liked hearing the specifics of all the different things they can do.
Getting involved with clubs, community service, or one of the other programs BYUSA offers is a great way to meet people.
“It is nice to see the same people at activities. BYU is such a big place, it”s easy to get lost,” said Missy Carr, a freshman from Orem.
Others want to do volunteer work but have trouble finding places to serve.
“I have to volunteer somewhere for my American Heritage class. Having the BYUSA leaders come to my house gave me some great ideas of places I can volunteer on campus,” Petersen said.
BYUSA officers were pleased by the success of the project kickoff. They enjoyed being able to meet some of the students they are serving.
Thom Carter, BYUSA executive director of activities said, “It brought me back to my mission days, knocking on doors, serving others, except we used ducks instead of The Book of Mormon.”
The “Pass the Duck” campaign gives students a tangible reminder to follow the BYU phrase they hear so often: “Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve.”
