By Laura Cantera
From the darkest corner of the Maeser grounds to the dimly lit quad, students should be aware if they are walking around campus late at night this week, because someone will be watching them.
“Every year during the week preceding U of U game, we seek out volunteers as our eyes and ears to watch campus,” said Steve Messick, the university police officer coordinating campus watch.
Because of the strong rivalry between the U and the Y, threats of vandalism increase this week. As a result, volunteers from the Ham Radio Club and Intercollegiate Knights will spend the hours of 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. perched on top of the Kimball Tower, staked out by the Marriott Center or roaming dark alleyways of campus.
The HRC is responsible to watch central campus and the Knights guard exterior areas of campus, such as the Marriott Center, and football and baseball stadium.
“One of the past club officers said it was a good opportunity to take his girlfriend to the top of the Kimball Tower with the binoculars and go stargazing,” said Jim Manookin, design engineer for the office of information technology, and HRC advisor.
Although dating is not the intended purpose of the service, most students do have a good time.
“You have to have a weird sense of humor to call this fun because you stay up several nights at a time, when most everybody else in their right mind is in bed,” Manookin said. “We call that fun because it”s a service opportunity that makes us feel important and valued.”
And it seems as if their contributions are making a difference.
Messick said prior to the student help, red paint would frequently show up on the ”Y,” statues and other symbols of BYU.
“Ever since we”ve used them quite regularly the vandalism”s gone down,” Messick admitted.
While looking for “suspicious” characters, students have helped stop other potential criminals.
“One year we caught a peeping Tom at Heritage Halls,” Manookin recalled.
If a volunteer does notice something out of the ordinary, he simply calls in to “net control,” located on top of the SWKT. The person stationed there then alerts the police to the threat.
“We don”t try to stop them. That”s not our job,” said Doug Koch, 24, a senior majoring in neuroscience, from Centennial, Colo., and service coordinator for the HRC. “But we follow them and let the police know where they are.”
Koch said he enjoys the week because it gives him a chance to do something other than studying.
“It”s an opportunity to do something that has some potentially direct impact for good,” Manookin said.
For those who want to get involved this week, but prefer to keep normal hours, BYU is holding “Blue and White Week.” There will be noon activities, including a table tennis tournament, finger paint relay and hot chocolate stand.
