An inside look at Service Saturday: A student's perspective

The goal of Service Saturdays, Viterbo’s monthly day of service in the La Crosse community, is to put the university’s core values into action. In many ways, a sense of stewardship, integrity, service, contemplation, and hospitality is embodied by students’ gifts of their time and talents to positively impact the lives of other people in the city. In this issue, the Lumen got an opportunity to confirm this with a long-time participant in the program, junior Elementary Education major Christian Gilman.

In addition to pursuing a career in service to the next generation, honing her focus with minors in Special Education and Early Childhood Education, Gilman has made Service Saturdays a major part of her Viterbo experience over the past three years. Looking back to her freshman year and her first couple of Service Saturdays, she remembers gaining confidence in her service activities.

“My first mandatory one was at the Salvation Army, and I kind of felt uneasy,” she remembers thinking, “‘I don’t know any of these people; I’m never going to meet these people again’.” However, this feeling changed as she continued to serve. “By the second time I did Service Saturday, which was (at) the FSPA garden, I was much more relaxed…it felt better knowing that I was helping someone I was never going to see again because they couldn’t get the opportunity to pay me back.”

Her long list of events includes Oktoberfest clean-up, time at the Children’s Museum and American Legion, cleaning up after the Rotary Lights, flash flood clean-up, and blanket-making for children removed from their homes by Social Services.

Reflecting on what all this volunteering means to her, Gilman says, “It makes me happy to be able to help others, and that’s where I find myself; that’s how I connect with myself—part of the reason why I want to become a teacher.”

When asked what tips she would give to other students interested in participating in Service Saturday, Gilman provides the suggestion, “Try [to] be yourself. If you’re very aware of the people around you, and self-conscious about that fact, it’s going to be harder to make connections. Try [to] relax…just introducing yourself and knowing a few things about [the people you’re working with]—asking questions—helps a lot.”

For her, two of the main Viterbo values exhibited at Service Saturdays are integrity and contemplation. She notes that questions presented to small groups after each event provide an opportunity to connect and reflect with people from other job sites. Concerning integrity, she shares that “I view integrity as the responsibility you have to your environment—the people around you; your honesty.” Gilman makes her commitment clear when she says, “I genuinely want to help these people; I don’t want them to pay me back. That’s why it’s called volunteering.”

The next Service Saturday event will be held on Feb. 22. Undoubtedly, Christian Gilman will be among the dedicated citizens setting out to make the La Crosse community a better place to live.