More than 500 volunteers from Dickinson and United Way came together to complete 48 service projects across Carlisle as part of the annual Day of Caring.

President Margee Ensign was among the participants of United Way of Carlisle and Cumberland County’s Day of Caring this past Friday, Oct. 6, which provided students multiple outlets to get involved in the Carlisle community.

Ensign spent Day of Caring at LeTort Elementary School, reading to and with the classes there.

“I could have stayed there all day,” Ensign stated. “The school I was at, everyone was happy! We were supposed to read to them but instead we had them read to us instead and it was just so much fun!”

According to Vice President and Dean of Student Life Joyce Bylander, there were close to 500 volunteers who participated in the event, across multiple locations.

On campus the event ended at Britton Plaza with a table encouraging students to take part in quick acts of community service. These small projects included making cards for Thornwald Home, making encouraging bookmarks for local elementary school students and signing a thank-you banner for Union Fire Company.

“Connecting Carlisle with Dickinson should always be a priority,” said Ken Bamba ’20, who is currently a volunteer for the United Way of Carlisle and Cumberland County. “When we decide to rely on ourselves and distance ourselves from the nearby communities, we are not taking advantage of the resources and untapped potential that can be found away from campus,” he said.

Bamba continued by saying that despite his participation in CommServ, he does not always feel connected to the Carlisle community. “I don’t frequently find myself off-campus for any reason,” he explained.

Allison Boni ’18, who was one of the Day of Service coordinators, also hoped that the Day of Service would attract more students’ attention to the outreach programs available in the Carlisle community.

“We’re going to try and have more things like this so students can get involved even for a minute,” she said. “It shows that Dickinson students are thinking about them and they want to get involved with them and help out,” she said.

Under Ensign’s new leadership, she will continue to emphasize community engagement and action, as she briefly delved into during her inauguration speech this past Saturday, Oct. 7. “When Benjamin Rush founded this college, he hoped that its graduates would not be passive bystanders,” she said. “Now, we hope that our graduates will help build a better world.”

In a separate interview, Ensign stressed the importance of continuing the tradition of service.

“I thought it was very important that major community leaders were saying we are together. It was extraordinary! Everybody was out doing really significant things. What’s really important is not just a  day, all of that has to be sustained.”