2018 Global Days of Service Activities
Thank you to everyone who participated in our 2018 Global Days of Service events! You play a critical role in bringing Walden’s social change mission to life every day. See photos from some of our events below.
See how members of the Walden community created their own service opportunities.
In Part 1 of our series on Spotlight on Walden, we highlighted members of the Walden community who focused their efforts on feeding those in need and provided education and healthcare.
In Part 2, Walden community members chose to beautify the world around them and increase access to resources for underserved communities. Sometimes small acts of social change can have the biggest impact for neighbors and neighborhoods alike.
Beechfield Elementary Middle School
More than 250 members of the Walden University and Walden University, LLC community joined forces to bring much-needed color and life to Beechfield Elementary Middle School in West Baltimore. Volunteers helped by refreshing the teachers lounge, creating Orioles and Ravens cafes in the cafeteria, and transforming two classrooms into calming “Mindful Me” rooms as safe havens for overwhelmed students.
Minneapolis Animal Care & Control
On Oct. 15, Walden employees volunteered at Minneapolis Animal Care & Control, which cares for more than 4,000 animals a year. Employees cleaned kennels and helped socialize the animals.
“I loved being able to volunteer my time there,” said Meghan Petrie, assistant field education coordinator. “It was wonderful getting a full tour but then being able to assist with the cleaning of their facility.”
Jeremiah Program
On Oct. 16, Walden employees volunteered to beautify community spaces at the Minneapolis campus of the Jeremiah Program. The nonprofit organization offers low-income single mothers a supportive community to pursue a career-track college education and their children quality early childhood education for stability and a path out of poverty.
Avenues for Homeless Youth
On Oct. 16, Walden volunteers helped Avenues for Homeless Youth by organizing supply closets, doing yard work, and cleaning the kitchen, pantry, refrigerators, and common room. The nonprofit plans to help 300 youth transition to stable young adulthood this year by providing shelter and support.
People Serving People
Walden volunteers went to People Serving People, Minnesota’s largest and most comprehensive family-focused homeless shelter, on Oct. 19 to help by sweeping and mopping floors, washing windows, vacuuming, folding laundry, and cleaning vacant guest rooms for an emergency shelter housing. In 2017 they averaged 349 guests a day—63% of them children.
Tubman
Walden volunteers returned to Tubman on Oct. 20 to repair walls, paint, clean, and break down old furniture to be recycled. The center helps women, men, children, and families struggling with relationship violence, substance abuse, and mental health.
Every Third Saturday
On Oct. 18, volunteers supported Every Third Saturday—a nonprofit that helps veterans find new purpose after military service—by cleaning, landscaping, painting and organizing.
San Antonio Food Bank
On Oct. 9 and 11, 80 employees from Walden’s San Antonio office volunteered in their local community for Global Days of Service. Together, they sorted and packed 54,000 pounds of produce, nonperishable food, and household items at the San Antonio Food Bank. The nonprofit serves more than 58,000 people a week in a 16-county area. Their focus is for people in need to have “food for today and resources to be self-sufficient in the future.”
United Way
On October 27, nearly 30 Walden volunteers joined with the United Way in Tempe, Arizona, to build sheds, tend flower beds, and paint concrete for kids’ activities at a local school for young children who have developmental delays.
