About 400 students will storm the Drill Field ready to get dirty Saturday morning.
There will not be any mud-wrestling going on-it’s the second annual Bulldog Benefit. Volunteers will get dirty as they help clean up Starkville and campus.
The event kicks off at 8:30 and will last until 12:30 p.m. The benefit, which is sponsored by the Student Association, pairs campus organizations with community groups that need assistance in maintenance and clean-up. Volunteers will be assigned to various work sites around the community and on campus. When the projects are complete, workers will reorganize on the Drill Field for awards and pizza.
“We’re putting special emphasis on schools this year. Last year we focused more on homes,” event coordinator Holli Hitt said.
Volunteers will be assigned to Sudduth Elementary School, Armstrong Middle School, Starkville High School and the Millsaps Vocational Center, among other places, Hitt said.
Some changes are being made for the 2004 Benefit. Hitt said that donations from local grocery stores will allow more snacks for the volunteers. Also, she said that T-shirts would be given away “while they last.”
Also new in 2004 is the “extra push on bringing the campus and community together,” Hitt said. “We hope the community will see how great the MSU students are.”
SA President Josh Blades said the SA organized the event to promote community service.
“Part of being a good citizen is community service,” Blades said.
Blades said the Bulldog Benefit is one of the “biggest and most important” events of the entire year. He said he feels that students should take advantage of any time they have the opportunity to get involved.
“It’s a lot of fun to get involved, plus it really builds relationships,” Blades said.
Although some volunteers expected to show up at tomorrow’s event will be individuals, most will belong to a campus organization that sponsors a team.
“The organization may send four volunteers or 40,” Hitt said.
The Campus Activities Board is one organization sending a team of workers to the Benefit. Cori Wilkinson is in charge of organizing that team.
“Everybody on CAB is very excited. We all hope it will have a positive outcome. Everybody is ready to give back to the community,” Wilkinson said.
CAB Student Director Mary Clare Ehrhardt said, “I think it’s important for us all to pitch in and work together as a whole for the university.”
Hitt said all volunteers are welcome in the morning, and anyone interested in participating in the event should be on the Drill Field at 8:30 a.m. For more information, contact the SA office at 325-3917.