University of Michigan alumni clubs and affiliates all over the country recently gave back to their communities during a month of service to celebrate Spring Commencement.
A total of 37 clubs participated in 56 different projects during May and early June with 572 volunteers putting in 1,328 hours of service. This year, the Alumni Association partnered with Kroger’s Zero Hunger, Zero Waste initiative, and encouraged clubs to address food insecurity in their communities. The end result was more than 4,000 pounds of food collected, 1,562 boxes of food packed, 22,950 pounds and 18 pallets of food sorted, and 1,980 meals made.
“Our clubs’ community service day efforts are a great way to showcase the collective impact Michigan alumni have on their local communities,” says Carlos Martinez, the Alumni Association’s senior associate director of alumni engagement. “We are so proud of the work our clubs did this year on addressing food insecurity in their communities.”
The service work wasn’t limited to food insecurity. Many clubs held clean-up events with 132,100 square feet of park and beach space cleaned.
Some clubs held unique service events as well. The U-M Alumni Club of Greater Washington, D.C. packed 100 backpacks and bags that will be distributed to children in foster care. Each comfort case had a new pair of pajamas, a warm blanket, and a stuffed animal. The same club also welcomed approximately 75 Michigan-based veterans to D.C. as they arrived at the airport. The U-M Alumni Club of Indianapolis teamed up with the Indianapolis Public Library and a local NPR station during a community event that was meant to raise awareness for public services.
“Our clubs are led by alumni volunteers and they aim to provide programming that keeps all U-M alumni connected to each other and to the University,” Martinez says. “From football watch parties and social gatherings to career networking and life-long learning programming, our clubs provide a space for all alumni to stay engaged and we invite all alumni to participate to make this space their own.”
For more information on U-M alumni clubs and affiliates, click here.
