Students volunteering throughout country with Alternative Breaks
University of Maine students with Alternative Breaks, a student-led organization that promotes community involvement, are spending spring break volunteering throughout the United States.
Since 1998, Alternative Breaks has organized trips for UMaine students to provide volunteer service to others.
This year, the nonprofit is deploying eight groups of eight–12 students. The 88 students, along with faculty and graduate student trip advisers, will spend a week on volunteer work that will touch on several social issues.
One of the groups traveled over winter break to the Steinbruck Center at Luther Place in Washington, D.C. The eight students worked with individuals experiencing homelessness and poverty, according to Bryanna Plummer, a fourth-year psychology major at UMaine and Alternative Breaks co-coordinator.
The remaining seven trips will leave Saturday, March 5 to travel to different states.
Each group will take part in a variety of work throughout the week, including mending fences, maintaining trails, playing with children and helping staff with various projects, Plummer says.
Volunteer locations in March:
- Carolina Tiger Rescue in Pittsboro, North Carolina and Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary in High Falls, New York to work with animals and the social issue of animal welfare;
- Frankie’s World day care center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to work with children with disabilities in a day care setting;
- Childhelp Alice C. Tyler Village in Lignum, Virginia to work with children who have experienced abuse and neglect;
- Rebuilding Macon in Macon, Georgia, to work on homes for individuals who are elderly or disabled and have a low income;
- Land Between the Lakes, a national recreation area in Golden Pond, Kentucky, where students will focus on conservation and the environment; and
- Kingdom House in Saint Louis, Missouri to confront urban poverty and racism.
“Each site is unique and needs assistance with different tasks, and we are eager and happy to help,” Plummer says.
More information about Alternative Breaks is online.