It has been a little more than two months since Ben Holscher put his friendly volunteering competition into place at Galloway Hall.
The dorm residents aim to hit a minimum of 324 volunteer hours per floor before April 27. There has yet to be a floor that has met the 324-hour mark, but Holscher said “third floor and fourth floor are well on their way.” Third floor currently holds first place with 268.3 hours, while fourth floor holds second with 230 hours.
The winning team will be rewarded with an all-expense-paid trip to Six Flags in Chicago.
In order to be eligible for the amusement park excursion, each team member must log a minimum of four hours. But for some that’s just a bonus.
“My motivation is the service, not necessarily Six Flags,” said freshman Atoni Germano, from the third floor. Outside of Galloway projects, Germano is often found every Wednesday and Friday volunteering at the Mary Randall Preschool.
This past weekend, Germano and other members of Galloway went into town to assist Hillsdale residents with tasks ranging from sweeping porches to weed whacking in what they hope to make a weekly project.
“My group worked on two houses together,” he said. “We were raking leaves, pruning trees, mowing lawns. The lady gave us milk and cookies during our break. She had us working.”
Germano is also a member of the Respect Everything About Life and Love team, which is currently aiming for GOAL status. The team travels to local middle schools and high schools to speak to students about the value of chastity, dating relationships, and modesty.
Freshman Korbin Kiblinger, also a resident of third floor, has also been key to carrying the team.
“I started volunteering the second week of school,” he said. “I came to Hillsdale and heard students had a reputation for volunteering. I knew I needed to take advantage of that.”
In addition to volunteering with the REALL team and teaching music fundamentals at the Hillsdale Academy, Kiblinger also puts in time at the Salvation Army at least once a week.
Both men said consistency and variety strengthen the effectiveness of the Galloway volunteer competition.
“We’re not all doing the same stuff,” Kiblinger said. “It’s good because we have some people who are working with kids and others who are doing hard labor in the community. I don’t think it’s going to end when the competition is over.”
Although fourth floor is trailing close behind, Kiblinger thinks that third floor will run the victory lap.
“G4 definitely pulled it out,” he said. “We weren’t even thinking about them. But I think we’ll win it in the end.”
The teams have a little more than two weeks before final hours are tallied.
