Pacific Students Give Back

This holiday season, Pacific University is supporting Soles4Souls, a global nonprofit that provides new and gently used shoes to those in need.

Faculty, staff and students are collecting their used shoes in bins across the university’s campuses. Some are even taking extra steps to promote the cause.

The women’s basketball team encouraged their fans to bring shoe donations to the Dec. 4 game in the Stoller Center, and the coaches planned to spend the whole game barefoot to call attention to the drive.

That’s only one small way that Pacific people are giving back this holiday season, though.

On Dec. 1 — known as #GivingTuesday in the social media realm — student organizations teamed up to host a Philanthropy Fair on the Forest Grove Campus. The fair brought attention to a number of philanthropic organizations in the area and gave students a chance to connect with the groups making a difference in the world.

Pacific Rotaract gathered clothing, toiletries and food for the Forest Grove Severe Weather Shelter. Students from the Residence Hall Association had a station where people could make tie blankets for severely ill children through Project Linus. And women from the Theta Nu Alpha sorority distributed information about Monika’s House, the only domestic violence shelter in Washington County.

At Pacific, community service doesn’t just happen during the holidays. Civic engagement is a cornerstone of the academic experience, and all undergraduates are required to participate in a class or project that connects them with the world.

The Center for Civic Engagement helps make those connections, and this fall, the center is helping students plan Service Saturdays out the community. In November, a group of students packed 133 meals during a volunteer shift at the Oregon Food Bank. In December, another group is helping restore Council Creek in Hillsboro.