On April 18, 2024, Buena Vista University students came together to serve their campus and the Storm Lake community in the 111th annual Buenafication Day.
Following the opening ceremony, BVU community members made their way to places around the community to volunteer. Sami Kay, Director of Community and Student Engagement, said, “I am going to guess upward of 2 to 300 people volunteering today between students, staff, and faculty, if not more.”
This year’s Buenafication looked a bit different than it has in years past. On-campus volunteer activities were held in the morning while, off-campus services around the community took places in the afternoon.
Brian Lenzmeier, President of BVU, said, “We’ve evolved this year to really focus the morning service on BVU. Doing things inside that support BVU. And then the afternoon is really focused more on Storm Lake. Getting out into the community, supporting our elderly people, supporting our people with food insecurity.”
Some of the activities that took place on campus included cleaning the library, making blankets, making activity kits for the children’s hospital of Omaha, and rolling bandages.
Morgan Malli, junior on the BVU women’s soccer team, said, “To me, it means doing something for the community that does so much for us. All the businesses in Storm Lake, and all the people, they’re always here to support us and the BV community. So, it’s just a nice chance to do something in return for them.”
Another morning service project took place off-campus at Lake Animal Hospital in Storm Lake. There, students helped with various chores such as washing food bowls, giving baths to animals, and cleaning floors. Cassidy Weide, sophomore on the STUNT and cheer team, said, “I’m normally not one to do dishes. I don’t like getting my clothes wet or my hands wet. But I know that it’s going to help them, so it makes me feel better.”
More off-campus services took place in the afternoon. Some of the afternoon service projects were playing bingo at Methodist Manor, cleaning parks around Storm Lake, and packing food at St. Mary’s high school.
Ron Stevenson, Activity Director at Methodist Manor, said, “The smiles they’ll make on the residents’ faces, the conversations they’ll strike up – they might even be from the same town. A lot of people in this building know their neighbors, know their friends, know their families.”
With a reach far beyond campus, Buenafication Day continues to serve as a testament to the impact BVU students, faculty, and staff can have on Storm Lake and the surrounding areas.
